Shinai in plane

[Neil Gendzwill]

Usually when I'm travelling I've got three shinai and both bokuto stuffed in my bag. It's crammed, and they all support each other - it would have to be a pretty determined baggage handler to break them. Maybe if he hauled off and wacked it on a hard corner repeatedly...

[Jung_Yul]

I don't know if this will be any help, buy my sensei used to say that in order to avoid difficulty with air travel with his Kendo and Iaido equipment, he would put his bokuto, shinais, and iaito in a golf club bag/case... seems ironic to "smuggle" equipment for a martial art as energetic as Kendo in a bag for (forgive my opinion) a game as boring as golf, but it worked for him. Hope this helps.

Yours in Budo,
John Anderson

[Hai_hai]

I always thought marking something you use to smack people over the head "fragile" kind of ironic but, also thought baggage handelers might take it as a challenge... like, "if I drop this 1,000 lb crate on it will it break?" kind of a thing.

No, the shinai is not fragile like glass; however, it is breakable. Airport baggage handlers have to move hundreds of bags of luggage a day. Each piece can range from 1 to 70 pounds. They just heave and throw things to get luggage on and off. Just watch next time you are at an airport. A 70 pound bag can crush your shinai. All they care about is getting it on and off and will not treat it with care if it isn't marked fragile.

[Hyaku]

Because I was afraid they would crack my shinais in the cargo bay.
Thank you all for your help.

Yes you have point. Some airline will carry them off with a fragile label. Others just put them on the belt. My concern always has been that if its sideways it would get trapped as it came to the belt doorway with all the other stuff piling up behind. The next trip will be my 26th this year at baggage claims. Up to now they leave a very clear space between item or put the long stuff on last.

Having stuff go through with slight suspicion seems to be ok to me as they at least give it special care. You don't hand carry it but they do! In the past I have had to wait a bit longer and sign for it. But its nice to know its looked after.

Next trip I have 100 year old Jingai (Conch horn) to carry. Wish me luck!

[Nishi]

I would put the shinai in bundles as Neil suggested, to support one another. I would also get my hands on some bubble wrap and wrap them further until there was no movement in the shinai bag.

We made a trans-atlantic flight last November and we put our shiani (about 10 of them) in 'special handling' when we got home, the only shinai they had damaged was the carbon fibre, with a nice 2 inch crack up the side.

Im looking at modifying a ski-pole case for future flights.