How to fly with kitchen equipment.

[mskerr]

I am hopefully going to be making a big move (aka halfway across the world) in the next couple months. I've got some sorta silly questions.

I have an awesome mortar and pestle (the Cilio Goliath) which weighs 11 pounds. Can I carry this on the plane? It would be too heavy for checked baggage, and too heavy to mail, and I'm rather attached to it, though it seems like a silly thing to lug around.

I also have my two babies, my enameled cast iron Lodge dutch ovens - 3 qt and 6.5 qt. Again, probably ridiculously expensive to mail, and they'd probably get all roughed up in checked baggage... How do I transport these?? Is there any hope?

Now, my food processor I imagine I can bring - check the bottom part in my baggage, and maybe carry the plastic part in my carry on. Or mail it, since it's lightweight.

Those are the main big things I would love to take with me. The other things (chef's knife, instant thermometer, cutting board, small utensil, mandoliner...) can easily fit into my checked bag or be mailed.

I am going to have some weird luggage. Or is this more common than I think?

[weinoo]

I'm wondering if it might be cost effective and certainly less stressful to have everything you mention shipped by some other method than "mail?"

[Shel_B]

You might want to check out FedEx and similar carriers. In the past, when I travelled a lot, I used FedEx to ship much of my luggage, always with good results. These days, shipping fees are higher and, quite possibly, restrictions are tighter. But a couple of phone calls should give you the info you need.

... Shel

[Panaderia Canadiense]

Just out of curiosity, where are you moving to? Some of the things you mention may be available there for less than the cost of shipping.... You may also want to investigate international air freight, which isn't quite mailing - it's air cargo shipment. That's often an option that's less expensive than FedEx or similar carriers. Much of my kitchen equipment (my stand mixer, cast iron whatnots, and other too heavy for checked baggage stuff) came to Ecuador with me that way, and apart from having to explain to a customs officer exactly what my sets of nesting canning funnels were for it was quite a breeze.

[judiu]

I'm not fer sure that it handles the entire globe, but DHL does a lot of business shipping stuff from S. Florida to the Carribean. Personal stuff, like clothing to Haiti. Don't see why kitchen stuff would be different, just a little more awkward!

[Shalmanese]

Are both countries on the same voltage? If not, electrical equipment with motors might be a pain.

[janeer]

Just out of curiosity, where are you moving to? Some of the things you mention may be available there for less than the cost of shipping.... You may also want to investigate international air freight, which isn't quite mailing - it's air cargo shipment. That's often an option that's less expensive than FedEx or similar carriers. Much of my kitchen equipment (my stand mixer, cast iron whatnots, and other too heavy for checked baggage stuff) came to Ecuador with me that way, and apart from having to explain to a customs officer exactly what my sets of nesting canning funnels were for it was quite a breeze.

Yes. International shipping/moving is a specialized industry. Look into them; several in NY. Agree that some of your things won't work or can be replaced. I understand the attachment, so an international shipper is the way to go.

[fvandrog]

Yes. International shipping/moving is a specialized industry. Look into them; several in NY. Agree that some of your things won't work or can be replaced. I understand the attachment, so an international shipper is the way to go.

Indeed, when we changed continents, we shipped part of our stuff by boat. We had to live rather rudimentary for two months or so (both kitchenwise and general), but it was actually an interesting experience. My cooking skill had gradually increased at the same time as the amount (and quality) of kitchen equipment; using only some cheap pots and the most basic of handheld mixers but with some experience and practice still resulted in very acceptable meals.