The Scicon Aerocomfort bike bag is a soft case bag for transporting a bike. It is unusually wide at one end to minimise the amount of bike dismantling required. Although it is a soft case, it is reasonably well padded.
I spent a long time trying work out the best bag to buy. In the end I went for this. I recently used on a trip to Sicily.
See also: Taking your bike on a plane
.The bag – a little unusual shape, but not much bigger than other bike bags. It doesn’t particularly look like a bike bag.
Features
- Separate compartments for wheels. This was a big improvement on my last bike bag because there the wheels were loose in the bag. The wheel sections are quite well padded.
- No need to dismantle handlebars – One end is wide enough to take.
- Weight: 8.9kg
- External Dimensions: L 118cm x D 25cm x H 90cmFolded Dimensions: L 106cm x D29cm x H 24cm
- Additional padding for top tube and handlebars
- Swivel bike pump
- 1 antishock bike frame
Strengths
- You can add a lot of clothes inside the bag to avoid checking in a separate suitcase. For 10 days in Sicily, I took small handcarry and this bike bag, with a ll my clothes in plastic bags. I thought clothes would provide additional protection to bike. If no clothes, I advise bubble wrap.
- Easy to pack and dismantle. It took me about 10 minutes to pack bike to return home.
- Extra wheel pockets are useful.
- It fits bikes with extended seat post
Weaknesses
It is tight on the rear dérailleur cable. The only way to fit the bike is to squash the rear cable, which could lead to problems with indexing of gears. It was fine going over there – just squashed and you feel uncomfortable having to squash it so much.
It is hard to move around the airport. My last bag and a simple two small handles in the middle of the bag. This was perfect for wheeling around. This bag comes with two removable straps, which are supposed to be removed for flight. They are not good for moving bike around. Also, it’s a pain to have to remove straps at checkin where everything is rushed.
I haven’t used long term yet, though I have noticed other reviewers mention a weakness in the wheels, which is perhaps why they send a spare.
Is it enough protection? I spent a long time weighing up different options and was close to buying a hardcase, but in the end chose this.
Overall
I spent a long time researching possible bike bags and boxes, and from online reviews thought this would be the best. But, it was a hard call. It is has kind of met my expectations
- It is easy to pack, a big bonus for me.
- The wheel bags are good, and the padding seems relatively good.
- The extra room for clothes is good. Though, I’m glad the airline never think to weigh bike bags. I think there is a limit, though I’m sure I was over it.
- Value for money: I was able to pick bag up quite discounted at £225. Compared to other bags this is pretty good value. Since I only travel on plane once or twice a year, I was reluctant to spend £400 plus.
The only real concern is the way the rear dérailleur cable gets bent.
Buying
- Scicon Aerocomfort 2.0 at Wiggle
- Soft bike bags at Wiggle
Inside Sci con bike bag
Straps are there to hold bike in place.
It is said you don’t need to remove seat post. But for my bike 60cm and tall seat tube, you do need to.
However, I recommend removing seat post anyway. The bike only just fit through the oversize conveyor belt at Stanstead – any taller and it would have had to go around the side, increasing time at the checkout significantly.
An advantage of the Scicon, is that my bike is taller than usual. My Trek Madone, with an integrated seat post, wouldn’t have fit in my old bag because the frame is taller than usual.
Keep handlebars in place
On my first cycle tour (of Ireland) I took a bike in a plane and spent the whole tour with a rattling from the handlebars because I didn’t know how to properly tight up stem and spacers. I think I do now. But, it is still a relief to be able to leave handlebars in place – it is one less thing to worry about both packing and unpacking.
More photos of scicon bike bag
I had to remove seat post, but no big deal. This really is an easy job (just use a piece of electric tape to mark your saddle height.
Straps you are supposed to remove before flight. Not a good design.
My sister suggested using clingfilm to keep clothes off the chain. Worked very well.
Buying
- Scicon Aerocomfort 2.0 at Wiggle
- Soft bike bags at Wiggle
Related
I’d recommend removing the rear mech from the frame – getting round the issue you are having with the cable and reducing the chance of a damaged derailleur and worse a damaged mech hanger. Pretty quick to take on or off with just the 1 bolt and no adjustment. On handlebars I tend to just loosen the stem face plate and rotate the bars down (some small marks can help put it back in the same place, saves re-adjusting the headset).
Cheers! I will try
Thanks for posting tejvan. I can see from you last picture that you’ve actually attached the straps in the wrong place which is probably why you had some issues moving the bag around. The small strap goes at the front and the big one goes over the top. Have a look at some official pictures online and you’ll see.