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Ninja Travel Case

Old 01-13-19, 07:14 AM
  #1  
Ald1 
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Ninja Travel Case

Just about ready to get one, mainly for the airline savings, but would appreciate the resources of the experts here chiming in. Who has one? Good protection? First hand "no charge" for the bike by airlines? Can a TSA lock be used? I also assume I can use this case with bike flights or self shipping. As I build my bikes I have no problem with the extra disassembly. PS I do have the bike insured with Markle (sp?) and also assume they would cover any potential damage? Thank you for your input!
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Old 01-13-19, 11:52 AM
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left to guess

How do you get that Ninja to hold still while you close the case on him?.. will you drill air holes ..?


You mean this back pack case? https://www.orucase.com/

they toutThe world's sneakiest bike travel case.


I comment; the Bike Friday packs in a standard suitcase, so is even sneakier, ...
and offers a trailer kit to tow that case with the bike , once you take it out of that suitcase ..


By the way I have had a conversation with at least one guy , who when ticket agent, withholding boarding pass
Required him to open his S&S , so that Airline employee could see the contents..
And upon seeing it was a bicycle, charged the bike handling surcharge any way..

So no guarantee you will benefit , every time you fly.. even after spending that money...


In a Touring Destination town, We take in bikes shipped via bike flights many times in the summer ,
a trans-continental race is the 1st weekend in June, starting on the west coast .
we will see hard cases and cardboard boxes with those bikes shipped marked assemble or do not assemble ..





.....

Last edited by fietsbob; 01-13-19 at 12:17 PM.
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Old 01-14-19, 06:35 AM
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Originally Posted by fietsbob
How do you get that Ninja to hold still while you close the case on him?.. will you drill air holes ..?


You mean this back pack case? https://www.orucase.com/

they toutThe world's sneakiest bike travel case.


I comment; the Bike Friday packs in a standard suitcase, so is even sneakier, ...
and offers a trailer kit to tow that case with the bike , once you take it out of that suitcase ..


By the way I have had a conversation with at least one guy , who when ticket agent, withholding boarding pass
Required him to open his S&S , so that Airline employee could see the contents..
And upon seeing it was a bicycle, charged the bike handling surcharge any way..

So no guarantee you will benefit , every time you fly.. even after spending that money...


In a Touring Destination town, We take in bikes shipped via bike flights many times in the summer ,
a trans-continental race is the 1st weekend in June, starting on the west coast .
we will see hard cases and cardboard boxes with those bikes shipped marked assemble or do not assemble ..





.....
Yes sorry, I'm refering to that companies cases really the sub 62 case. My primary reason is for size and handling as Europe's idae of a mid size rentals are not mine and maybe save the airline fee. I can see both sides of this argument with the airlines. They view a bike at a higher risk of a damage claim and charge what they do. Conversely, if it is insured by me anyway and I sign a waiver and it's under their oversize guidelines why should they charge extra? It still does not give them a licence to be careless as "trade show equipment" also needs to be handled with care?
PS I think the nylon shell is porous enough for him to breath, no drill holes necessary!
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Old 01-14-19, 06:42 AM
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Okay, correction as I did say my primary reason was to save $$$ in travel but upon reflection that's a close second. Was considering the bike box allen which would never fly as a non bike but do not like the bulk,size of things.
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Old 01-14-19, 09:46 AM
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Originally Posted by Ald1
Yes sorry, I'm refering to that companies cases really the sub 62 case. My primary reason is for size and handling as Europe's idae of a mid size rentals are not mine and maybe save the airline fee. I can see both sides of this argument with the airlines. They view a bike at a higher risk of a damage claim and charge what they do. Conversely, if it is insured by me anyway and I sign a waiver and it's under their oversize guidelines why should they charge extra? It still does not give them a licence to be careless as "trade show equipment" also needs to be handled with care?
PS I think the nylon shell is porous enough for him to breath, no drill holes necessary!
I was wondering about those cases myself, as I am planning to fly with my bike to Europe this year.

For reference: Delta Airlines charges $150 each way for transporting a bike.. so $300 RT. pretty expensive! Seems about average.

So those bags, at around $550, are pretty expensive. But if you can avoid the fees, they pretty much pay for themselves. Supposedly they let you fly the bike as regular checked luggage, but I too would like to see some firsthand accounts of this.

Another good thing to note is that if you don't pay the airlines' fees, you will probably be out of luck if your bike gets damaged. You will not be able to ask for compensation. If you check it as a bicycle, and it is packed properly, the airline assumes some of the risk for transporting it. Theoretically, if the bike arrives damaged, they would recompense you for the loss (not sure how easy it is to get this done though). So you are taking a bit of a gamble trying to avoid the fees. Depending on the value of your bicycle, this risk might not be worth it. You could look at the airline fees as buying some kind of "insurance" on the transportation of your bike.

For me personally, the risk of seriously damaging and replacing my frame would set me back a couple $1000, so I would pay the fees for peace of mind.
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Old 01-14-19, 10:33 AM
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Good point but as I already have my $$$$bike insured by markle and I believe this covers the bike regardless if the airline knows it's one or not....also the priceof the case is in line with other good boxes that braodcast the fact it's a bike
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Old 01-14-19, 12:02 PM
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Originally Posted by Ald1
Good point but as I already have my $$$$bike insured by markle and I believe this covers the bike regardless if the airline knows it's one or not....also the priceof the case is in line with other good boxes that braodcast the fact it's a bike
In that case, I guess why not? Worst thing that can happen is that the airline knows the type of bag and changes you the bike fee regardless.
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Old 01-14-19, 12:46 PM
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The plot thickens.........Well I contacted my bike insurance folks (Markel) and the agent informed me that damage to the bike in transit is NOT covered. This is not what I understood when I picked up the policy. On the bright side American Airlines, the folks I have miles with, has this bike policy........

5If bicycle and container are less than 62 dimensional inches and under 50 lbs, you’ll pay the applicable charge for the first checked bag.
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Old 01-14-19, 02:51 PM
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In the interest of accuracy....just after I posted my agent called and said she was mistaken and the bike IS covered when in transit.
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Old 01-14-19, 06:17 PM
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See VBQ on a scheme to make your big wheel bike comply with the carry on requirements to use Japan's Bullet Trains , to get out into the countryside for ride
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Old 02-05-19, 12:48 PM
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I'm on a multi leg trip from Chicago to San Francisco to Los Angeles (and then back to Chicago). I'm using an older generation airport ninja case. The first two flights went without a hitch and I'm confident the flight home will also be uneventful.

I purchased mine used for $100, not realizing it was a slightly older model, but it is already totally worth the investment. I believe you can rent the case before you buy, which would be nice to make sure your bike fits. My 52cm wabi barely fit.
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Old 02-05-19, 01:06 PM
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The fee for bikes may not be charged if you are using a Foreign airline, leaving the Country, and not any domestic ones, even connecting flights..

As I said above, I had a chat with a fellow who had the front desk staff, holding the boarding pass as leverage,
demand he open his S&S coupled bike he had spent extra on to not be oversize..

Seeing it was a bike , charged the fee anyhow.. So, no guarantees ..











..

Last edited by fietsbob; 02-05-19 at 01:21 PM.
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