Dismantling and packing your bike box can be a bit daunting especially if it’s your first time. As long as you give yourself time and space it’s a straight forward exercise. Watch the video and just remember to make sure everything is tightly secured and that you use plenty of padding/bubblewrap.
Please click on this link for step by step instructions in Word format.
Before you start packing make sure you can remove your pedals. If they have never been removed they can easily become stuck and it is easy to injure yourself trying to force them off. The process is not helped by the potential confusion of a reverse thread on the left pedal (that’s the pedal your left foot pushes/pulls). If they cannot be removed take the bike to a local bike shop. They’ll remove them in seconds.
If you have thru axels, make sure you have skewers of a suitable length for both front and rear wheels (rear is longer). The boxes do not come with skewers but I have a limited supply available on request.
If you have disc brakes there are also options/recommendations with packing the wheels. I have a bike with discs and pack the wheels as I would with a non disc wheel and to date everyone who has discussed this with me has done the same. Please see my post on “Packing with Disc Brakes” and for further information here is a link to the Bike Box Alan technical info page Disc Brakes
It’s a good idea to clean your chain and cassette before you start this exercise otherwise there is the potential to make quite a mess both during packing and unpacking. Unpacking and rebuilding your bike, in what maybe the confined space of a hotel room, with a greasy chain could leave you very unpopular with the hotel staff.
One of the great things about Bike Box Alan is that you can pack in a lot more than just your bike. As a triathlete I include a track pump, helmet, cycle and running shoes, tools, wetsuit, nutrition and anything else that fits.
Easyjet have a 32Kg limit on the overall weight of a bike box, so if you have a light bike, that’s a lot of extras you can pack in. The rest of your gear should be able to fit into a bag you can carry onboard saving you the cost of additional checked in baggage.
Once packed Bike Box Alan should fit into most hatchbacks. This is a photo of one of my boxes in my Renault Clio, so if you have a car of similar size or bigger you’re all set.
