Metric Man

The kind you work with, not the guy you see at the coffee shop.

I have a garage full of automotive type tools, but I'm finding that working on bikes is becoming more difficult without the right tool for the job. I just bought a set of SRAM Force shifters along with front and rear derailers, (crank set to come in a another month or so) and now I guess I need to pop for some more specialized tools. I saw this on REI and it looks like it might have a lot of what I'm looking for. Any one have any experience with this set?

https://www.rei.com/product/750711

tsl

I'm generally opposed to kits like this because the tools either get stuck in the case, or fall out all over the place. Replacing damaged or lost tools is a pain because replacement tools never fit, and they don't sell the direct replacements for the kit.

Plus you can never add to the kit. That particular kit includes a cassette lockring tool, but neglects to include a chainwhip--which you need in order to use the darned cassette lockring tool. So where do you keep the chainwhip after you add it to your collection?

But lots of people like kits like this, so I guess it's an opinion thing.

As for the tools within the case, Universal Spoke Wrenches are a pain to use. I spent more time trying to keep track of the right side to use than actually doing work. Besides, the vast majority of wheels out there are a single size nipple. Why fuss with the other two? I tossed it and replaced it with a single tool for just 14 ga. spoke nipples.

I have the same critique of Y wrenches. I have only a 33% chance of getting the right size on the first try--the 5mm is on the same tool as the 4mm and 6mm. On my set of P handle wrenches, I have a 100% chance of getting the 5mm when I grab the 5mm wrench. Plus, on the P wrenches I have a ball end and a square end of the same size.

I also added metric hex wrenches to my socket set, although I bought Craftsman instead of tracking down a Snap-On truck.

Specialty wrenches, like crank extractors, I bought at the LBS as I needed them. The free advice was worth the extra cost.

stapfam

Lot of tools in there I would never use and I don't have ultra modern bikes. Spoke key is not one I could ever get on with- The Bottom bracket tool is not the type on my road bikes- Headset tool is defunct unless you have threaded steerer and the Pedal wrench would not last long and the puncture repair kit I already have 4 sets of.

In general it would be a starter kit but other tools would be required- and then they would not fit into the nicely moulded plastic box.

I wouldn't start on the tools I use that are not there as it may frighten you into realising how much a tool kit could cost you.

I've negative but someone show the positive side.

unixpro

Looking at that kit, I'd probably use most of the tools in it. Maybe not the spoke wrench, but it's got a chain breaker, a nice selection of allen wrenches, chain whip, cassette and BB tools. I've used all of these in the past year. I have a kit myself (not this one) and like it because it keeps all my tools in one place, where they belong, and where they're portable. Yeah, I have some additional tools that I use commonly, most notably a pair of needlenose pliers, but I found room for them in the kit.

I'd say that the price is good, so I'd go for it myself.

BluesDawg

Never tried a kit. My tool collection was (and continues to be) made by buying what I need to do jobs as they come up. If I need a tool I don't have, I buy it. The Park Tools website is very handy for learning what tool is needed for a job. Even if you don't want the Park tool specified, Google will help you find an alternative.

BengeBoy 

I often wish I had started my tool collection with a kit like this, and then replaced or upgraded things as I went along. Instead I have a mixture of inexpensive tools and very nice Park tools; over time I just bought the tools I needed, one at a time. As I get older increasingly I don't buy a tool unless I buy a nice one, as the "good ones" seem to save time and last longer.

Performance, Nashbar, Harbor Freight, ProbikeKit and others sell basic tool kits like the REI linked to above.

But I think if I thought I were really going to be serious, and had no tools to start with, I'd bite the bullet and get one of the basic Park Tool kits and go from there.

Metric Man

I would never buy this as a do all set, and I don't keep tools in the "cool" little case they come in...I have a roller tool chest that serves the purpose well. I also have T hex wrenches, and some of the other goodies as well, but I was thinking I couldn't buy half that stuff for that price, and I can always add to it as needed. The BB removal tool, crank arm puller, and cassette locking tool alone would cost more than the whole set.

Louis

Right off the bat I don't see a 13mm cone wrench in there. Almost all front hubs take a 13mm.

Like most posters, I prefer buying tools as I need them. I've accumulated a nice collection of bike tools for my workshop over the years.

maddmaxx 

Another vote for tools as you need them. For example, are you working on new style external bearing cranksets...........you will need a bottom bracket tool for that. Are you working with square taper or splined pipe or external beraing cranks..........you will need a special crank extractor for that. IMHO, universal spoke wrenches universally round off all spokes........buy good ones that fit your spokes (probably the black one)

As you have learned over the years, there are good automotive tools and others. The same is true for biike tools, some are good and then there are others.

