bring a bike from London, or buying a second hand one in tokyo...

[miramira]

I'm considering bringing with me my bike from london when i come back in august, most airlines have prices from about £100-£200 to transport the bike, amazingly Virgin airways say they will take it for free, (http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/gb/en...equipment.html), however i doubt i'm gonna be able to afford Virgin's sky high fees , and i guess i will have to go with Air China. Although Air China are dirt cheap and fly to Haneda, however the name 'Air China' roughly translates into english as "Rude arseholes who fly airplanes", so i doubt i will trust them with my bike, or not ripping me off. and i'm looking into the cost of buying a second hand mama charin or somthing like that when i arrive, can anyone suggest a good place to look, and what sort of price?

[hennagaijin]

Big home center style department stores are competitively priced.

But you might want to try a mama chari before you buy one.. they suck severely.. terrible design..

Buying a REAL bike may make life more pleasant.

[rtfm]

Don't forget you have to pay the same fees to ship it back. Unless it's something fancy* I'd just buy one here.

* size would qualify - if you are very tall a 21" frame is almost unobtainable here.

[miramira]

but they do the job, can anyone suggest any places that sell second hand ones, and what sort of prices?
the bike i might bring is a piece of crap, but when i'm finshed with it, i will just leave it here.

[BackDoor_Man]

If the bike is a piece of crap, like you say, why bother and spend money to bring it here?