Jet Blue let me carry my 2 by 4 Instroke leather case

JoeyInCali

JoeyInCali

Maker of Joey Bautista Cues
Silver Member
I checked-in about 30 minutes before take-off.
It appeared I was the last one to check-in ( Oakland to Long Beach ).
I had one carry-on bag and one 2 by 4 Instroke case with one cue inside.
The checker asked if I had a luggage to check-in.
I told him just the leather case unless he lets me carry it in.
Surprising he let me carry it.
Then I went thru security.
They x-rayed the case and my bag.
No problems.
 
JoeyInCali said:
I checked-in about 30 minutes before take-off.
It appeared I was the last one to check-in ( Oakland to Long Beach ).
I had one carry-on bag and one 2 by 4 Instroke case with one cue inside.
The checker asked if I had a luggage to check-in.
I told him just the leather case unless he lets me carry it in.
Surprising he let me carry it.
Then I went thru security.
They x-rayed the case and my bag.
No problems.
Click to expand...

That's good news - I wonder if it's a change in airline policies, or just an anomaly at Oakland.
 
The TSA website still says pool cues are on the prohibited items list for carry on, so that must have been a slip up.

Funny, you cannot carry on a pool cue, but "Scissors - metal with pointed tips and blades shorter than four inches" are ok... :confused:
 
JoeyInCali said:
I checked-in about 30 minutes before take-off.
It appeared I was the last one to check-in ( Oakland to Long Beach ).
I had one carry-on bag and one 2 by 4 Instroke case with one cue inside.
The checker asked if I had a luggage to check-in.
I told him just the leather case unless he lets me carry it in.
Surprising he let me carry it.
Then I went thru security.
They x-rayed the case and my bag.
No problems.
Click to expand...

Yes, an oversight by TSA. Pool cues are prohibited - listed in the sporting Goods section:

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/prohibited/permitted-prohibited-items.shtm#11

Some people don't know what a pool cue is, believe it or not.

Chris
 
JoeyInCali said:
I checked-in about 30 minutes before take-off.
It appeared I was the last one to check-in ( Oakland to Long Beach ).
I had one carry-on bag and one 2 by 4 Instroke case with one cue inside.
The checker asked if I had a luggage to check-in.
I told him just the leather case unless he lets me carry it in.
Surprising he let me carry it.
Then I went thru security.
They x-rayed the case and my bag.
No problems.
Click to expand...

Someone on AZ (not sure who) made a great suggestion last year.

Remove your cues from your cue case, wrap the cues in bubble wrap and bundle them in your checked in luggage.

Then simple carry on the empty cue case.

The alternate of checking in your full cue case has evidently provided temptation for opportunistic airport personnel to steal expensive cues from cases without stealing the cue cases. Unless it's insured it is your word verses theirs.

Of course the same thing could happen with your bubble wrapped cues in your luggage but I'm inclined to believe the would-be perp would not associate an expansive cue when outside of an equally expensive case.

Plus it guarantees that your luggage and cues will not be separated.

Thanks.

Bernie.
 
Jet Blue

I hadn't flown in several years so when I booked my flight to Arizona I called US Airways 3 seperate times and asked to speak to a manager. I asked if I could bring my pool cues as carry on and all 3 times after checking they said yes.
The minute I went to the baggage check they said no I couldn't carry them on.
3 different people asked me if it was a gun.
 
It's ultimately not up to the airlines. It's totally a TSA decision as to what you can or cannot carry onto a plane.
 
Years ago (long before 9/11) I flew out of a CA airport with my cue and case as carryon to Montana. No problems no hassle. When I went to the Missoula, MT airport a week later to fly back to California, they would not let me on the plane with the cue as carryon. It had to go with my other luggage. Go figure:):)
 
I don't know, it's a no-brainer that security can over-react given the right circumstance. If it were me, I'd check 'em & forget about it. Last thing I need is someone to recognize my cue case for what it is & ask me what's inside. I'd probably spend a few hours discussing the whole situation instead of catching my connecting flight.

FWIW, I stuffed my cue in my suitcase the last time I travelled.
 
berniep said:
Someone on AZ (not sure who) made a great suggestion last year.

Remove your cues from your cue case, wrap the cues in bubble wrap and bundle them in your checked in luggage.

Then simple carry on the empty cue case.

The alternate of checking in your full cue case has evidently provided temptation for opportunistic airport personnel to steal expensive cues from cases without stealing the cue cases. Unless it's insured it is your word verses theirs.

Of course the same thing could happen with your bubble wrapped cues in your luggage but I'm inclined to believe the would-be perp would not associate an expansive cue when outside of an equally expensive case.

Plus it guarantees that your luggage and cues will not be separated.

Thanks.

Bernie.
Click to expand...

I did this flying across the country and when I got my bag it had been opened. All the protective wrap on my cues was gone and there was a new dent in the shaft, at least the cues were still there I guess.

Now I just ship my cues to my destination with purolator or UPS. The last few hotels I stayed at had no problem accepting my cues for me.
 
Ship them ahead...

...case AND cues via USPS or Fedex and travel with only a carry-on.

- Get a delivery conformation/tracking number and have a signature required (at the hotel)
- Call the hotel ahead of time and let the front desk know a package is coming for you
- Send the package out early enough so that it arrives the day you check into the hotel

A fully loaded 2x4 case, USPS Priority Mail (2-3 days) from NY to Las Vegas, including delivery conformation, set me back about $15 . A small price to pay when you consider that :
A) You can insure the package for what you feel it's worth (unlike the airlines where you have to prove what was in the suitcase)
B) It's going to get there and require a signature (unlike the airlines where if it's lost, the only recourse you have is to hope it shows up). IF the package disappears at the hotel, you've got proof that it arrived, and have a recourse for reimbursment.
C) Even if it costs a few more bucks, throw some of your clothes in the box with your case. That's fewer clothes you have to take in your carry-on.

