Bike transport for the training camp: How to pack your road bike

Packing tools for racing bikes

Hexagon socket spanner, Torx if necessary, torque spanner with bit set, pedal spanner, centring spanner

Consumables: Assembly grease, assembly paste for carbon parts, cloth, chain oil, packaging tape

Packaging material: Wheel carton, dropout spacers, plastic hub protectors, heating insulation pipes, bubble wrap, copper wire, tensioning straps

Tips

Weight limit

Depending on the airline, 23 kilograms of baggage may be the limit. Find out what is allowed before you book.

Recycling 1

Bike dealers usually receive bikes in boxes, which they have to dispose of together with the packaging material. Most of them will be happy to give you a copy. Boxes in which the rear wheel can remain in the frame are best suited for packing road bikes.

Recycling 2

Plastic-coated copper wire from power cables is well suited for fixing and can be reused after loosening without tools.

Upholstery fabric

Clothing packed in plastic bags is a good way of cushioning the bike in the box (but is not insured in the bike box or case). However, make sure that the parcel is not too heavy.

Packing a road bike: how it works

1. Mark the seat post with a sticker where it comes out of the seat tube so that you can find your usual height more quickly. Open the post clamp screw and pull out the post. Tighten the clamp slightly so that it cannot slip off the tube. Clean the support if necessary and push it into an insulating tube.

2. Shift to the large blade and the smallest sprocket. Next, unscrew the pedals. The left pedal has a left-hand thread, which is opened in a clockwise direction. Pedals can come off jerkily; use an offset spanner or long hexagon socket so that your hands move away from the pointed teeth when unscrewing.

3. Release the brakes, remove the front wheel and, depending on the box, also the rear wheel when packing the road bike. Turn the cranks parallel to the chainstay and secure the pedal eyelet with copper wire. Also fix the chain to the chainring so that it does not fall off and at the same time soften the angular chainring.

4. Loosen the rear derailleur fastening screw. Swivel the rear derailleur slightly backwards and hold it firmly with one hand so that it does not fall off uncontrollably. Pack the disassembled rear derailleur and tie it to the centre of the protected strut using copper wire.

5. Insert a plastic spacer into the dropouts of the fork. If necessary, slide a wide spacer into the wheel axle mounts of the rear triangle. Secure this holder to the chainstays/ dropouts with cable ties or copper wire. Place the bike next to the box and check that it fits with the rear wheel removed.

6. Loosen the screws of the handlebar clamp and remove it together with the cover. Remove the handlebars from the stem. Refit the stem cover and tighten the screws slightly. In this way, the frame and fork remain one unit and you achieve a small pack size when packing the road bike.

7. Wrap the entire drivetrain in bubble wrap so that the chain, which is always a little oily, is insulated from the rest of the cargo. Insert the water bottles into the bottle holders and protect the frame with either foam tubes or bubble wrap.

8. Lift the frame into the box. Position the handlebar stem unit so that it does not collide with a frame tube or the fork and the Bowden cables are not kinked when packing the road bike. Additionally protect critical areas with foam tubes or bubble wrap. Place the seat post in a favourable position.

9. Once the rear wheel has been removed, insert a solid piece of cardboard between the cardboard and the large chainring. A narrow cardboard box that supports the bottom bracket shell is ideal. A second narrow cardboard box under the dropout spacer also prevents the chainring from being damaged.

10. Remove the quick-release levers and pack the wheels in bags or bubble wrap. Additional hub protectors reliably prevent the axles from pushing through the packaging. A cloth over the sprocket prevents the packaging from getting dirty.

11. Slide the packed wheels into the box so that the sprocket or hub is facing inwards and is positioned in the area of the frame triangle where it cannot cause any damage.

12. Wrap the quick-release skewers, pedals, tools, assembly paste and chain oil in cloth and pack everything in a small box. Don't forget the torque spanner, air pump and saddle bag. Close the box and tape it shut. Loop one or, even better, two straps around the entire piece of luggage. If the packing tape fails, the strap will hold the load together.

Further workshop tips can be found in the standard work "The road bike workshop" RRP 24.90 euros.

Dirk Zedler is the owner of the Zedler Institute for bicycle technology and safety GmbH. Zedler - Institut für Fahrradtechnik und -Sicherheit GmbH specialises in testing bicycles and components in its own test laboratory. The company also develops and builds test systems and equips test laboratories for bicycle manufacturers.