Tool box.
 

Where can I find a tool set dedicated to mountain bikes. I asked the LBS but all they sell are individual tools and at that rate I'm sure it would run me through the roof. I'm sure they want to keep the riders ignorant of how to fix a bike... this is what brings most of them back. ---bad for business...:(

Well, if anyone knows of a tool-sets or toolboxes for a good price let me know.

Thx,

-Joe

i think you may have a tough time finding what your looking for. what i would suggest is find a decent basic tool kit for bikes and supplement it with other tools you need. park seems to be the brand i see most in referance to bike tools.
http://www.parktool.com/
maybe start there, i'm not sure if they sell sets or not.
i know for cars atleast it can be hard to find nice tool sets that have everything you need. generally they have have way more than what you need and are real expensive, or you start off pretty basic and add what you need.
with bikes you also seem to always need special things depending on what brands of parts you need.

heres a link to a site that sells some tool sets, i'm in the market myself so started looking when i saw your post.
hopefully Rev. Chuck will stop in with some advice :).

Most mail order companies sell took kits and individual tools as well. I was just over at Nashbar and saw a really nice kit by Pedro's Tools and it included the case, or you buy the case and the tools are included. Either way it was a decent price for the amount of tools.

L8R

If you want to buy a pre-setup kit, the best bet is probably the Park AK-32. It will let you do most stuff. We would retail it at about $290. If you want to really work on stuff get the PK-57. This is a shop level kit, around $860.
If you just want to work on your bike I would consider writing out the tools you need, because, for instance you don't need every cone wrench, probably just 13, 15, 17mm. Same thing with wrenches, you only need a few sizes. Do a tool estimate and then compare prices to the complete kits. Then once you get your tools, figure out what size box you need. Go big on the box, better to have room left over than not enough. My bike box is a five drawer Craftsman and holds all my bike specific stuff. Plus since it has drawers, I don't have to dig thru it to find stuff, about $70. My other box is a MAC about 4'x4'x2' about $2000 and it is so full it is a pain getting stuff out of it. I have two overflow boxes for it.

As someone else posted on a related thread...

As I said when I first read it, great advice.

Case in point: There are maybe two or three tools in a pre-packaged tool kit that would be worth owning: the crank puller, chain tool and wire cutters. The BB & cassette lock-ring tools would be OK if you're riding a bike equipped with Shimano components. In most cases you'd be better off buying a nice set of wrenches, a chain whip, and any brand of tire levers and patch kit to get your kit started. Get a multi-tool from a hardware store along with a nice set of screwdrivers, t-handle hex wrenches (metric) and a Park bike-shop quality pedal wrench. Then add tools as you need them or when you find them at swap meets and over time you'll have more tools than you'll ever "need".

There is a picture of my tool box on another thread and it's the fourth one I've had in 20 years, each becoming progressively more efficient at holding the stuff I like to have along when we head out of town for multi-day ride events.

I agree with Livingood; just buy tools primarily as needed from a place like Sears (get the Craftsman they have a lifetime warranty, the new Sears brand does not and is cheap Chinese stuff) basically because Sears has a no hassle return policy and their everywhere not because I think their the best tools-because their not-but thats a whole different story. Then when needed buy a bike specific tool (not the whole set) that is not available at Sears from Park. Buying tools this way insures you do not go out an plunk down a wad of cash buying tools and then only using 1/10th of the tools, thus the tools you do get you know you will use. All my auto tools were purchased this way, not as a set, but as needed, so were my house tools, and so were my bike tools. Wire cutters by the way can be found at Sears (or anywhere) that not only can cut shifter cables, but can also help strip insulation off different guages of wires around the home or car that the Park wire cutter cannot do, so why buy a wire cutter just for the bike? Buy a wire cutter that can be used anywhere.

You can even go to garage sales or swap meets and find old Craftsman tools and even if their beat up, buy it cheap, take it to Sears and they will replace it! they do not care if your the original owner or not!! I found a rusted screwdriver with a broken blade on the ground one day, turned out to be a Craftman, took it to Sears and they replaced it!!!! Got a new screwdriver for free and no questions asked.

bike nashbar sells a tool kit for $50 whick has almost every tool you need to overhaul a modern bicycle (by modern i mean splined sealed BB and freehub cassette with splined lockring) these are ****ty chinese made tools, but they are inexpensive which is a plus (to me).

until know, my bike tools inventory are still getting big, I started with the basic, tire lever, now i have the sophisticated truing stand......, what's next....

You need this stuff...

This doesn't hurt...

and this:D ...

http://www.angelfire.com/al2/misha18...ay20_bike2.jpg

:D

How many different bicycles do you plan to repair? Do you plan to do all of your own repairs, or will you contract out some of the really heavy-duty jobs? Although I covet the Reverend's very comprehensive toolkit, I get by quite nicely with a much more modest set of tools, which I accumulated over the years as I needed them. Of course, it helped to work for a small bike shop which went out of business; when the owner couldn't make final payroll, he gave me a truing stand, freewheel pullers, crank pullers, BB wrenches, cone wrenches, etc. I have had to supplement my 30-year-old tools a few times as new technologies have emerged.

