• The Cycling News forum is looking to add some volunteer moderators with Red Rick's recent retirement. If you're interested in helping keep our discussions on track, send a direct message to @SHaines here on the forum, or use the Contact Us form to message the Community Team.

    In the meanwhile, please use the Report option if you see a post that doesn't fit within the forum rules.

    Thanks!

Tools - Getting Started.

Page 2 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
Jul 15, 2010
420
0
0
Visit site
I am pretty proud that in 40 years of bike riding I have never taken a bike to the shop. I did used to get my wheels built by a guy with more skill than me, but everything else I have done myself. This is my basic tool kit made up of bits and pieces I have purchased, found along the way. The only additions to this are standard pliers, and scissors. I keep any little bits and pieces from wrecked bits so have a good store of these and just brought a packet of 200 cable ends about 5 years ago which should see me out. I have a cheap workstand which is fine, but I do have a really good work bench and vice which is handy. Main things for me would be a good quality chain breaker, good quality cable cutters, good quality spoke wrench, and 6nm preset torque wrench and the rest you can work out with various bits picked up when you see them, need them. The Silca track pump is worth 10 shitty modern ones and that one is many years old. I have just gotten my first press fit bottom bracket bike so will need to get the tools for that.

 
Re: Re:

JackRabbitSlims said:
King Boonen said:
JackRabbitSlims said:
push the new pedals & shoes idea to the back burner

and get yourself a workshop stand and some new tools

I disobeyed direct orders :(

But I definitely made the right choice...

what did you end up with?

Giro Privateers, perfect for touring, road riding on the fixed and some CX and MTB riding I'm going to do. Never tried clipless on the MTB before so going to be interesting. A friend gave me some wide Time pedals for that. I also got some bottom of the range Shimano SPD pedals (M520 maybe..?) as everyone I asked said there was no point going for anything more expensive, especially as I was unsure what pedals to you.Very happy with SPD so far.
 
Is the air clear?(Of lawyers, I mean.)

Right, so another bunch of tools you may find useful will be found in your basic manicure kit. (I have a whole bunch of them, sometimes I actually use them on my nails.)

Also, there is no shame in wearing prescription (or those awful reading glasses) if you cannot see - trust me, you need to be able to see all the little delicate parts that make your bike work.

And lastly - I totally pride myself in having the world's most complete First Aid kit... *** will inevitably go wrong when you're working on a bike, so, you'll need to be able to patch yourself up without (hopefully) having to call an ambulance.

bike%20stuff.jpg
 
yes, an excellent addition!!

lately i've been stripping my drive train (mtb) once a week for a full degrease, clean up and re-install - perhaps a bit of overkill but spring weather here now has brought the full spectrum of conditions

check that chain regularly and if it's worn / stretched, swap it out - running a worn chain will ruin your cassette eventually along with your chain rings

avoid shark fins / shark teeth
15pC2Uc.jpg
 
Re:

King Boonen said:
Just picked up a decent chain tool as I needed a new chain for the fixed gear:

http://www.parktool.com/product/mini-chain-brute-chain-tool-ct-5?category=Chain

This bad boy.
I've got one of those, they work well and they're small enough to fit into your bicycle purse when you're on-the-go.

Think their main advantage is you can replace the pin if it breaks (I have broken the pins on other tools, but they were not replaceable), so that's kinda nice.
 
Re: Re:

JackRabbitSlims said:
King Boonen said:
Just picked up a decent chain tool as I needed a new chain for the fixed gear:

http://www.parktool.com/product/mini-chain-brute-chain-tool-ct-5?category=Chain

This bad boy.

what chain are you running on the SS?

a classic 1/8" ??

3/32". That's what came on the bike and due to the 130BCD it's the rings that are easier to get in a variety of sizes. It also means that spare chains can be used across all my bikes and as I'm planning something next year that will involve changing gear a fair bit there is an added benefit to 3/32" in that I can use reusable power links. Seemed the best option and has worked ok so far. I'm fitting a new chain so will keep an eye on chain stretch as I believe 3/32" chains are more susceptible to it. Is that right?
 
Re: Re:

Tricycle Rider said:
King Boonen said:
Just picked up a decent chain tool as I needed a new chain for the fixed gear:

http://www.parktool.com/product/mini-chain-brute-chain-tool-ct-5?category=Chain

This bad boy.
I've got one of those, they work well and they're small enough to fit into your bicycle purse when you're on-the-go.

Think their main advantage is you can replace the pin if it breaks (I have broken the pins on other tools, but they were not replaceable), so that's kinda nice.

