staehpj1

I recommend supporting airlines with bike friendly policies even when flying without your bike. Don't reward the ones that are bike hostile with your business.

That said, there is always the chance for gate agents that don't follow the policy. That can work to your benefit or detriment. Best to be armed with a printout of the policy just in case.

djb

I can't add anything to Asian airlines, never having flown there, but I would add that given the multiple flights, be sure that you tape very well the bottom corners of the box, even running tape along the full length of the two long edges. The more the box will be moved, maybe dragged, over rough cement, more tape will mean less chances of the cardboard getting ripped, especially if rain is involved and wet tarmac.

Also, reinforce tape the four or six "hand openings", I always do this to help reduce a rip occuring when a worker roughly grabs it and pulls hard.
I just flew back from a trip with two legs each way, so four transfers into and out of planes, and this box was also used last summer, and it is still in good shape--yes luck, but also the extra tape helped with the "contact points".

I also always get the smallest box that my bike can fit into, and why I kept this box from last trip. Bike is more secure inside and much easier moving around on an airport trolly and easy to "sidestep" it through narrow doors or whatever while still on the trolly.
Sidestep-- I mean lifting the rear wheels of trolly with bike box horizontally on trolly, leaving front wheels on ground and "crabbing" sideways around stuff. Works very well and easy to do.

my cardboard box is 148 x 19.5 x 82

we learned years ago about different carriers and the origin flight rules from the original carrier not applying. Not with bikes, but with regular baggage, so I've been very aware of this for a long time, and specifically chose my recent flight so that the same carrier did both legs of my flight.
A learning experience for you, but c'est la vie, that's life. Live and Learn.
good luck

dmeans2anend

Thanks for the tips on packing the bike.

Unfortunately, the bike bag won't work in my situation because Asiana Airline requires a 'hard case' per their bike check-in policy.
It was specifically stated. I don't want to give them any reason to charge me or give me a harder time at check-in.
Also, the bag won't work for me because I'm going one way on my bicycle tour and don't want to have to ship the bike bag forward or carry it.

dmeans2anend

Hi DJB!

Thanks for the info. I don't know if you remember but you gave me some wonderful tips years ago on bike packing and I have apply those rules ever since. They've been such great tips for all these years.

I will definitely 'TAPE UP' on the box. However, I will be using this bike box once and won't be reusing it due to my itinerary.

My itinerary is like this:

1st Flight: Fly direct from Seattle (SEA) to Seoul (ICN) via Asiana -- Use of the bike box once only and try to recycle or toss. This is the flight segment that I am really worried about regarding the 62" baggage rule!!! Asiana charges $200 for any box larger than 62 linear inches and less than 80 linear inches. Even at 80 linear inches, it's hard to get a standard bike box to fit that rule. So the next size up is $400 at 81" to 115". I am going to make my owe bike box but cutting the standard box that I have to get everything to fit the 62" rule. I'll have to take both wheels off and my front carbon fork off of the bike and pack it in order to do this though. I'm thinking a box about the size of 30"x30"x10" or 70 linear inches (L+W+H). But I'm going to use the Banana Box Chopped Method to where two corners are folded in by about 6". It makes it more difficult to measure the size and make it not 30" but something shorter.

• Bike tour from Seoul to Busan (~400 miles) The infrastructure for bike touring is amazing in Korea. The country spent $17 billion dollars years ago on national flood control projects and built a bunch of new dams. As part of that project, Korea built an entire network of bike routes called the 4 Rivers Bike Path up and down and across the country. Check it out if you don't know about it. I didn't even know about it until after I had already booked the trip. See photo.

• From Busan, catch the train and ferry to Jeju Island
• Cycle around Jeju Island (~ 180 miles)

2nd Flight: Fly from Jeju City (CJU) to Gimpo (GMP) and then catch connecting flight from Gimpo (GMP) to Taipei, Taiwan (TSA)

• On the 2nd flight, I'll have the airport bike packing service to pack up my bike since I won't have access to getting a bike box on my own. It's about $40 for the service and I heard that they do a nice job.
• Cycle Around Taiwan (about 900 km or 600 miles).

