PACKING IN A SUITCASE

Your Swift bicycle will fit in many different types of suitcases. Of course, it won't fit in all suitcases. This suitcase is a Samsonite "vertical 30inch" hardshell suitcase, which seems to work pretty well. It has "in line skate" wheels on the sides and rolls nicely. It seems to protect the bike quite well. We bought it new on eBay for $120. We removed the doohickies from the inside for organizing clothing and toiletries. We're not sure if this suitcase fits all airline baggage requirements, and some say that there are some persnickety international carriers out there that strictly enforce maximum size limitations. All we can do is report that we haven't heard of anyone not being able to check this pretty common Samsonite case. WARNING: The Swift packs more easily than most travel bikes. Nevertheless, packing a bike is a fussy task. If you are careful, and pretty good with things mechanical, you won't have a hard time. If you are easily frustrated by projects like putting a child's toy together, you're not going to like packing a bike.

Instructions

1. Assess your bike mechanic skills. Do you know which way your left pedal is threaded? Do you know how to release the brake cables? Can you remove the rear wheel? If the answer to any of these questions is "no", then don't try this on your own. Get someone to teach you these basic techniques before you try packing a bike.
2. You'll need these tools:
• 15mm wrench for the pedals.
• 5mm hex key for the derailleur mounting screw.
3. Pack the day before your trip.
4. Turn on some relaxing music and drink a cappucino with a couple of biscotti. You'll need to be alert with proper blood sugar levels.
5. Remove the pedals. (15mm wrench. To loosen a pedal, push your wrench towards the back of the bike.)
6. Release both front and rear brake cables by slipping the curved cable guide out of the yoke connected to one of the brake arms.
7. Shift the bike into Gear 8 (smallest cog).
8. Remove both front and rear wheels. Remove the quick release skewers from the axles of both wheels. (Keep these small parts somewhere safe, like in a heavy Zip-loc bag.
9. Remove the derailleur. Do this by loosening the derailleur mounting screw. (This is the recessed hex screw about which the derailleur pivots.)
10. Remove the seat post from the frame.
11. Remove the top quick-release lever from the seat post clamp on the frame.
12. Loosen the quick release on the stem riser and remove the handlebar assembly from the steer tube.
13. Put everything in the suitcase as shown below. When you do this, you will pad everything nicely with bubble wrap, foam, cardboard, etc. We don't show any padding in these photos so you can see how the parts fit together.

Note that the frame will only fit in this suitcase if positioned exactly as shown. The trick here is that the seat post clamp, shown in the upper right corner of the photo, will go into the upper half of the suitcase when the lid closes. To get this to fit, you need to remove the quick-release lever on the seat post clamp. You reassemble in the reverse order. Print these instructions and take them along for when you need to pack up on the way home.

Note that there are some really big suitcases out there. This one is called a "pullman" case. The bike fits in this one without even removing the rear wheel.