Tools you need:

1. A good set of allen wrenches
2. A cassette removal tool (I prefer those with a center shaft to keep it from slipping out) and a chain whip.
3. A chain breaking tool (for the part time mechanic, the one on your multitool that goes with you on the bike is good enough).
4. A set of crank extractor tool and appropriate bottom bracket tool for what you have.
5. A cable tool
6. Assorted cone wrenches for wheels and threaded stems on older bikes.

These are the basics, there are more, but you have time.

gcottay

I like the sequence of buying a cheap set to have the basics readily available for use, adding additional quality tools as needed, and replacing the cheap kit tools with good ones as the kit versions break or prove unsatisfactory.

cyclinfool

It is really an opinion thing I guess. I went for years not needing anything more than my automotive tools and a spoke wrench to service my bike. Then I decided to rebuild my Simoncini with a new Campy group. I bought a crank brothers kit, it only had three of the tools I would need for the job but I could also use it for my Tarmac which is Shimano. However just those three tools alone were as much as the kit. I had to buy three other tools to replace the group and I bought a new tool box as well. I like having a tool collection just for the bikes, they are located where I store the bikes and there when I need them. I also like good tools - there are a few in the collection that are destined for the trash bucket, the rest work very well.
IMHO kits are a great buy as long as there is enough of what you really need in there realizing there will be some junk as well.

John E

I have been accumulating bicycle, automotive, and household tools over the past 40 years. I, too, appreciate a high-quality tool for a critical application and always the right tool for the job. Since all of my bikes are more than 20 years old, I did not have much trouble collecting the tools I need. It also helped to work at a bike shop which went out of business and paid my back wages in tools and parts and then to work at a shop at which I could purchase tools and parts at dealer cost.

If you have Shimano sidepull brakes, you may find that a 13mm cone wrench greatly simplifies brake caliper centering.

My most recent splurge was a $100 Park shop stand, because I got tired of hanging bikes by bungie cords from my open garage door. I had to repair a couple of manufacturing defects (braze splatter, misaligned base parts, etc.), but it has served me well.

Velo Dog

Shoot, I agree with EVERYBODY here, even the people who don't agree with each other. I'm not big on fitted cases like this because they take up a lot of space and are generally cheesy and break up eventually, especially after you step on them a few times, and replacement tools never fit the slots. I made a tool roll out of canvas (five minutes with a sewing machine, or you can buy them), which is smaller and easier to pack.
The two-star review isn't encouraging, but the truth is even cheap tools are fine for most bike uses. Good tools are nice to use, but on a bike, the forces are low and you rarely break anything- I have tools of this quality or lower that I've used for 15 years. There are things there I wouldn't use often, and buying a kit in any case would duplicate tools I've accumulated over the years, so I wouldn't. But if I were starting out, I might. It's pretty inexpensive, and owning it will make you feel good because you'll be prepared...go for it.

CB HI

+1

sauerwald

There is a saying - buy a good tool and you cry once - when you buy it, buy a cheap tool and you will cry every time you use it. I add quality tools as I need them, and find substitutes that work, or borrow tools until I have the appropriate tools to do all of the jobs that I commonly do.

For bicycle tools, I have generally had good luck with Park tools.

Spoke

Read the reviews. Then go buy some quality tools.

Ride On!
-Spoke

tsl

Here are two more tools I frequently use that I've never seen in kits:

Cable and Cable Housing Cutter--This tool saves me a ton of money because I'm forever replacing the little loop of housing at the RD. (Close-ratio cassette and keeping a steady cadence means I shift a lot.)

Cable Stretcher--more frequently known as a third-hand or fourth-hand tool. Indispensable for recabling. Sure you can use pliers, until you try one of these babies.

Thinking about it, these are about my second most-frequently used tools after hex wrenches. Chainwhip and cassette locking tool are third, chain tool fourth.

stapfam

The cable cutters are a must. But I have two sets. An Actual shimano one that works fine- but I misplaced it. So down to the LBS and they recommended the Park tools one. I ain't half glad that I found the Shimano tool- The park one does not fit my hands and is awkward to use. And the 3rd hand- I borrowed one to set up my brakes and could not get on with it.

But those quality tools- They are worth saving up for. Take cone spanners for example. 15 years ago I bought a cheap set. Every size from 13mm to 17 and two of each. I could now rebuild all my mates hubs and never have to use a set of Molegrips for the one size I did not have. But 5 years ago they were getting worn. I really lashed out and bought a set of Park Tool cone spanners. Same sizing and two of each as they were not sold as sets. I paid as much for one of the Park tools- and there are 10 of them- as I paid for the cheap set years ago. 5 years later and they are in pristine condition. Mainly because most of my wheels now have bearings in them so I never use the cone spanners.

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