3rd Flight: Fly from Taipei (TPE) to Seattle (SEA)

• I'm staying with friends in Taipei so I will be able to find a bike box and pack it myself. Hopefully, the Giant bike store in Taipei will have some small bike boxes to give away. Luckily, with EVA Airline, I won't have to worry about the 62" oversize baggage rule and I can use a standard bike box to pack it all up myself.

dmeans2anend

Yes. I totally agree with you when you're 'buying' a ticket. But in my case, I was using my United reward miles and I had the option of selecting a bike friendly carrier like United airline with a longer flight and layover (18 hours total time) or a non-bike friendly carrier like Asiana with a 13 hour direct non-stop flight. I chose Asiana for the direct non-stop flight and hoping less damage to the bike box since there would be no transfer. At the time, I didn't realize that Unites's bike baggage policy would not apply in my case even though it was United that issued the ticket. In my case, the operating carrier which is Asiana, Asiana's baggage rule applied. In short, there are very complicate rules regarding baggage policy when you have a multi-carrier ticket and which carrier's policy applies. It depends on how the co-share between the two airlines are setup. It is not always care cut that the operating carrier sets the baggage rule either or that the ticket issuer's baggage policy apply. Bottomline: You have to call each carrier independently and get the answer and where it is documented. Only then, you go and get it all printed out which I have and I'm prepared to show it at check-in. I'm hoping to show up very early at check-in so that the agent has not had time to get all frazzled and worked up from angry passengers. Hopefully, I'll get a friendly kind agent as at my check-in. Fingers crossed!

staehpj1

Be careful with multicarrier tickets. I have had things get ugly when things got complicated due to either a weather cancellation/delay or a change due to my need to get home early.

Kelly I

I've had three different sets of friends travel United with bicycles in the past two weeks. Two sets to Germany, not on the same flight. They were prepared to pay the $200. per bicycle, none were charged. The third friends were flying from San Francisco to New York. The threat of the $200. fee caused them to go with Bike Flights for roughly the same price. This doesn't help you at all, but is an interesting side story.

Perhaps you will get a sympathetic gate agent at check in. Best wishes to you! It sounds like a great trip. I have the Four Rivers Bike Path pulled up to read about now.

dmeans2anend

Thank you so much!

I am quite excited about the 4 Rivers Bike Path from Seoul to Busan.
About 90% of it is on designated bike paths so I don't have to contend with any crazy drivers!
It'll probably be a different story when we hit Taiwan though...

Here is a beautiful video that someone put up together on Youtube: It is the exact same time of year, October, that we will be doing the 4 Rivers Bike Path from Seoul to Busan.
The fall foliage colors will be a real treat!

djb

Busy weekend so late reply. Sorry don't recall the tips but glad they helped!
good luck with everything and yes, early check in and smiles always help.
Will one day look into that bike route etc, although never have really had an urge to go to Asia, but if I had all the money in the world, why not, looks intriguing.
Cheers

Tourist in MSN

When you unpack a bike, that is the best time to take photos because once it has been packed, you know that the way it was packed worked. I learned that with my S&S coupled bike, I think it was the third time that I unpacked it I took many photos to show every step of how I unpacked it to make packing it in the same order later easier.

If you get a big bundle of zip ties to hold things together, a small side cutters works great to cut the zip ties later. Lacking that and if you do not have an opportunity to go to a hardware store, toe nail clippers also work great for cutting zip ties. I find that much easier and safer than trying to do that with a utility knife. Whatever cutting tools you bring, remember which box and where in the box you packed the cutting tools since they won't be in your carry on. You will need those things first when you unpack it.

I think you said you are removing the fork. Some headsets have lots of parts that have to be in the correct order and orientation. One of my photos is of all the headset parts on the steerer tube. And a rubber band or two to hold all the headset parts from sliding off of the steerer tube, that is how I transport those parts.

You likely have already decided that good shop sized tools are an advantage when assembling and disassembling a bike multiple times.

Do you have a luggage scale? If not, consider investing in one. My S&S bike and the case for it totals to more than 50 pounds, so I have to decide which small and heavy items (usually saddle and pedals) get stowed in my carry on or a different checked bag.

