Originally Posted by
Ttoc6
Need to read back
. I've got til christmas to figure it out.
summary if you are too lazy:
* if you travel a bunch and need a compact setup likely to avoid fees altogether, gavi BFF or orucase.
* if you only travel on alaska and bikes fly for $25 regardless of size, you may want to get another case that minimizes disassembly. (disassembly is concerted 12-15', or a very casual 25' for an orucase but is minutes for the ones where you pretty much remove wheels and bolt it to a frame.)
* consider size of the case packed and even when folded up. if you are traveling internationally and/or in situations where you need to fit it into a small car, a hotel room, transferring from metro to train to bus, etc., you may want to consider the smaller case.
i find the smaller cases are always easier to deal with, even if i'm just going from car to airport counter. inconspicuous never hurts, and something slung casually over one shoulder doesn't attract anyone's attention like wheeling in a giant bag.
also, not really discussed in this thread:
* if you ever think you might travel with your TT bike, the gavi and orucase handle that. the other solutions may not, as they don't all accommodate a bike with extensions. You may be able to remove them, but that's disassembly.
* this thread assumes road bikes. if you want to travel with a MTB, they're not likely to work with any of the small cases. that situation gets a little trickier.
good luck with the decision!