Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Tool kits

So I've been using a $7 bike tool for maintenance and the wrenches on it barely fit and the tool itself is just one giant pain in the ass. My knuckles are pretty sore from slipping and punching the spokes when I'm tightening up my rear wheel...does anyone have a tool kit they can recommend for around $50 or less? I figure it would probably be a good investment to have a kit that I could disassemble my entire bike with if I need to.

you'd be better off purchasing quality tools as you need them and developing a collection over time. cheap tools suck.

You can probably do most of the work you'll ever need to do with a 15mm wrench, a set of Allen wrenches, tire levers, a chainwhip and a lockring spanner. Of course there's other important stuff like spoke wrenches, a pedal wrench and tools for the bottom bracket, but really that basic tool set will serve you just fine for an awful lot of basic repairs and adjustments. As mentioned above, just start out with the most commonly used stuff and you can buy the more specialized tools later as you need them.

http://bikeisland.com/cgi-bin/BKTK_STOR20.cgi?Action=Details&ProdID=1229

and find some levers too.

http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/14585-325_SET215-2-Accessories-42-Tools/Sette-Torx-ST-21-Tool-Kit---21-Tools.htm

I rock this kit and I think it's a great value for the money. (Although it certainly isn't as nice as "shop quality" tools)

PROS-
• lots of "bike specific" tools with few "general use" tools that you likely already have kicking around the tool box (eg. screw drivers)
• Pretty cheap compared to "name brand" tool kits
• Pricepoint is a great comapny to deal with (quick shipping, strong customer service, etc.)

CONS-
• The pin spanner was a POS that broke the first time I used it. (unless you do a lot of work on really old bikes this won't be an issue for you though since modern BB's don't use pin spanners)
• The lockring tool isn't as nice or user friendly as a more expensive stand-alone lockring tool but it has worked for me so far and I now have a Pedro's Trixie tool with a better lockring tool if I need it.
• Admittedly the fit and finish of all the tools is not on par with Pedros or Park. This doesn't really affect the tool use and for a home hobby mechanic it shouldn't make a big difference.

If you have any specific questions about this kit feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer.

I was thinking about picking this up today.

http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=6&item=AK-37

Would I be better off picking and choosing what I need? I'll be building up geared bikes from the ground up and thought this would do the job. Any opinions? Also need to get a stand. Money, money money.

I've got a Park Tool Rescue Tool and a Pedro's Trixie. It's gotten me by very well considering they're two tiny tools that you can toss into your bag. And since I regularly move all over the country for work, I don't end up having to hawk the tools on Craigslist since they come in at like a pound total.

Park Tool Rescue Tool
http://www.rei.com/product/711889?cm_mmc=cse_froogle-_-datafeed-_-product-_-711889&mr:trackingCode=E76FB8C9-5E07-DE11-96D7-0019B9C043EB&mr:referralID=NA

Pedro's Trixie
http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/first-look-pedros-trixie-tool-20166

Notable gaps here are chainwhip, bb tools, and tire levers. I've used the rotafixa method instead of chainwhip, have yet to need to mess with the bb, and tire levers are an easy $3 fix.

I was thinking about picking this up today.

http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=6&item=AK-37

I don't know where you are planning to purchase it but it looks like the going rate for that kit is about $300.

How many bikes are you planning on building "from the ground up"?

Not that there is anything wrong with the Park kit but I doubt it's 6 times nicer than the Sette kit I linked to above. If you are hoping to become a professional bike mechanic I'd say go with the park kit but for a home hobbyist who'll rarely use things like BB tools and freewheel removers, I'd save the money for a decent repair stand.

I hear ya. I currently have two frames to build up. I found the kit for 230.00 on amazon and thought that was a good price. I prefer to spend more money up front on things that will last a long time rather than having to replace them a few years down the road. I'm going to wait it out and talk to some more people about it. We'll see. Thanks.

get a good allen wrench set, bottom bracket tool (worth it), lockring spanner, chainwhip, a spark plug socket *works for tightening track nuts and is long and then add as you guy, that's what i did and it has worked for me and i can do anything i need to on my bikes now.

get Quik stiks instead of tire levers. they're much easier to use and much stronger.

Thanks Ryan, I think I'll end up picking up the Sette kit that you linked to. It looks like it's got a lot more than all the kits I've found and is right in my price range.

I was thinking about picking this up today.

http://www.parktool.com/products/detail.asp?cat=6&item=AK-37

Would I be better off picking and choosing what I need? I'll be building up geared bikes from the ground up and thought this would do the job. Any opinions? Also need to get a stand. Money, money money.

TreeFort has this kit for $214 w/free shipping.

I use this kit and have been pretty happy with it. I've ended up using most of the tools, and although the idea of piecing together a toolset is really nice, the kit is a convenient and cost-effective way to get a good assortment of basic tools.

That said, if you don't see yourself having a need for many of the tools that come in the kit, I'd do it piece by piece. I must say that I've never even touched three of the cone wrenches that came with the kit, and ended buying a couple duplicate of the 13mm and 15mm sizes. Also, I despise the three-pronged hex wrenches and much prefer Park's P-handle set. A couple of things I love are the chain-cleaner set, and the shop-quality cone wrenches.

Thanks for the link. They have some great deals. I'm looking at picking up that kit as well as the PCS-4 stand for a grand total of 460.00 shipped. This is a large chunk of cash but I think it will be worth it. I'm not going to jump on it yet as I want to get some more opinions. Bike stuff is expensive.

buy as you go.