I often wear my bike helmet onto the plane and stow it in the overhead so that baggage handlers do not have an opportunity to crack it.

Good luck.

njkayaker

Expensive (being international) and it will take longer than his flights.

He could ship it to Korea ahead of time (shipping might work for that leg) but it's still going to be expensive.

In country might be cheaper but he'd probably wait a day or two for the bike to arrive.

dmeans2anend

Hi Tourist!

Tourist in MSN

...
Great tip! It hadn't occur to have quick access to the utility knife to cut the zip ties! Now, I will definitely carry a small nail clipper as a carry on as it is allowed. Thanks so much!

The toe nail sized clippers would be much better. Cheap at Dollar Tree.

...

Sounds good. Although, someone had suggested keeping upper and lower fork bearings on the frame and zip tie that to the frame . Keep all the spacers and top cap on the fork. Does it make any difference which way is better? I have the FSA Orbit IS headset (threadless).

I do not think it matters which you use, either system will do since both systems systimatically are intended to keep the parts in the correct order and orientations. Photo of mine, below, with rubber band to keep all the parts on the steerer tube.



I keep the photos on my phone for quick reference and archived on my computer hard drive.

...

I reached out to someone in Seoul, Korea. He might have a set of full size hex tools, torque wrench, pump, and even a bike rack for me to borrow. I'm hoping that works out. Otherwise, it'll be a nightmare in my hotel room trying to get my bike fully assembled with my tiny multi tool.

A good Y type allen wrench with 4, 5, and 6mm for most of the bolts.

Or, another option If you have time to order and get something shipped, these are on sale and pretty useful:
https://prestacycle.com/products/pre...e-lever-handle
and:
https://prestacycle.com/products/pre...bits-extension

If you have a reusable quick link in your chain, the tool to remove the quick link could allow you to put the chain and quick link parts in a baggie for shipping. A couple spare quick links is a useful thing to have too. Along with spare disposable rubber gloves. Chains in a bag are small and heavy, if a hole gets punched in your box, the baggie with the chain might get through the hole and lost. Another bigger heavy duty ziplock baggie for the various small parts (including chain in its own small greasy ziplock) can also be useful. If you have a small box of parts, and if TSA opens up the box to look in it, they might throw everything loose back into the big box, thus a baggie that they can see into might be better than a box.

I always leave all water bottles in the box with the lids off, that way TSA can see that they are empty.

I carry a Lezyne Micro Floor Drive pump on tours. Several years ago I compared that against the Road Morph G at:
https://www.bikeforums.net/touring/1...l#post18521373

...

I often wear my bike helmet onto the plane and stow it in the overhead so that baggage handlers do not have an opportunity to crack it.
What a great idea!!! I might just do that. Do you get stared at though or questioned? LOL

Once someone with an airline looked at me and said - planes are getting safer these days, and he smiled when he said it. I said I did not want baggage handlers to break it, he understood.

But carrying a helmet around in an airport for a few hours can be a hassle, so there are drawbacks to. I did not wear it in the airport until boarding the plane to avoid the strange looks.

...

Good luck.

saddlesores

you don't need the entire set. go over all the bolts on your bike, take only the ones you need.

torque wrench? not necessary.

pump? shirley you have one already!

bike rack? don't assume the rack will fit your bike. do you really wanna spend the first couple days of your tour hunting down adapter plates and trying to modify a strange rack to fit?

djb

exactomundo, especially about the rack.

Tourist in MSN

For some things, a torque wrench may be a really good idea. He has a lightweight bike, it might be carbon, I am largely clueless on carbon but it is my understanding that a torque wrench is more important there than on steel.

I think bike rack means a stand to hold the frame while you assemble it. I also think it is not necessary, but some people are more comfortable using one if they have always had access to one.

I bought a torque wrench (although almost never use it) specifically for the coupler bolt on my Ritchey Break Away frame, they are very clear that you should use a torque wrench on that bolt. I suspect right now that the OP wished he had a Break Away frame. The case exceeds 62 inches, but by only a small bit and most airlines do not use a tape measure to verify sizes.

dmeans2anend

Thanks Tourist for the wonderful tips!