Mostly I just use the stuff in the first picture(on bikes), but I have to show the other stuff every now and then because it is hidden in my garage
Dang inoplanet, if that is your box and that is your bike you need to work on balancing the scales, my brother.

Hahaha, nice box, isn't it? It cost copple of grands, I think guy said 3500, only for the box, plus he has about $30000 in tools. I am not going to work as a mechanic for too long time, so no need to invest so much money into it.
The bike is mine though :) and the cart behind it is full of tools, that I also own :)

All this boxes, craftsman, snap on, matco, blue point... I think they are overpriced just because of the name, and so called liftyme warranty... which is hard to imagine when will you wear the box like that. Anyhow, I would rather build my own, and save the rest of $2500, even though it might not look as good. What is so hard in attaching few sheet metals, put some rollers underneath... make your own drawers... :)

SIMPLE!

send me a cheque for no less then 600 bucks and I'll send you my tool kit the kit itself is about 3ft. long cost 50 bucks empty:B.B. cartridge remover,modern park crank extracter,all the free wheel removers no. 1 no.2 bmx,road bike,sachs plus modern lock ring remover,huge flat repair kit,two chain whips,pedel wrench,bottom bracket tool,lock ring tool,cool tool,alien tool,zellers mini bicycle tool,couple 6"cresent wrenches,small pipe wrench,spanner/headset wrench,,three spoke wrenches about three chain rivet tools[example cool tool has one built in]odds and ends cable ends,spoke nipples,assortment of spokes..all kinds of extra nuts washers etc.etc.,third hand...and probably a few things I forgot to mention,I'll pay shipping in canada or U.S.A....trust me...I'll buy a combination lock for it also,we'll have to lock it up for shipping?:)

I have seen multi-tools specifically for bikes at REI and other places. What about these that I can fit in my hydration pack for on the trail repairs?

What do you guys carry when you're out riding?

Where I work the cheaper boxes fall apart. The Snap On boxes last a lifetime.

Those mutli-tools can be great at times on the trail, but not for repairs at your house. Mine saved me last week when my chain broke on a trail. I definately prefer my park tool chain tool, but the multi-tool worked better then I thought it would.

o.k if I buy a alien tool by the time I pay U.S. exchange rate it cost me about 75 bucks..I live in Canada Nipawin Sask...that is,so when you add up all the costs you can understand why a person needs a bit for the tool kit eh?

Tools! :eek: http://mechbgon.tripod.com/index.html <--- serious overkill

For a general starting point, I recommend treating yourself to a repair stand. Soooo useful! :) If you had to pick one, the Park Tool PRS-5 is probably the best all-rounder since it's portable. If you know you'll always have a secure place for it, and won't need portability, the shop-level PRS-3OS or one of the wall-/bench-mount professional models would be slick for their high stability.

As for individual tools, I agree that you should probably buy as you go, unless you want to pre-equip yourself to be able to tear your bike apart whenever the mood strikes, in which case one of these Park Tool PK-57 kits and a TS-2 truing stand with TSB-2 base would equip you for most needs on your bike or your friends' bikes.

The reason I have asked this question: I'll be on the road and in the woods (mountains [as some of you already know]) for a good month and I'm sure there is going to be the unexpected mechanical error. I am getting one of those "bike bibles" for the larger problems that I hope I'm not going to encounter and all the smaller issues associated with MTB riding.

Only If I had a large pocket full of cash.. (if you would like I wouldn't mind a donation... i.e. I'm broke .... I'm going out on a limb here pondfullofgld@mindspring.comhttp://www.fish-forum.com/modules/Fo...s/icon_lol.gif) to purchase accessories. It is kind of like moving from a apartment to a house thinking it is going to be that much sweeter... You know a big yard, swimming pool, shed...etc the whole 9 yards. But then again.. What are you going to put in all of those rooms, the shed, the pool (hopefully water)... etc.

Thx for all the advice and help,

-Joe

Well if your job requires that kind of sophistication then by all means get a Snap On because your income is dependent upon you job and your job is dependent upon having the right tools for the job and quality tools that will hold up plus a warranty to back it up forever.

BUT most of us are not mechanics. A Snap On or Matco or whatever that cost a fortune to buy is ridiculous for the average person. One of those boxes I saw USED the guy wanted $1,200!!! with no tools!!!!!

As I said before buy as you need it. When your tools get to be to much than go buy a tool box. I have a roller bearing drawers Craftsman box I paid $240 and it holds everything (bearings work better and last longer than sliders). And buy Craftsman tools because they are not anywhere near as pricey as the Snap On or Matco and still have a hassle free lifetime warranty. Are the Craftsman just as good of a tool as the Snap On or Mateco? NO, but the average person is not going to have worry about that anyway.

A 4 lb hammer & a gas-axe does it for me OK .:crash: :beer: :crash: