FACT- TRAVELING WITH SURFBOARDS THAT GET DAMAGED IS A LIABILITY TO BOTH BOARD OWNERS AND AIRLINES
ACT- THE DESIGN FOR AN ‘AIR CAN’ CONTAINER TO CARRY SURFBOARDS EXCLUSIVELY TO FIT IN THE HOLDS OF AIRPLANES WOULD BE OF GREAT ADVANTAGE
so where is our inside man at the locheed - boeing office ?
why cant things be more integrated with the realities of life?
its all my fault for thinking of this earlier
the primary damage as I have seen is the bump and crash of luggage into dellicate boards…
with the air can I’ll bet you could reserve space in advance for boards-boards and the back haul with the can could be filled with cargo and … the dimensional supports like a wallrack in a glassing roominside the container would be stellar
hey this is what PROFESSIONAL SURFING AND THE WUNDERKIND INDUSTRY SHOULD BE INSTIGATING THEN WE COULDN’T GRIPE ABOOUT THEIR SHORT COMINGS AS EASILY
What if you covered your board in like 1" eps or something, then don’t glue it down or anything, but get it to the shape of the board, then tape it in place with some clear tape. Then, glass over it with maybe three layers of 6 on each side and epoxy, then cut it open, and add a hinge to one side and some buckles to the other, and get a custom case for the board.
i usually buy a couple of those 10mm sleeping mats that people use for camping, cut them to the shape of the board cover and put them around my boards inside. this makes 20mm of padding and that foam takes a lot of pressure before it damages the boards inside. if your only travelling with 2 surfboards by a triple boardbag, you can stuff a shit load of bubblewrap and what ever else into the extra space to minimise damage to your boards. because surfboards make up such a tiny percentage of baggage carried by airlines it will be a long while before they customise the interior of their planes to carry surfboards. and even if they did i still wouldnt trust the bastards to not ding the boards.
There is certainly a need, and therefore some kind of market, for better shipping. We ship alot of paddle boards, outriggers and surfski’s via cargo ship. Very difficult to avoid damage.
Like to see a dedicated carrier for delicate water craft to and from the islands.
Just got myself a Dakine coffin with 10mm protection. I traveled to Ireland with a low cost airline(laggage beater). Touch wood the boards were OK the reason I got it was I was tired of paying for 2 boards. Before this I would use the camping matts and tape the boardbags together. If they are heavy they can not be thrown and are normally put on last. Ask for a sticker at the check in desk if your bag does not have a fragile label on it. Check your boards befor you take them from the laggage area.(not many people do this)
This week we had most of our problems with the human handleing of the boards on a flight . Tire tracks accross the board bags[two broken boards] and I had a front row seat to my boardbag being thrown out of the elevator on to the floor by a American Airlines bagage mishandler.A quick fix may be better training of the people coming in contact with the boards.I agree a special place in the cargo area would help also.
Seems to me that if you made a hard shell “coffin” for a board case it would defeat the baggage mishandlers. I’ve had less trouble with damage than the bags actually getting to where I’m going.
Think about this, wrap the board in upholsterer’s foam, then wrap with 6 mil poly, to smooth the cushion foam, box up with XPS or 2# bead foam, tab the box with hot melt, radius corners and pump the voids full of great stuff .glass with 2 layer 10 oz or chopped strand mat, let cure. Sand smooth and prime. Next day cut one side of the box, apply piano hinge along that side, (you may want to have added a wood or aluminum strip under the glass for the hinges and latches), then cut the remaining seam and attach latches.
Remove shell, unwrap board, attach upholsterer’s foam with spray adhesive, paint with whatever, pop rivet a seat belt handle strap, wheels if you like, and voila, a handler resistant case.
I suppose for shipping you could leave the box glassed shut for shipping freight, 3 or 4 boards with foam in between and a cut here line.
Or maybe use plywood instead of foam for the shell?
The mark the outside with : FRAGILE : HUMAN REMAINS or BIOHAZARD for the handlers?
has done just that. went to costa last august. 1 bag w/ up to 2 boards go free. length limit is 10’. why?
because MARTINAIR’S planes have been redesigned…we were told…specifically for surfboards and surfboard bags with a 10’ maximum in a special section of the hold.
we got off the plane. boards met us within 10 minutes. no hassle loading for the return trip, same good results at the end.
i only wish they flew everywhere.
teutonic efficiency also. stewardess asked me what i wanted to drink with my meal. coffee, i said.
coffee es serve efter der meal, she said. glaring at me as if her bright blue eyes were spears, lancing my lack of knowledge of “der rules”.
that aside, the coffee was great, also. but…after der meal.
boy and girl cott dees airlines that dont surf? where is the advocate group? swaylocks pro gripe division I can see it now AND I can feeh the wind of the growing clout blowing by my ears like a grateful dead speaker field ten feet away at the winterland at full blow…
…ambrose ,Glydia make us appointments with the five airline majors for next week at the travel convention at the Hyatt in New York this board handling krap is over…
Oh YEA Book It aas Ambrose and Spitzer and the Above Ground
GOING AIRBOURNE
I looked into a hard shell case for a surfboard today.I was supprised to see that they were not that much more costly than a padded coffin bag.If anyone has any experience with one please share it with me pros and cons.I also heard a rumor that some airlines will not except hard shell surfboard cases,does anyone know this to be true or false?
I have one of the “santa monica surfcase” hardshell carriers. they are great!!! Maldives, Mexico, Costa rica, Hawaii – only one small puka from a rivet. they are a bit of a beast, but the wheels make it pretty easy. I use my padded day bag and a little bit of camper pad at the nose and the “down” side from the handle. Worth the $$ and hassle lugging.
Thanks for the imfo thats the one I was looking at. Good news the two people in my group that just got their boards broken recieved good results from American Airlines.
I was on a trip to mexico a couple of years ago with four of my friends. One of them had just bought a Santa Monica hard case and the rest of us had the usual soft travel cases. When we arrived at the airport at Ixtapa the hard case came in with a huge indentation in the nose of the case resulting in damage to one of the boards. The rest of our boards had no damage.
It just shows you that baggage handlers will go to any lengths to defeat your best efforts to protect your boards.