I didn't know you could get replacement pins, thanks for letting me know, I'm not surprised with Park Tools. I bought it for the size too, being able to carry it does help when touring, but mainly I bought it because it's a Park Tool so I knew it would be much better quality than the other one the guy had in. Fitted a new chain to the fixed wheel this morning as the old one was so stretched it wouldn't mesh with the new chainring and it performed brilliantly.

Also, after buying new shoes and pedals I didn't want JackRabbitSlims to shout at me for buying inferior tools! ;)
 
Re: Re:

King Boonen said:
JackRabbitSlims said:
King Boonen said:
Just picked up a decent chain tool as I needed a new chain for the fixed gear:

http://www.parktool.com/product/mini-chain-brute-chain-tool-ct-5?category=Chain

This bad boy.

what chain are you running on the SS?

a classic 1/8" ??

3/32". That's what came on the bike and due to the 130BCD it's the rings that are easier to get in a variety of sizes. It also means that spare chains can be used across all my bikes and as I'm planning something next year that will involve changing gear a fair bit there is an added benefit to 3/32" in that I can use reusable power links. Seemed the best option and has worked ok so far. I'm fitting a new chain so will keep an eye on chain stretch as I believe 3/32" chains are more susceptible to it. Is that right?

I know you know this KB, but just to be clear for others reading: - chains do not stretch.

Chain Wear is attributed to many things such as riding conditions, quality of the chain and materials used, maintenance by the user. In particular to the SS you need to be aware of chain line and chain tension with can both affect the premature wearing of the chain used.

Taken from the Surly site: -

1/2x1/8" chains vs. 1/2x3/32" chains. 1/2x1/8" chains suck. Run whatever you want, but bigger isn't better here. Yeah, they're wider, but according to manufacturer-supplied data, they're not stronger and they are definitely not of better quality. Multi-speed drivetrains is where the bucks are at, and chains that work on such drivetrains are where the manufacturers of chains showcase their innovations and developments in quality. The rollers are better, the plates are better, the pins are stronger, and the construction method (riveting procedure) is better on all multi-speed 3/32" chains.

right now SRAM chains are my least favourite and KMC is on my Bianchi Pista SS Commuter....

generally speaking - your SS chain should get much more "life" than a geared chain. Assuming a good quality product on correct chain line and correct tension that is cleaned often and lubed for the riding conditions.
 
Re: Re:

King Boonen said:
Tricycle Rider said:
King Boonen said:
Just picked up a decent chain tool as I needed a new chain for the fixed gear:

http://www.parktool.com/product/mini-chain-brute-chain-tool-ct-5?category=Chain

This bad boy.
I've got one of those, they work well and they're small enough to fit into your bicycle purse when you're on-the-go.

Think their main advantage is you can replace the pin if it breaks (I have broken the pins on other tools, but they were not replaceable), so that's kinda nice.

I didn't know you could get replacement pins, thanks for letting me know, I'm not surprised with Park Tools. I bought it for the size too, being able to carry it does help when touring, but mainly I bought it because it's a Park Tool so I knew it would be much better quality than the other one the guy had in. Fitted a new chain to the fixed wheel this morning as the old one was so stretched it wouldn't mesh with the new chainring and it performed brilliantly.

Also, after buying new shoes and pedals I didn't want JackRabbitSlims to shout at me for buying inferior tools! ;)

:D

having bought cheap, crappy tools in the past thinking there wouldn't be much difference and I'd be saving $$......you only do that once....or maybe twice :eek:
 
Yeah, wear on the bushings/rollers, I'll be more precise in here ;) it's a kmc, my choice for everything! The chain was about 6-7 years old as its a second hand bike and had never been changed.


Sounds like I made the right choice sticking on the 3/32" then! Can certainly feel the bigger gear, I was faster on my commute but my back was aching. Added 7" to the gear length.
 
Re: Re:

JackRabbitSlims said:
King Boonen said:
Tricycle Rider said:
King Boonen said:
Just picked up a decent chain tool as I needed a new chain for the fixed gear:

http://www.parktool.com/product/mini-chain-brute-chain-tool-ct-5?category=Chain

This bad boy.
I've got one of those, they work well and they're small enough to fit into your bicycle purse when you're on-the-go.

Think their main advantage is you can replace the pin if it breaks (I have broken the pins on other tools, but they were not replaceable), so that's kinda nice.

I didn't know you could get replacement pins, thanks for letting me know, I'm not surprised with Park Tools. I bought it for the size too, being able to carry it does help when touring, but mainly I bought it because it's a Park Tool so I knew it would be much better quality than the other one the guy had in. Fitted a new chain to the fixed wheel this morning as the old one was so stretched it wouldn't mesh with the new chainring and it performed brilliantly.

