Shipping DPV's or Checking as Baggage to Italy

[skirack]

Friends,

I am going to Formula H2O race in Rome Italy in early June. I need to ship three DPV's after our race in Key West in May 22nd.

I am looking for advice on shipping DPV's using UPS or Fed Ex or checking as baggage on the flight on Delta.

I am concerned about weight limits, restrictions on batteries quantities.

Can anyone recommend the best way to get my DPV's and dive gear to Italy and back??

[Mr.X]

What kind of scooter?

[TheDivingPreacher]

I have lived in Europe for eight years now and often have things shipped to me from the states. Generally speaking UPS and Fed ex are outrageously expensive to ship something that heavy to Europe.
I would take them on the plane and pay the baggage fees. ymmv

To ship a 45 lb scooter here to CZ, UPS wanted over $1000

[iztok]

If you have any kind of status on the airline then check it in. I suspect other carriers will charge you an arm and a leg.

[fdog]

The only battery you'll get on board are NiMH. Anything with Lithium more than 300 WattHours and they won't take it. Lead Acid, the airlines blanch at the word acid (especially after that China Air cargo 747 melted it's nose off at KL from an acid leak).They'll fly sealed LA, but they weigh soooo much, it's worth it to source new batteries at your destination.

With all that said, we routinely fly our Cudas to warm water. The tail and battery go in the big plastic Seahorse case (68 lbs); the nose, with assorted clothing and scuba gear, go in the next bag (68 lbs). If we are taking the Cuda 550 nose, we need a third bag for some of the scuba gear and clothes (50 lbs), otherwise, we are flying the 400LE nose, and it all fits in two bags.

We have literally flown these around the world. It's manageable but sometimes a PITA. As iztok says, elite status (which we have) helps on the domestic segments, but international, you'd better be flying F or you'll have to pay money.


All the best, James

[Belmont]

Would there be a risk of having the nose pressed out of round in a separate bag, not having the tail end supporting it?

I'm taking delivery of a Cuda 650 next week and I plan on traveling with it

[fdog]

We haven't had any problems with the tube going out of round, and we've taken ours this way on about 8 trips. They've been packed in rolling duffles with dive gear placed around them - not a rigid container by any means.

I, too had the same thought you are. I originaly called up Dive-X, looking for some rings machined the same way as the sealing surface is, to reinforce the open end of the tube. Ben laughed at me. He started describing how they occasionally recieve tube stock that isn't quite round, and how they had tried to squish it back into round by driving a pickup truck over it. That didn't do a thing. The reason the tube is perfectly round is that it's machined that way. This allayed my fears, and we haven't seen even a hint of a problem.

We do cover the sealing surface with a circle of 1" diameter Tygon tubing, which has been sliced on one side lengthwise. This protects the sealing surfaces from dings and dents and the TSA. Also, only put clothes inside the tube - anything else, like can lights or scuba gear in general looks funny on the x-ray and sends the TSA people into a slavering excavation of everything inside the tube.

All the best, James

[juanillo]

if you find anything cheaper than Fedex can tell us?
We use it as one of the most economical for sending packages and lithium batteries are a real problem.
You can send a certified battery pack and remove there in Italy and the rest as baggage.
Anyway will not be cheap.
Greetings.
Juan

[juanillo]

DHL is also another option but will have to negotiate such dangerous goods as lithium, will represent a significant portion of the expenses.
Juan

[skirack]

Dive X Cuda 1150 and a Torpedo