I especially like the link to the Presta tool! I have it on order today so it should get here before I leave. I LOVE the rachet aspect of it!
I did see something similar years ago from Harbor Freight PITTSBURGHRatcheting Right Angle Multi-Bit Screwdriver Set, 8 Piece but didn't get it. I was too lazy to chase down all the necessary bits to build a bike tool kit. I also figured that buying all the little bits would get rather expensive.

I'm assuming for the bearings on the steerer tube you pack some anti-seize compound like Park Tool ASC-1. I intend to pack in little vials some PT grease and the anti-seize compound. I'll put anti-seize compound on steerer bearings, and pedal thread. I'll grease the seatpost, the threadless stem steering column binder bolt (and be sure not to get any on the steerer), and stem handlebar binder bolts (and be sure not to get any on the handlebar). I'll also pack threadlocker for the screws and bolts on my rack and cleats. And lastly, bottle of lube for the chain. Any thing else I should consider?

I'm actually going to be changing out my chain for this trip. So prior to the trip, I'll fit the new chain to size and use the old quick link for that. Then remove the new chain and pack in the new quick link and couple of extras that I have for the bike. Do you zip tie the larger Ziplock baggie to the bike frame? I just don't want anything loose in case there is a hole in the cardboard box and it being lost or the bag of stuff being a projectile to hitting other parts in the box when the box is moved around. Otherwise, I might just put it all in a second box which I am checking in with all of my personal stuff in the two Arkel UL dry-lite panniers and the bike rear rack. I'm not sure if I'll pack the fenders for this trip even though I think they'll come in handy as we are into fall weather. However, I have 3 flight segments where I'll need to pack up the bike : 1) US to Seoul, 2) Jeju Island to Taipei (packed by airport packing service), and 3) Taipei, Taiwan to US. On first and last segment, I'll be packing it but from Jeju to Taipei, I'm using the airport packing service where they will box up the bike for around $35 - $40 including the bike box and all. This way, I don't have to worry about chasing down bike box. But, I'll probably have to get to the airport especially early to make sure they have time to do all of this before the 10:30 am flight. Luckily, it is only the first segment from US to Seoul that I will need to complete disassemble bike to get it below 62" rule. For the other segments, I can get away with a standard bike box without oversize baggage fee penalty. Oh back to the fenders. I have the plastic Planet Bike fenders and their sort of awkward and not sure if their will survive all three segments of packing and unpacking and the troublesome task of installing and removing them. How do you pack you fenders (if travel with it) and protect it? Or do you have more beefy fenders than the plastic stuff?

Bike Packing Service at Jeju Island International Airport (CJU)



Good point on the water bottle. Thanks!

I actually already have the Lezyne Micro Floor HP Pump for road bikes. However, I have the older version without the gauge. I'm envious of yours with the gauge. One of these days, I'll have to do an upgrade. I thought about buying a handheld digital gauge, but I haven't yet because I just don't know if it's that accurate and worth carrying the extra weight. But, I guess I should check the tire pressure every few days to get best pressure for riding.

dmeans2anend

Yes, exactly! I want the torque wrench for the 'carbon' fork on my bike.

Yes, exactly. I meant to say 'bike work stand' but my quick train of thought got the better of me. I know that it is not necessary but why not if you have access to one. It's just so much easier to assemble a bike together!

Yes, exactly. I saw a titanium Ritchey Break Away exactly my size for sale on Craigslist a few years ago but the seller wanted way too much for it. I made an reasonable offer but he didn't budge and since I already had 3 bikes, it wasn't worth it. But now..... it would be nice! LOL.. I have seriously considered a Bike Friday with disc brakes for overseas touring. Presently though, I'm just not sure how much overseas touring I'll be doing in the future. If this trip goes smoothly, I might definitely invest in another bike for ease of travel in the future.

dmeans2anend

I think you completely missed the point here:

Someone has kindly offered me the full use of their bike tools. If I have access to full size tools, why not take advance of it and make my assembly of the bike all that much easier. I know it is not necessary but it is convenience that I am taking full advance of.

