Originally Posted by
saddlesores
A 6" adjustable wrench is already in the on-board tool kit, used to remove cassette lock rings........as long as it opens enough to accept the removal tool and you don't needlessly crank down the lock ring.
Note: it does work to get minor dings out of brake discs with a thin rag or slip of paper to avoid scratches.
For BB5 and BB7 type mechanical brakes, if you have a business card and 5mm allen wrench, you can adjust your brakes on the road in about a minute. Try that before you think you need to bend the rotors.
Business Card Trick
Thanks. My cassette lock ring tool for touring now is a Park tool, it uses a 1 inch wrench. To avoid the weight of an adjustable wrench I used a hack saw to make a cone wrench fit the one inch flats on the Park tool.
Before I bought the Park tool, I had a cassette tool that was really big, and it needed a wrench just a hair bigger than my 6 inch adjustable wrench. Instead of carrying a bigger wrench, I filed down two of the flats on the cassette tool to make it fit that 6 inch wrench. And my chain wrench is a short bit of chain with a good strong cord. I no longer carry this bigger wrench or cassette tool in the photo below.
My disc brake is a TRP Spyre. I have no trouble adjusting it, both pads go in and out at the same rate. If I need to adjust one of the pads, if my memory is correct that takes a 3mm allen wrench.
An old photo right after I built it, thus it is cleaner in that photo than it has ever been since.