We get a few emails from guests wondering how to pack their bikes ready to pay us a visit, so we vowed that next time we went away on a plane with our bikes, we’d make a little how-to guide… So here it is! (We’re off to Morocco by the way, you should really come along!)
Take one clean(ish) bike. Put it on a workstand if you've got one, makes life a lot easier!
And a bike bag (this one is from "on-one" and came with two wheel bags). You can do this with a bike box from your local bike shop (just ask and they should give you one for free. Or what some people do is double up and put a bike box INSIDE a bike bag. But don't forget about the weight – you're usually only allowed about 20kgs be bag.
Remove the wheels!
Remove your rotors. You don't want them bending…
Put your rotor bolts back in to the hub, that way you won't lose them.
Take off any quick release skewers as well – put them in the bike bag before you forget them!
Then you can place your wheels into the wheel bags.
Place something in between your disc pads to stop them closing accidentaly. Cardboard will do
Then, if you don't have a replaceable rear mech hanger, remove your rear mech.
Or, if you do have a replaceable hanger, remove that. On Sara's heckler, we can remove it without removing the rear mech, your bike might be different!
Wrap your mech in bubble wrap and tape it into the gap in the rear end of the bike. This will protect the mech, and stop the frame getting scratched. If you have time, it might be worth getting a piece of plastic pipe, cutting it to size (135mm) and inserting it in place of the rear hub. You can secure it with your rear QR. This will stop the rear end getting squashed if something is placed on top of the bike and it's lying down. We haven't got any pipe lying about, but haven't had any trouble in the past!
Take your pedals off with either a 15mm pedal spanner, or a 6/8mm hex key. Pedal threads unwind backwards to the bike – so anti-clockwise on the driveside (like a normal bolt) and clockwise on the non-driveside.
Wrap your pedals in bubble wrap – those pins are sharp! Then put them in the bag before you forget!
Remove your handlebars. Undo your stem cap bolts, let the handlebars free and then put the stem cap back on so you don't lose it.
Optional: I remove my front disc caliper for extra safety – it sticks out from the fork, so could be liable to snagging and banging.
Wrap up the bars and caliper in bubble wrap and the bike is good to go into the bag.
Place your bike in the bag. You may need to turn the forks around to shorten the bike so it fits.
Put your wheels in either side at either end.
Zip it up! Now you can go riding somewhere nice, hopefully with flowmtb! Have fun wherever you're going!
