Carrying models on Airliners

[M. Vann]

Does anyone have any tips on how to do this without damaging the models and not upsetting TSA. I know that they can not be checked as the ramprats toss bags around like sacks of flour. I was thinking of using those clear plastic containers and putting them under my seat. Any suggestions would be great. TIA <_<

Thanks,

Mike

[IainM]

Last year we used a clear plastic container. I put styrofoam on the bottom and then use toothpicks or similar material to hold the models in place. They stick into the foam and can be located in tight to hold things. The container was put in the overhead compartment with some other carry on stuff wedged against it. Use the dense foam. Styrofoam SM. THis worked well. The only thing I could see ruining it would have been a crash, and then it really wouldn't have mattered would it?

[IainM]

The clear plastic container allows the airport folks to look in without opening it and disturbing anything. Good old duct tape held the cover on securely. It helps if you are not alone. I carried the bags and my son guarded the container with his life...they were his models!

[ipms33206]

What if you have a large chunk of metal in your model for nose weights. Won't that cause a problem with the x-ray machine? The weights would look like a big black spot on the monitor especially if you use lead.

[Thundervett]

I brought 3 planes on as carry on last year, all 1/48th. What a nightmare. The A-10 had a lot of led sinkers in the nose and I thought for sure this would be a problem but they didnt say a thing. With the instruments they have now they can see EVERTHING from plastic to glass. I told them to be carfull that they were plastic models and I had no problem at all.

What I am doing this year is to take a box just big enough and then filling about 3" of exspanding foam( the kind that you spray into cracks) its called Great StUff onto the bottom of the box and then place a layer of clear celefane or serran rap to cover all the foam and up the sides, then gently place your model in and leave it alone for about 3 hrs so that the foam has a chance to conform to one half of the models shape. Now cover the entire model gently and have the serran rap go up the sides and out of the box. Now fill the top layer with just enough to cover the model and all the way to the walls of the box. Remember this stuff exspands so dont go crazy with it. After several hours you will be able to remove the top layer and carve away any dangerous areas like around the canopy and pitoe tubes and such.

Hope this helps

Regards Trevor Murphy

[AnthonyWan]

All good ideas guys. I still have to find a box large/small enough to carry my Revell 1/72 S-100 Schnellboot. Its about an inch long for all my other boxes

[AnthonyWan]

The clear plastic container allows the airport folks to look in without opening it and disturbing anything. Good old duct tape held the cover on securely. It helps if you are not alone. I carried the bags and my son guarded the container with his life...they were his models!

That sounds familiar

[ckalina]

What if you have a large chunk of metal in your model for nose weights. Won't that cause a problem with the x-ray machine? The weights would look like a big black spot on the monitor especially if you use lead.

This happened to me once, but I guess the screener was one of us: He saw the faint outline of the airplane with the big black lead blob in the nose, smiled and said "Model airplane?" And it wasn't even a clear box.

[stusbke]

All good ideas guys. I still have to find a box large/small enough to carry my Revell 1/72 S-100 Schnellboot. Its about an inch long for all my other boxes

Well go to a (local) fish store and ask the owner of the shop if You can look in to his stash of used fish transport containers. These are made of a foam of some sort and these are pretty darn huge. I could easely fit an 1/32nd F-15 in there and still have space left. Also the shop's usualy have a great deal of different sizes and shapes of these boxes so picking one is going to be the problem but do make sure that you get one with a lit on it for the obvious reason .

Now the good thing is you can have these mostly for free as they dont use them anymore once they have surved there purpase( =transporting fish). the only thing these boxes require is definatly some cleaning and a a good rinse with soap. It would be wise to leave the soap in there for at least a weak

So that's my tip I can give ya but, you could always build one

article

anyway I hope this helped you a little bit

Greetz STB

Frederick Jacobs

Edited August 14, 2006 by stusbke

[foxtwo]

i normally build a box from styrofoam,the one they use for home insulation, just having the model dimension......so you can fix the model with toothpick everywhere, top too......but you'l have to open it everytime you cross an airport....i remember my last Nats, was at Virginia Beach....when i land at Atlanta they look all around my box, as when screening the box they say metal wires everywhere......the wire i used to make all the lines in the wheel bays !!

hope it's not going to be too difficult for next year !

pat

[Jay Chladek]

I actually have had pretty good luck checking luggage with models in them. Since I know that luggage can get abused, I invested in a relatively cheap Sampsonite hardback case for an outer layer of protection. The box containing the model was placed inside along with other items (clothes, papers etc...). I make sure to pack and cushion the model as best as I can inside its box and then usually give the box a shake and tumble test to make sure nothing is shifting inside it. If it is, then I revise the packaging a bit. Once I am satisfied, then I pack it inside the case. The reason for the tumble test is to make sure the model is stable no matter what orientation the case is in in the cargohold of a plane.

The reason I use this method is since the case is something a ramp rat can identify, then he is less likely to do anything stupid to the case, unlike a custom built packing container (heard too many horror stories about those getting damaged). Plus, the relative light weight of the model inside the case means that the suitcase won't be too heavy, meaning a ramper will be less likely to throw it around with as much force. The hardback case essentially acts as an outer shell to prevent poke damage compared to softback cases. Another reason is that at my airport, many flights today are being flown by regional jets with smaller carryon bin space. Since these bins fill up quick, I just plan to pack in luggage instead.

As a result of my packing methods, I have successfully taken models by air to the UK (twice), Orlando, Atlanta and Phoenix (plus KC, Fargo and Louisville, but those trips were in my own airplane). Only once did I incur damage that was bad and after I replaced the fragile struts on my shuttle model with some nice substantial metal pins, the model was much more durable for air travel (and looked better).

[gambit3131]

As long as the nose weight doesn't look like a bomb or is of a substance that is currently on the "banned" list, security should have any issues with it.