Torque wrench? Yes, torque wrench is particularly important when your are working on a carbon bike! I have a carbon fork that I will need to put disc brake calipers and stem back on.

Pump? Yes, I always carry a pump, a Lezyne HP pump (no gauge). But why use a small hand held pump when you have access to a full size pump with a gauge?

Bike rack? My train of thought got the better of me while I was typing fast. I meant to say a "bike work stand". Not necessary but a total convenience.

FYI: I have a Old Man Man rear bike rack fitted to my bike. ( I totally agree that getting a rear rack to fit on a bike can be a tedious journey). This is not my first bike tour. I have done many in the US so I'm quite aware of the touring necessities. However, it is my first overseas bike tour so the complications with shipping and reassembly is new to me.

Tourist in MSN

I have not carried grease on a tour, have not had any problem. I just bring chain lube. Starting about two tours ago, I also started to carry the small vial of removable threadlocker. Pedals, I might put a bit of grease on the crank arm threads when I pack it, but that is it.

...

I do not zip tie a baggie of small parts to anything, but my S&S bike case is crowed and that is not really necessary, it won't fall out of a hole.



...

Fenders stay home, do not fit in the S&S case. Last trip, had some really tiny ones that I used instead of full fenders.

dmeans2anend

Thanks for the photo.

Wow, you really do pack it in there. Do you worry about the spokes getting broken?
I didn't know that I could put weight on top of the spokes.

Tourist in MSN

The only airplane trips that I have taken with a bike to a foreign country is with my S&S bike. I have not yet taken my Ritchey Break Away on a plane anywhere, I bought it in spring of 2018 within a few weeks after I got home from another trip, and I got lucky and saw a great deal on line. If Covid had not come along, I probably would have taken it on a plane trip or two by now. The Ritchey is a light weight road bike, I would not want to carry camping gear on it.

My S&S bike is a very heavy Rohloff touring bike. The last trip I took it on, a lighter bike would have been adequate but the S&S couplers were the deciding factor, so I had a much heavier bike on that trip than I really needed.

***

If you put a new chain on but not a new cassette, ride it some to make sure that you do not get any skipping. Last time I changed chains on my rando bike, I started having chain skipping on a few sprockets, so had to change the cassette too.

If the old chain and cassette still have some miles left on them, you can put them back on when you get home. I do not change a cassette until it needs changing, but in your case, you might not want to start a trip and immediately start looking for a bike shop. So, a new cassette might be in order? Maybe others on this forum will comment on this?

Tourist in MSN

On one trip, I needed to true up a wheel or two, but not a big deal. I built the wheels, carry a spoke wrench. I do not really have weight on those spokes.

I carry spare spokes in the seatpost. I had extra spokes when I built up the wheels.

The rear rack will not fit in the S&S case, that goes in my other checked bag.

If you are worried about spoke breakage, get a Fiber Fix emergency spoke. If a spoke never breaks, consider it an insurance policy. Here is how it works:
https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fiberfix.php

I bought mine at Amazon. Since I bought my Ritchey bike as a complete bike, I did not know the spoke lengths, so instead of measuring any spokes on the wheels, I just bought the Fiber Fix instead. I have never used it and hope I never do, but I am happy for the peace of mind that I have it.

Tourist in MSN

My Ritchey bike is badged as a Raleigh. It came to me in the Raleigh box, so I had an opportunity to take photos of the way that the manufacturer packed it for shipping. These are just FYI, photos below.



Bottom left in photo below is a small box of small parts.



The next photo was cropped from the first photo, they installed the rear derailleur on the bike at the factory, but they had a plastic protector that kept the rear derailleur away from the side of the box.

Tourist in MSN

One more comment, if your wheels are not on the bike, take the skewers out of the wheels. When I was packing up to come home on my Iceland trip, there were two Italians that had just arrived in Reykjavik, it was a Sunday and they were looking for replacement skewers, somehow their front skewers got bent n transport. I had no idea where the nearest bike shop was, or if it was open on Sundays.

On tours, I use bolt on skewers, not lever type. They will open up with any 5mm allen wrench. I use those as an additional theft prevention device, I assume most bike thieves are opportunists and do not have a multi-tool in their pocket.