Bicycle Mechanics - Bicycle tools?

I was wondering what the essentials were for anyone who will be working on a bike (mountain or BMX). I'm getting a bike shipped to me and since I'm at school, I don't have any tools with me.

I was thinking of grabbing somethign off eBay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3666970119&category=27953

I guess I would be better off finding higher quality tools piece by piece, anything to recommend? Basically I'm unsure of what size tools and which tools I need, I figured a set like that would have everything I would need instead of making multiple trips to Home Depot or a bike store.

Thanks!

Skip the ebay offering. I noticed that the seller did not disclose the brand of the tools. In the photos, you can see that there is a brand name on some of the tools, but the photos are not clear enough to make it out.

The price is also way too cheap for a set of quality tools. Cheap tools are not worth it. Always buy top quality tools. They last forever and they don't damage your equipment.

For bicycle-specific tools, stick with brands like Park. For other common tools, it's hard to beat good old Sears Craftsman. You should be able to get a good set of allen wrenches, screwdrivers, combination wrenches, etc. from Sears. Add specific tools as you need them.

You can save up and buy one of the tool sets offered by Park, nut you may get a bunch of tools you don't need. Check the kit carefully against your needs.

Personally, for 90+% of the work I do, a good multitool is just the thing.

I multitool will not be enough I personally bought a pedros tool kit that has everything you could ever need except p-handle hex keys, but those are more of a convenience. If you can get a hold of a 20% off coupon for nashbar it is quite resonable at nashbar. Pedros makes some quality tools that I believe are better than park. whatever you do don't buy cheap tools you'll regret it.
you kind find that kit here. (http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=99&subcategory=1232&brand=&sku=8551&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename=)

I was wondering what the essentials were for anyone who will be working on a bike (mountain or BMX). I'm getting a bike shipped to me and since I'm at school, I don't have any tools with me.

I was thinking of grabbing somethign off eBay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3666970119&category=27953

I guess I would be better off finding higher quality tools piece by piece, anything to recommend? Basically I'm unsure of what size tools and which tools I need, I figured a set like that would have everything I would need instead of making multiple trips to Home Depot or a bike store.

Thanks!

Don't know what kind of bike you're getting but I'm betting that a set of metric allen wrenches and a 15mm pedal wrench will do to get you going.

Do as Retro Grouch said, but maybe a set of cone wrenches would also be good to have early. Then only buy good tools as you need them.

When you get wrenches, get the combination ones (open one end, ring the other end), and use the ring end whenever possible.

I already own a set of Craftsman hand tools and a few, basic power tools. The way I have amassed my bike tools is buying a specific tool I need for a specific repair. When I started breaking spokes on my rear wheel, I bought a Park cassette wrench and chain whip so I could replace the spokes myself.

Later, I needed to replace some cables, so I bought a Shimano cable cutter. For other tools, like metric allen wrenches, I bought a set at Home Depot for $8 that have a lifetime warranty.

It is probably more expensive than just laying out a few hundred for the basic Park tool set, but there are some tools there that I don't need or will probably ever use.

That company makes the cheap kits for Nasbar, Performance and Supergo under eachs 'own' brand name. I ordered the Nashbar kit and it's far from Pro Shop quality. Like comparing Buffalo tools to Craftsman or Snapon.
I broke the adjustable lockring spanner the first time I used it. The cassette tool is good for a couple uses. Some of it's OK but I wouldn't recommend it.
http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=99&subcategory=1232&brand=&sku=3521&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename=
http://www.supergo.com/profile.cfm?LPROD_ID=8751&lsubcat_id=7573&lcat_id=7607
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=16017
I couldn't find that exact kit but one of them sold it before.

If you are going to buy ANY Craftsman hand tools you NEED to be a member of the Craftsman Club.

Go to a Sears and ask for a membership application, it's FREE. It will net you a 10% discount during the club week every month. Yes, 10% on ALL Craftsman hand tools during the club week.

No, I don't get a kick-back for posting this...wish I did.

PJBAZ

Damn. I just bought an 18v Craftsman drill and a quick lock set too.

I ended up not purchasing any tools. Turns out the only tools I needed when the bike arrived were some allen key's and a wrench. Just went down to the woodshop and used what they had...

Thanks for the reply guys.