I’ve successfully checked a 29er twice on US flights (in 2009) using one of these, with seatpost and pedals disassembled, but in the bag:
http://www.amazon.com/Sunlite-Folding-Bike-Travel-Case/dp/B000AO7EOG/ref=sr_1_1?qid=1277634648
The dimensions of the bag are technically oversize for the ridiculous 62" linear rule, but since the bag is soft-sided, it squishes down to the size of the wheel, and nobody hassled me about it.
It turns out that, although the staff seemed plenty willing to let me gate check the wheel, they couldn’t because it wouldn’t fit through the X-ray. Does anyone else have experience gate-checking it? Should I have asked them to check the wheel manually?
The key point I intended to make above includes a reminder that the pressure is the same in the whole interior of the aircraft. Carrying it on won’t make a difference.
You can ask, but unfortunately at that point you are in the hands of the TSA. I’m not sure of their current policy on such things, but generally they want things to fit through the X-ray. That doesn’t mean everything does. Like strollers, car seats, wheelchairs. The uncertain part is what the TSA’s answer will be. If you’ve already checked in, they don’t care. They are just as happy to turn you around and tell you to check it. The people with the strollers and car seats are probably counting them as one piece of luggage, so that might be what you have to do. I’d try asking the airline again and see how they work those non-X-rayable things.
I usualy just remove the pedals from my unicycle, lower the air a little bit and give it to them. Never had problems, if it didnt fit in the x ray (to nz I took my 29 inch with me) they put it in the x ray for special luggage.
Maybe in europe they like unicycles more so far it worked many times like this without any complaints from the airport crew.
That isn’t always true. Whilst they try to maintain the same pressure in the cargo hold, they are able to adjust them both individually.
Also, atmospheric pressure at the flying height of planes is not a vacuum.
I never heard about that. What planes are you referring to? It may be a feature of some planes, but I don’t think most. Otherwise you would have to have pressure doors at any access between the cabin and the cargo areas.
Yeah. That would kind of make having wings useless (I think he was just using vacuum for an example or to mean “partial vacuum”)! 
I was also kind of under the impression that the baggage hold was not pressurized but upon reflection live animals are put ‘under the plane’ so clearly some aspect of the cargo portion of the plane is pressurized and kept at some reasonable temperature.
I got a bag custom made for a 24" muni. Used it on 6 different flights and never had to pay anything extra, don’t need to remove pedals or deflate the tire. When they ask what it is I just say unicycle, never had a problem.
also on commercial aircraft at least one (usually all of them on modern aircraft) cargo hold will be pressurized to the same as the cabin (around 8,000ft), the cabin and cargo are connected by vents so it will be the same pressure and roughly the same temp
Custom Bag
I’d love to see a pic of the custom bag, both empty and fully packed (if it’s not too much trouble)…I’m thinking such a bag might be a great investment.
Folks, I’m probably a bit late to this thread but most 24 inchers can be carried on the plane. You’re allowed to bring one carry on and a laptop. So, buy a burly gym bag, which your 24 inch should fit in, and bring it on the plane with you? I travel with my folding bike this way all the time and it’s heavier. I’ve never had a problem carrying it on to the plane. A uni is a whole lot lighter. Just curious though. Has anyone tried to bring one of these on the airplane with them?
24" uni won’t fit in a maximum legal carryon so won’t fit through metal detector, so good luck getting it through security. Might be able to, but I’m not brave enough to try. 20" would probably work if fully disassembled. I’ve got a nice hardshell, rollable suitcase that I got fairly cheap that has worked quite well lugging my 24" and even 26" around the U.S.A. Ofcourse I have to check that, but when I’m flying somewhere I usually am going for a while so have checked luggage anyways.
Looking to check my 27.5 on a plane where max total dimensions are 62". Has anyone met these requirements with a 27.5 or 29er?
My 29er box: 29" + 29" + 7" = 65"
If you removed the tire and found or built a slightly smaller box, that would take off 4" from each of two dimensions, making it 57" -well under the limit. You could also just use the original box and try your luck. Many people on this forum have reported getting away with that, though I don’t know how recently.
The airlines -like so many other institutions- are really tightening our belts these days, so I wouldn’t leave things to chance. You might get charged $100 or $200 for “oversize luggage” or “sporting equipment.” Some airlines have a similar fee for bicycles, so someone somewhere on this forum said to make sure that whatever box you use doesn’t have the word “cycle” anywhere on it, and that, if asked what is in the box, you should say “circus equipment,” or some other words that don’t include “cycle.”
There was a time, not so long ago, when you wouldn’t have had to worry about any of this. In the 80s, as I recall, you also didn’t have to show ID to get on a plane- you just needed a plane ticket.
I’m working on creating one for my 29er road unicycle.
I purchased a S and S bike case backpack that’s 26"x26"x10" and then made a box out of coroplast (from Home Depot) to fit inside. The sides of the box are held together with box rivets.
It has a 700c bicycle wheel it it at the moment which is the same size as my road unicycle wheel. It won’t fit with the tire on the rim so I put some “swimming noodles” around the rim. Recycled bubble wrap will go in after I put all the parts in. The frame would fit in this box but it will probably go in my husband’s suitcase instead.
This backpack comes with rigid plastic sides but doesn’t have a rigid top and bottom. That’s why I made the box to line the bag. If I had it to do over I wouldn’t have purchased the backpack because I don’t like the rounded corners and how it opens. Also, it was kind of expensive. I should have just made another bag/box combo like this one that fits my 24" or 26" unicycle.
I think other unicyclists just put their unicycle in a bag with some cardboard or coroplast pieces on each side. That type of set up is probably much easier to manage if you’re making lots of transfers.
I hope this works. So far I’ve had no problems with my other set up which has made it through several plane trips including one to Europe.
Shipping stuff to unicon
i am looking into ways to take stuff with me to union and i was wondering about shipping it using for example DHL. This would be an alternative for taking a unicycle with me on a plane ride allowing me to combine a 26" and a unicycle hockey setup with a 20". I have been looking into transport by DHL. They have the option for a seven day hold at destination. In the case of unicon there is a DHL office at 15-20 min bus or unicycle ride from the city centre. This way there is little worry about the airline losing or destroying my unicycle or hockey stick.
Anybody done this in the past? Looks interesting….
I haven’t done this with a unicycle but I have picked up a box at my local FedEx shop when I didn’t want it delivered to my door.
Have you checked into the cost? I’ve looked at some of the bike and luggage shipping services and they charge more than what the airline is charging … at least from the US that is.
Before 2000 I could bring my unicycle aboard as hand-luggage at EasyJet …!
Today I simply put it in my suitcase, usually not deflating.
But I do take the wheel out, the seat+post off, and the pedals or cranks off.
Plus I put the bolts back on the hub - to prevent damage.
I do admit it took me a while to find such a nice large suitcase.
That looks like a good bag to use. I may be flying with my 26 soon, and it looks like it might even fit without removing the tyre.
I’ve flown many times with a 29" in a piece of cheap, soft-sided luggage, and always with at lest one other unicycle in there.
I notice the link I provided above (years ago) is no longer right, so here’s a fresh one, showing the type of bag I use (available from the Korean luggage vendor(s) at my local flea market) and how I cram it all in there. I always use some super-light padding, but weigh the finished product because airlines are VERY weight-sensitive these days:
That link goes to the first of 9 images. In that trip I brought 3 unicycles, with my nominally 26" Muni as the biggest. But 29" Muni fits in those bags just as well. Take the frame off, and you don’t need all the zippered extensions open. Mostly I try to keep it one zipper shorter than what’s shown there.