Also, after buying new shoes and pedals I didn't want JackRabbitSlims to shout at me for buying inferior tools! ;)

:D

having bought cheap, crappy tools in the past thinking there wouldn't be much difference and I'd be saving $$......you only do that once....or maybe twice :eek:

Yeah, I buy when I need but tend to go for better quality when I do. Not always park, but always something that'll last.
 
Re: Re:

Tricycle Rider said:
King Boonen said:
The chain was about 6-7 years old as its a second hand bike and had never been changed.
That's awesome you're extending the life of a used bike, do you have a picture of the bike you could post? :)

I'll dig one out, but it's only a 2008 LeMond Fillmore so doesn't look very old! That's the kind of bikes I like to ride though, slim steel tubes.
 
Think I mentioned I'm a huge fan of using magnets when you lose that odd bolt or screw, but for the love of all that is aero, this is not what I had in mind. (I had just bought this one.)

magnet.jpg


This magnet is so powerful it may very well take your fingers off! (It's supposed to pick up something like 15lbs., perhaps I should have gone with the 3lb. magnet instead.)
 
First off I'll say this, I work on my own cars, not as much as I use to due to advance electronics which I'm too old to care about learning, and my own bikes, as well house repairs. I do not and have never bought a tool set, I only buy tools as the need arises this way I don't have a bunch of tools that I'll never use or have a bunch of the same tools that I also don't need more than one of. I also can use a lot of my tools for bikes that I used on cars so no sense of buying bike specific tools in a lot of cases. Also I weigh the cost of professionally fixing a rare break down of a part that I never ever serviced before vs the cost of the tool to do a job that I may only do once. For example, I had a Cadillac once that had a short heater hose that came out of the back of the engine into another part of the back of the engine and I couldn't reach it with any tool that I had to replace it due to the close proximity of the firewall, so I called around and found out that SnapOn Tools had a specialty tool made to do just that one job for $220, but I also found out that I could have it professionally repaired for just $75, since I wasn't planning on keeping the car the rest of my life I took it in to have it fixed.

So I'm not a big fan on buying tool sets, like I said I only buy tools as I need them and as the situation might demand it. What's really weird is, I do own enough tools to do most things on a bicycle, but since break downs for me are quite rare because I keep on my maintenance like a village nut job, the one tool that I reach for now more than all my tools I have for cycling is the Park MTB 3.2 mini tool! I have one in each of my saddle bags (some have the older 3 model), and it's handy on the bike I don't have to go to the tool chest and get a tool, just open my bag pull out the mini tool and select the tool I want, that darn thing does almost everything I encounter, even other peoples bikes that broke down on the road, I've even used it once to fix a person's broken down car! So I suggest to a first time tool buyer that isn't real heavy into mechanical repairs is to simply buy a mini tool and keep in your saddle bag and you can use it when on the road or at home.

The MTB 3.2 has the most amount of tools of any mini tool on the market, it has stuff for road and MTB's, though the tire levers are a bit wide for road tires, so I carry in my saddle bag a set of Soma Steel Core levers which are unbreakable, I also carry a small cheap pair of folding pliers, and a Presta to Schrader adapter. There are a couple of other tire tools on the market that work quite well, one is the Quik Stik but you have to get the tire started first with levers then slide the Quik Stik in and just rip the bead off the rim real fast, it can also be used in reverse to put a tire on but the width prevents it from putting on a tight fitting tire in that last difficult section; the other one is the Var tire lever model RP-42500-C, this little gem is perfect for getting the last section of a very tight tire onto the rim without worrying about pinching the tube.
 
I can't work on anything mechanical with gloves on, tried it and hate it. When I worked on my own cars more I use to use Blue Magic Invisible Glove Protective hand coating, just spread it on your hands and under your nails wait about a minute for it to dry then work on greasy gooey black crap and then rinse it off with water and my hands looked like I wasn't working on my car...the only problem with this stuff is if it gets wet while working on something the protection comes off. I haven't used that stuff in awhile I now just scrape my nails against a bar of soap to get the soap under my nails and do what I have to do, when done just wash with Permatex orange pumice hand cleaner.

I buy all my tools from Park except for the tire irons, but that's only because Park is all any LBS I've been in sells, and I don't buy a tool till I need it so into an LBS I go and buy the tool which is always Park. Not saying that Park is the best, just saying that's all I've found whenever I went into an LBS needing a tool, but they do the job without breaking and that's all I ask of a tool.
 

TRENDING THREADS