mountainwalker

Spare tube, tube patches, tube replacement tools, lightweight air pump, CO2 pump, hex set, etc.? Where do you keep these items? Do your items fit in your underseat bag?

dscheidt

I have a small zippered bag that I carry on my commuter. It's got a spare tube, a patch kit, a short 15mm wrench/tire lever, a crappy multi-tool (not a cheap one, just one I don't really like. It sometimes has a pair of disposable gloves in it. It fits in typical underseat bag (and, if I didn't ride a 29er with huge tubes, it would fit in large trouser pocket), but I normally carry it in a pannier. My beater has a tube, some tire levers, and a patch kit, which live in the underseat bag. Both bikes have pumps mounted to the frame, and I always carry a leatherman tool.

Sullalto

seat bag, tire levers, tube, patch kit, hex multitool. Pump on the frame. Saddle cover for the rain.

joeyduck

I keep a tube or two. Patch kit. Pin head lock key. Multi tool which I use for nearly all my regular maintenance so I know it works on my bike. Lighter. Pocket knife. Levers. Small screw driver for deraillieur adjustments Local bike map. A few dollars change. Rope or a bungee to pick up random finds. Frame pump. Disposable gloves. Band-Aid, sterile gauze (I hope still), cloth tape, latex gloves, antibiotic ointment. Pen wrapped with duct tape. Fox 40 whistle. I have a set of tire levers wedged under the supports for my rack. I have a dog tag size pet tag with emergency info.

They are all scattered in my left side pannier which is my usual go to pannier.

I have a chain/spoke tool and extra links that I rarely carry with me. I should, but I am more likely to call or take a bus home if it come to that.

FBinNY 

All my bikes are always set up with the basic emergency kit, spare tube, pump, tire levers, a folding hex key set, and $20.00. The road bike with tubulars has a tire instead of a tube, and no levers, but otherwise is the same.

I expand on the above slightly for multi-day tours, adjusting depending on length of the trip and where I'm riding.

IMO, other than flats which are beyond my control, I fully expect my bike to complete the trip home without issues whenever I start out, and have rarely been disappointed. The few non-flat breakdowns I've had on day trips have been isolated and unpredictable, like a broken pedal spindle.

Since I can't prepare for everything, I prepare for walking or hitch hiking.

Granturismonut

I carry 2 tubes, patch kit, small flashlight, small bungee, $10 in 1's, Topeak Alien multi-tool and a couple extra energy bars. I keep this in my Camelbak that goes with me on all my rides.

SGocka

In my backpack I have:

Spare tube
15mm wrench
Crank Brothers M19
Patch Kit
2 Tire Levers
Presta Adapter
Lezyne Pressure Drive
Extra Length of Chain
C02 Inflator
2 C02 Cartridges
Zip Ties
Tweezers
Around $20 In Small Bills

qtoffer

When I ride, I'm never more than 20 miles from home or a couple hundred feet from a hardware store, drugstore, convenience store, or gas station. I also ride with my cell phone and wallet. This certainly influences what I don't carry with me.

Still, I always ride with a small frame pump and I keep an emergency kit in a side pannier pocket. It includes a spare tube, tube patch kit, tire levers, three hex keys and two combination wrenches (why carry a whole set if I only need two or three sizes?), a small adjustable wrench, and two small screwdrivers (flat and Phillips). The tools are all wrapped in a bandana that's kept closed with a velcro cable tie. A plastic bag containing some bandaids, sterile gauze, $10, and a couple of quarters rounds out my kit.

FBinNY 

I'm afraid to imagine what you carry if you had to go 1,000 yards between stores.

physdl

My view is that the amount of emergency items you need will depend on the proximity of bike shops and bus routes to your commuting route. In my case, there's an lbs near my office and half-way. There are buses constantly when I'm commuting which will get me either home or to the half-way point. So, for myself, I'm prepared for a flat (tube, levers, frame-mounted mini-pump) and to make any minor adjustments (Topeak mini multi tool). Anything more serious than that and I'll either limp home or take it to the shop. I store everything either in my trunk bag or in a top tube bag, though I'll probably get an underseat bag soon.

Bike Gremlin

Spare tube,

tube patching kit (2 "spoons" to remove tyre, glue, patches)

Spanner to remove wheels.

Pump.

I also carry some basic tools like allen wrenches, and a multitool - carry those both on and off the bike. Bike tools are all put in a small pouch that is put in a backpack and carried with me (not locked with the bike).

fotooutdoors

I have a short commute (3 miles) that is entirely on bus lines, so I carry nothing extra. If I hasn't meetings off my route or travel to a field site, I am prepared for flats (tube and pump), but rarely carry more than that. The only repair that this preparedness had bit been able to fix would not have been repairable with my touring toolkit; a stick destroyed my rear derailleur and my chain foot bent (didn't know before that the latter was really possible).

