Airline approved bow cases on the cheap?
Equipment
I'll be traveling by airline with my bow for the first time this coming August. Just wandering if anyone has suggestions on a cheap, yet airline approved, case. I would love an SKB case, but since I have to buy a case for both my wife and myself, I need to find something slightly better priced. Any suggestions? We're both shooting compounds.
One friend of mine has been using a hard side golf bag case. He packs his bow, arrows and even all his clothes in there for the trip, plus it has wheels and pulls around easily. So that might be one idea.
My wife also hunts, so we have double the cost on most of our hunts as well. I would NOT trust my bow to the airlines without a top quality bow case. We use SKB (and not the Freedom case)! Part of the price of a hunt away from home is acquiring the proper equipment.
its very imporant the bow arrives in one piece ,, its not wise to save money on this part of the trip... borrow one ,, look at ebay .. my skb has seen a lot of airports ,,..
I second the hard sided golf case. Its all I've used in the past 5 Western hunts. You may even be able to fit 2 bows into one case; or one in each case. I made a PVC tube for the arrows that I place inside the golf bag. Another plus is that the case (even with a handgun in it) comes out on the carousel at Denver where bow/gun cases come separately into a room and my experience is that the room is much slower. Especially so when there are a lot of hnters on the same flight. IMHO - bow case foam wastes way too much valuable space & weight. 2 of my buddies last year put ALL their gear into a golf bag and were under 50 pounds, flying with the golf bag and one carry-on bag. I used the golf bag plus another.
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CurveBow - can you share the brand/model of the golf case you are using
Thanks
......been using a rolling zip/drop bottom duffel for about 10 years, traveling all over the world with two (now just one) bows packed safely. Packing this way has allowed me to avoid the hassels of "what's in the GUN case" (most airlines just assume a case of any kind has a gun in it). Never been stopped, never been checked, never suffered any damage by simply packing clothes around the bow(s) and re-inforcing the side with stiff plastic or heavy cardboard. The bottom of these roller duffels have a full length metal brace....or you can help support our sagging economy by buying a specialized case or golf bag.....
there is a very sound place for a cheap bow case to be used. so long as the bow is cheap and the hunt is cheap it is totally appropriate to go cheap on the protection aspect of the bow.
Kinda the way I feel, Bou'bound. On my one plane trip with the bow, Indy to vegas,Vegas to poenix, back to Indy, used a forty-dollar case for my hundred-dollar used bow.
Case did just fine. To be safe, for the trip out I took the sight off and packed it in my suitcase surrounded by clothes. Figured it was the part most susceptible to damage. But on the trip to Phoenix and back to Indy, left the sight on the bow and it still came through completely unhurt and still on target.
My case is a Plano Protector Series, el cheapo supremo. I paid $40, but I saw them later stacked up at a Rural King for $29.95 on clearance.
When I put it together (some assembly required), I was sort of skeptical, but I stood on it and walked on it, couldn't cave it in or break it. Bought a cheap airline approved lock for it and went. Darned good product for the money.
I think I'd still remove the sights for the trip out, just to be safe. They normally screw right back on with no change of zero, but it's always a good idea to take a shot or two after arrival to be sure.
Did ship a scoped rifle to my brother in Phoenix once for an elk hunt he was going on, and the scope on it was WAY off when it got there.
I went to Dicks Sports and got a pretty heavy duty hard sided case with rolling inline skate wheels and lockable handles for 74.99....when it rang up it was only 59.99. Great deal for a heavy duty case. BUT, its heavy and big....I shoot a 37" bow so I need it.
by the way, I have a brand new ADG hardsided and padded case for sale. It still has tags on it. Let me know if interested. My bow was too long for it and I ordered it online. Im looking for about $95 shipped.
SKB makes a double bow case worth every dollar!
BA - One of them is an SKB - link to one on ebay. I bought a larger one last fall for my Ross 337 as it has the large diameter cams and wouldn't fit into the SKB. Look at the golf bag dimensions. Then measure the bow - Without stabilizer and if your sight sticks way out, that will also have to be removed for transport too. With your bow on the floor/counter, measure up to the string to get the maximum distance. Buy a case that will accomodate that distance. Usually length of the bow is bot an issue. Be sure that the bow is on the floor (flat surface) to get a measurement to the string. Also consider the cable bar. On some bows (old Hoyt Pro Hunter) I had to remove that too....
If I was going gun hunting, I would pack the rifle in a soft case and enclose it inside clothes inside the golf bag. Could pack more than one gun too as a bonus!
Hope this helps....
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Check Cabela's bargain barn. They ususally have then on sale.
I know they are expensive, but just think of how expensive it would be to sho up for your hunt with a busted bow.
LBB
My wife and I use the SKB double bow cases like several others have already indicated. We put one bow, with arrows, quiver and broadhead case, then pack our safety harnesses, clothing, packable rain gear etc around the bow. The remainder of our gear gets stuffed into drop bottom duffels.
That double expense of buying 2 quality bowcases is well worth the piece of mind you'll have knowing they'll arrive safe and sound (that is providing the Airline doesn't mis-route them on connecting flights).
did you skimp on your bow if you travel don't skimp on the case!!
