Locking your luggage

Daxter · Oct 1, 2005

Hey all, 5 days till we leave for Fiji

. Can anyone give advice on locking luggage? Would like to have best chance of getting my bags with my gear on Fiji, not that I dont trust the baggage handlers

. Dont know what is a good solution. Thanks in advance, Dax.

HowardE · Oct 1, 2005

There are TSA approved locks...I would sit at the bag scanner and watch them scan your bags...

I didn't and they broke 2 of the 4 locks I had... and they were "TSA" Approved.

It's the only thing I think you're allowed to use..

wylerbear · Oct 1, 2005

Since 9/11 whenever I fly I just use zip ties. It provides a tiny bit of security & the TSA can remove them if needed and will replace them if they do. If you have locks on the luggage that they have to break, I'm not sure if they then secure them with zip ties or leave them unsecured after inspection. I'm flown maybe 5 or 6 times doing this and only once have they opened the luggage to look at the dive gear. I watched them do it and they did replace the zip ties with ones of their own.

JRScuba · Oct 1, 2005

wylerbear:
Since 9/11 whenever I fly I just use zip ties.

I agree zip ties, cable ties what ever you want to call them is probable the best way to secure you luggage. I would purchase a package and the ones I don't use put in my carry on baggage. This way you will know that someone has been in them when you get your bags.. Also it will be obvious if they are not your ties. If TSA was in them it will have some paperwork stating they were inspected. Why put them extra's in you carry on. If your bags get broken into, all they have to do is use them.

Good luck and have a great vacation.

Wildcard · Oct 1, 2005

In addition leave a note on top of everything stating that the contents have been inventoried and photographed. If people are stupid enough to steal, they may be stupid enough to believe this somehow would lead to there arrest....Can't hurt.

Dive-aholic · Oct 1, 2005

TSA locks. They even have ones out now that have an indicator that changes from green to red when TSA opens them. TSA doesn't always leave paperwork in the bags. In fact, I only find that TSA paper about 25% of the time. And I can tell they've been in the bag. Sometimes they'll just put a round shiny sticker on the destination tag.

mike_s · Oct 1, 2005

My advice is both TSA locks AND zip ties.

The TSA locks can only be opened by TSA, and the zip ties will prove
wether they were opened by anyone.

you can buy the TSA locks at Brookstone I know, and on internet sites,
but I've heard folks say you could buy them at Target, Wamart, and Office
Depot and maybe Staples, but I've never seen them there.

I bought mine at Brookstone and paid $15 or $20 bucks for two of them.
None of my bags with TSA locks were messed with. The one w/o a
TSA lock you could tell someone had mess with.

*Floater* · Oct 1, 2005

Just searched amazon for "TSA lock" and came up with a whole bunch.

The cheapest are under $3 a peice. The TSA strap is $17. It doesn't say whether they come with indicators or not.

WarmWaterDiver · Oct 1, 2005

The TSA lost or baggage handlers broke most of our TSA approved locks in the last 3 years. Seems like the TSA would take the lock off and most often not put it back on, or the hasp would be bent to where the hasp snapped when opening after retreiving our baggage. I use zip ties anymore. We haven't had anything pilfered yet - just boneheaded handling of our stuff.

Zip ties work really well when flying on the small aircraft when you must 'gate check' your carryon. I found a package of zip ties in assorted colors including eye-popping green & pink at the hardware store one time. These really help me point out if someone else is picking up one of our bags 'by mistake' at the gate at the other end or the luggage carousel, so I can intervene quickly. I keep spares in the zipper pouch of my carryon.

Vtdiver2 · Oct 1, 2005

Daxter:
Hey all, 5 days till we leave for Fiji . Can anyone give advice on locking luggage? Would like to have best chance of getting my bags with my gear on Fiji, not that I dont trust the baggage handlers . Dont know what is a good solution. Thanks in advance, Dax.

On my last trip (last Feb to the Bahamas), I called the airline, told them I had exppensive stuff (dive gear) in my luggage and wanted to lock it. They told me to come an hour early, and TSA would go thru it when I checked in, and then I would be able to lock it up. I did, and had no issues. They went thru the luggage, then put my locks on for me before putting it on the conveyor.
I'm not sure if this is possible at all airports, but it's worth checking into.
C-Dawg

Locking your luggage

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Daxter

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HowardE

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wylerbear

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JRScuba

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Wildcard

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Dive-aholic

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mike_s

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Floater

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WarmWaterDiver

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Vtdiver2

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