And the best part ? Now, because you're traveling with only a carry-on (and no checked baggage), your options open up a lot more. You can take an earlier connection if it's available, or get voluntarily bumped (because now the airline doesn't have to worry about your luggage).
You can breeze right by the luggage carousel and get a cab before anybody else.

The first time I did this, it made traveling SO much easier. The worry of "Are my cues gonna be there when I get off the plane ?" is non-existent, and I can actually enjoy the experience of traveling.
 
i put my cue case in a bigger travel case made just for cue cases.
i use a tsa lock and they have never opened it.
I suck to have to check your cues , but it is what it is.
 
Lance Link said:
...case AND cues via USPS or Fedex and travel with only a carry-on.

- Get a delivery conformation/tracking number and have a signature required (at the hotel)
- Call the hotel ahead of time and let the front desk know a package is coming for you
- Send the package out early enough so that it arrives the day you check into the hotel

A fully loaded 2x4 case, USPS Priority Mail (2-3 days) from NY to Las Vegas, including delivery conformation, set me back about $15 . A small price to pay when you consider that :
A) You can insure the package for what you feel it's worth (unlike the airlines where you have to prove what was in the suitcase)
B) It's going to get there and require a signature (unlike the airlines where if it's lost, the only recourse you have is to hope it shows up). IF the package disappears at the hotel, you've got proof that it arrived, and have a recourse for reimbursment.
C) Even if it costs a few more bucks, throw some of your clothes in the box with your case. That's fewer clothes you have to take in your carry-on.

And the best part ? Now, because you're traveling with only a carry-on (and no checked baggage), your options open up a lot more. You can take an earlier connection if it's available, or get voluntarily bumped (because now the airline doesn't have to worry about your luggage).
You can breeze right by the luggage carousel and get a cab before anybody else.

The first time I did this, it made traveling SO much easier. The worry of "Are my cues gonna be there when I get off the plane ?" is non-existent, and I can actually enjoy the experience of traveling.
Click to expand...

Actually, you forgot one more thing. If shipping it for $15 saves you having to check a bag for $25 or $30, then you are also saving money. :wink:
 
The same thing happened to me when I took Southwest one time. It was probably just a fluke because they didn't let me do it a second time one the same route.
 
I'm guessing the Pro's need to do the same thing when they fly. That's gotta be nerve wracking as much as they fly.......
 
cleary said:
The TSA website still says pool cues are on the prohibited items list for carry on, so that must have been a slip up.

Funny, you cannot carry on a pool cue, but "Scissors - metal with pointed tips and blades shorter than four inches" are ok... :confused:
Click to expand...

It appears that TSA can change from day to day. I had to give up my new mustache scissors, while they let a guy ahead of me carry on a guitar with a pointy end that he could swing like a baseball bat or skewer someone.:confused:
 
DRW said:
It appears that TSA can change from day to day. I had to give up my new mustache scissors, while they let a guy ahead of me carry on a guitar with a pointy end that he could swing like a baseball bat or skewer someone.:confused:
Click to expand...

Flying home from Manila, they took away a small scissors from my toilet kit. It was about three inches long in total, with the actual cutting end about an inch and a half. I asked them if they really thought that was something dangerous. The guy just looked at me and said, "The rules are the rules."

The lack of any common sense and a focus on doing everything by rote only tells me that security at airports could easily be compromised by the wrong people. It would be easy to manipulate people who are no longer actually looking for truly dangerous situations, only for a small scissors to grab or some such thing.

I don't feel any more secure now than I did the day after 9/11. What I'm observing more and more as I fly, are a bunch of people (TSA agents) in a dead end job, counting the hours until they get off and the years until they get their pension. Any focus on catching a real threat to our security is no longer present (there are exceptions of course, but they are just that, exceptions). New machines do not make me feel any more secure.

I do the same things I used to do when leaving the poolroom. I look at all my fellow passengers to see if there is anyone who makes me feel uncomfortable. In other words, I'm my own best security. I even watch (through the windows) as the plane is being loaded and prepped for take off. I like to know as much as possible about the plane I'm getting on BEFORE I fly. I even study the pilots as they come through the gate. I want to see what kind of shape they're in, and what their attitude is like.

I know, I'm funny this way. My daughter calls me paranoid. I guess I've been around too long and seen a little too much. I'll never forget when I caught the creep who was harassing the pretty gal who worked in my poolroom. He was the most clean cut young man you would ever see. And not bad looking either. But still a total creep! I scared him shitless that day, and we never heard from him again. But who knows where he went next?
 
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jay helfert said:
I do the same things I used to do when leaving the poolroom. I look at all my fellow passengers to see if there is anyone who makes me feel uncomfortable. In other words, I'm my own best security.

I know, I'm funny this way. My daughter calls me paranoid. I guess I've been around too long and seen a little too much. I'll never forget when I caught the creep who was harassing the pretty gal who worked in my poolroom. He was the most clean cut young man you would ever see. And not bad looking either. But still a total creep! I scared him shitless that day, and we never heard from him again. But who knows where he went next?
Click to expand...

Jay,
I 'm with you on this. Seen too much, etc. I could be called paranoid too - but its just another word for security as far as I am concerned.
 
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