NOS88

Under seat bag has spare tube, one tire lever, patch kit, small multi-tool, $50 (in several bill denominations). In addition, I consider my cell phone an emergency tool. My seat tube has a mini-pump attached to the water bottle bosses. I think that's it.

bbeasley

I used to carry enough stuff to rebuild my bike. As I rode more I started removing things I never used. I'm down to:

One spare tube
One shiny object (wonderful tire C02 valve)
Two C02 cartridges. I've never wasted one but I can't seem to make myself only carry one.
One tire tool with built in 15mm hex for my fixed gear bike

One time in 9,227 miles of riding I had more than 1 flat on a ride. That day I had 3 so even carrying multiple tubes didn't make me self sufficient. I always have my phone if it really goes bad.

RaleighSport

In my saddle bag: Two tire levers, one adjustable wrench, one multi tool(with chain breaker/spoke levers), Co2 inflator with cartridge in and 2 spare cartridges, one tube, one patch kit, one kevlar emergency spoke, small amount of electrical tape, missing link, and I feel like I'm forgetting something...

Anyhow I keep all this in a Ortielieb mini bag and keep the tube at the end of it, as I have multiple mounts for the same bag on different bikes so I can just swap to the proper sized tube for the bike I'm going to ride. I do have two more of the bags, but gathering full sets of emergency gear I like is a pain.

Oh and a big shout out/thank you to my SS from last year: @whatwolf or I wouldn't have known about these bags!

jyl

I use my daily commuting bike for long (century) rides too, and got tired of repacking the toolkit for each type of ride - plus the bike weighs so much (>30 lb) that gram-sparing on the toolkit was pointless. So now I carry, in a small nylon stuff sack:
- Tire levers, metal ones that double as box wrenches
- Allen wrenches, five to cover all the bolts on my bike
- Small Phillips and flat screwdriver
- Small chain tool
- Spoke wrench
- Extra brake and shifter cables
- A few 8mm and 10mm allen head bolts and matching nuts
- Quick chain link
- Tire patch kit
- Two tubes

Also a frame pump.

I've used the wrenches, tire stuff and screwdriver. Haven't yet had need for the rest of it.

Mr Pink57

Tube
Pump
Multi Tool
Schrader Tool
Small First Aid kit
Patch Kit

I keep it all in a frame bag.

noglider 

My no-flat spell broke on Saturday. I got a flat on the Greenway. No problem, I thought. I opened my seat bag and found my spare tube, tire levers, and patch kit. And there was no pump! Oy. I changed my tube anyway and asked some passing cyclists if they had a pump. Nope. I walked home about 1.5 miles. It was fine. It was a short, pleasant walk, and the weather was very nice. I now have a pump in my seat bag. Duh.

FBinNY 

Tom, you've been at this wa-a-a-a-y too long for that kind of mistake. But I can't believe that your smile couldn't promote a pump.

noglider 

Exactly why I thought it was such a boneheaded move of mine. I have been so good at boy scouting (being prepared). I usually carry too many tools, not too few. And thanks for the compliments. It means a lot coming from you.

HydroG33r 

I have the same mentality. I always have a spare tube, 2 x CO2 cylinders, CO2 head, tire levers, small multitool, and a frame pump for backup. On top of that, since I always carry at least one of my Ortlieb Backrollers (even if it's mostly empty), I usually carry my lights, bus tickets, wallet, spare change, and other miscellany in there. And then of course today I broke a spoke, so none of my tools were worth a thing... except my iPhone and my wallet (to pay my LBS to change the spoke). :-P

TransitBiker

Cell phone, know-how, and willingness to get hands greasy.

Im looking into a pump & some tubes, and i try to always carry my allan multikey tool. I also always have my victorinox rescuetool, which i've used the ream to get debris out of the brake vent channel on the wheel rims.

- Andy

yote223

You gotta admit those little Co2 units are pretty handy.

noglider 

You know how not having an umbrella causes rain? And how not bringing a book causes boredom? For me, having only 2 co2 cartridges would cause me to have three flats. I like to have a pump, one or two spare tubes, and a patch kit. I check my patch kit often to count the patches and make sure the glue is still wet!

joeyduck

I guess I always carry my e-reader to work and back. I am never bored or lacking work since I never actually read it at work. So this is true. I am more along the lines of hanging laundry to dry outside makes it rain, more impact than an umbrella.