Rods in planes

[pezza]

I am going to Swains next week...flying to Rockie from Sydney and then bus to Gladstone. We are flying up via Jetstar and back via Virgin. We have packed our rods in a pvc pipe but Jetstar have told us that they will not except anything over 2 M in length. This is a bit difficult when my Pen powerstick is 2.1.M. I will most likely need shorten the length to accomodate the regs. We do not have any worries with Virgin. Has anybody else experienced similar problems with Jetstar?

[szopen]

No experience with Jetstar.

As I live far away from the ocean and can fish saltwater only during holidays this is a regular problem.
Also carrying around a long tube with rods doeas not make the real boss all too happy.

Solved it by buying 4 piece travel rods from cabelas, two rated at 30lb and one for 20lb. They fit into a provided rod tube ~70cm long so it fits into suitcase. No problems.

I have also read that rods checked in in long tubes where everybody can guess what it is have a habit of getting lost.

[simon_vaughan]

Pezza, I regularly go to NQ to see friends and have not had an issue with rods on QANTAS. I am a little cautious about having rods in the tube, sometimes totally $1000 or more. If you pack your rods in rod bags and in a solid PVC tube or rod case (I own a Jarvis Walker one and it is fine) they should be OK. Hope this helps.

[slugo]

I have always travelled with virgin and had extra luggage (no problem good service) I am travelling with jetstar for the first time in september sydney to hervey $82 return I can't complain about that...yet!. pezza just becarefull you are at the checkin a good 30min before the scheduled departure as I know people who were only 5-10 min late and they forfeited their fare and jetstar don't give a rats @. jetstar have also changed a friends date of travel brisbane -newcastle and it threw our plans out of order and they still don't give a rats @. good cheep fares but if they stuff u around it can be more costly I will give them one go and see what happens.

cheers and good luck

[pezza]

Thanks Guys for the feed back. Apparently it has something to do with the type of aircraft and in certain aircraft they use freight cells instead of loading by hand into the cargo hold. One of our group is flying by Virgin so we will stick him with the rods.
I should have checked prior to booking...on the other hand we are getting into Gladstone from Sydney for $280 return including the bus. I am sure that it will be worth it for a week at Swains.

[kevy]

hi pezza, went to the swains in may via mackay, no problem at all re tubes for rods with quantas, some were 2.700 or over, cheers, kevy. ( forgot to mention from brisbane airport.)

[S.S.]

The thing with Jetstar is that the same people who check you in also have to check your tickets before you board, therefore the check-in is closed 1/2 hr before the flight. It's pretty clear on your ticketing advice that you have to check in well in advance.

After flying Virgin and Jetstar a couple of times, I definitely prefer Qantas, especially on the longer flights - more comfortable seating

I've only ever missed one plane due to hold up with a traffic accident but Qantas put me on the next one.... Thank god!!!!

[dazza]

hi,
what about a freight company, australian air express will fly them around, dunno price though. i have shipped a few rods around with them and they are pretty helpfull, you can drop it off at their depot, which is usually pretty close to the airport.
good luck
dazza

[setthehook]

Im flying to NT this week and i have built a pvc rod tube for all my rods. Its about 9ft long but virgin said its cool as they take malaboo's and all. Nobody had any trouble using the pvc tubes?

[reelcrazy]

Im flying to NT this week and i have built a pvc rod tube for all my rods. Its about 9ft long but virgin said its cool as they take malaboo's and all. Nobody had any trouble using the pvc tubes?

You are really at the mercy of the baggage handlers who really don't give a fat rat's. I had a bazooka style case that was airline approved, but it didn't stand up to a baggage handler who obviously speared it onto the tarmac from the hold - $800 bucks worth of rods ruined.

Airline paid up without a comment. But no compensation makes up for losing your favorite gear.

So here are some clues.

The PVC tube works really well.

Couple of things to look out for. Make sure you have solid end caps on the PVC, I'm not a plumber so my terminology may be wrong, but there are end cap fittings made out of reasonably solid plastic, there are two types, one is just an end fitting, the other is in two parts, the base that gets glued to the tube and a screw on end.

Do cut a circle of high density foam for both ends, about 35-40mm thick. Sort of like a shock absorber.

Tie the rods together. Make sure you pad the tips and butts of the rods. I also use enough bubble wrap to wrap both ends, but also wrapped thick enough around the rods to stop the rods moving side to side. Just enough so it can barely slide down the tube.

This is about the best you can do.

These days I pack a couple of 3 piece 7 foot travel rods, St Croix Tidemasters, and carry these as hand luggage. These cover most of my fishing, but in a month I'm confronted with the same problem as you with larger surf rods, so I bought this carry case. It looks the goods, but will it pass the mongrel baggage handler test?

http://tackledirect.com/packapole7000.html


Good luck.

[Billo]

NEVER had a problem with rod tubes .
Me and my brother both have tubes that are over 10 foot long as we both carry a lot of single piece rods .
one of the tubes i sometimes use has a diameter of 15 cm aswell .....its a bloody huge tube and fits around 8 - 10 rods dependign on what you pack . Virgin and Qantas have both told me over the phone the maximum size limit is 1.8 metres , yet i have never had an issue .
Also taken them on Jetstar flights between gold coast and Sydney no worries ,....

Over the phone they always tell you to bugger off , but i have never seen anyone rejected at the desk whilst checking in

[Jethro]

Jetstar told me the same thing before I went up to Hervey Bay. My tube was a little bit over (2.2m) and no one batted an eyelid.

Onething I did find with Jetstar was they are very strict with your baggage allowance. I was 4kg over and it cost me $20. $5 a kilo is pretty step in anyones books

[sooty_mad]

As a person who travel extensively (approximately 150 flights per year) I have seen the best and toughest luggage that money can buy destroyed by the airlines.
With regard to rods, my advice is PVC tubes. Get sewer class, not stormwater class as it is not strong enough. Use screw on end and tape them up. Do not use an open tube taped off at the ends as the tape will wear through during travel and your favourite rod will come out the end with the inevitable result. Tie all of your rods together and wrap them securely in bubble wrap or something similar to stop them moving around within the tube. Also, don't put handles or anything on the tubes. Experience has shown that with luggage the less things sticking out that can get caught on travel belts/luggage carousels etc the better their chance of survival.
Another piece of advice - fly Qantas. If you book early most of the time their flights are around the same price as Jetstar and Virgin.
Believe me, all airlines are far from perfect, but having done about 2000 flights on most of the major airlines around the world, I can assure you that Qantas seems to have less "disasters" than the others.
Kind regards... David

[magicpudding]

I've also been faced with the jetstar dialemma. The rod tube I made is from 150mm hd poly pipe with a but cap and a screw cap. I put 'donkey dick' (aka the stuff that insulates hot water pipes) on each rod and some foam at each end. At 2.2m long, Jetstar kick up a stink about it but after speaking with the 'baggage manager' each time he's said its alright. To get around the handle problem i spliced a rope handle on the tube and crimped it to the tube to keep it apart and so it doens't catch anything. It fits 5 roller 24kg short strokers and a 2 piece tag pole, with the longer half of the tagpole 2.1m.

CJ