Looking for recommendations for shipping a bike from Bellingham, WA to Oakland, CA

[Guybe Slangen]

Hi all, I'm hoping to purchase a used Atlantis in Bellingham but not sure the best, and most affordable, way to get it to me in Oakland. Thanks for any wisdom and guidance. 

[Irving]

I have never used Amtrak, but there there was a recent thread about it where some members chimed in.

[Eric Floden]

Not for everyone, but when I bought a bike in Sacramento, I drove down to pick it up,  That was OK as neither wife or I had seen that part of the US before.  Three nights.  Turned out to be an enjoyable road trip

Eric

Vancouver BC

[Bill Lindsay]

Having gotten used to how expensive FedEx and UPS had gotten, I was pleasantly surprised to see how affordable bikeflights was.  I've had my first experience with a bike getting damaged by the shipper using bikeflights, but I had insured the bike and getting an insurance claim was straightforward.  I always box things up myself, so it's free.  If the person on the Bellingham side is unable or unwilling to do that part, then you need to arrange that part as well.

I admit I'm extra nervous about shipping anything/everything during the Holidays.  

Bill Lindsay

El Cerrito, CA

On Tuesday, December 6, 2016 at 9:06:28 AM UTC-8, Guybe Slangen wrote:

[Eric Norris]

I recently used Amtrak to ship a bike across the country, with great results. 

I used Amtrak because I was shipping a vintage bike (Raleigh) that I didn't want to disassemble enough to fit into the type of bike box that BikeFlights uses (think of the boxes you can get from your local bike shop). Amtrak's own box (about $15) only requires that you take off the pedals and turn the handlebars. The bike just rolls in, although I put a bunch of padding around the Raleigh.

Amtrak's price was about $80, which was much lower than $600 or so that FedEx or UPS would charge to ship such a large box. They'll take it from any Amtrak station to any Amtrak station. You have a few days at the end point to pick it up, then they charge you about $3 a day for storage.

If you can deal with removing the wheels, fenders, etc., to get the bike into a standard box, use BikeFlights. It's a little cheaper, and they'll deliver it right to your doorstep. If you don't want to take the bike apart, Amtrak is a great option.

--Eric N

www.CampyOnly.com

CampyOnlyGuy.blogspot.com

Twitter: @CampyOnlyGuy

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com.
Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.

[Jeffrey B]

I had a terrific experience getting a 64cm Atlantis across the country with shipbikes.com (no affiliation). They have a deal with FedEx similar to bikeflights, I think it was <$60 from California to DC. Good luck!

Jeff
Arlington, VA