Barrettscv 

I replace 6 to 10 chains a year. I use Shimano or Sram chains for 8, 9 or 10 speed bikes.

Please suggest a reliable chain tool for a user with moderate requirements.

jimc101

Park mini chain brute Park Tool Co. » CT-5 : Mini Chain Brute Chain Tool : Chain

caloso

That's the one I use. Well made and does what it does.

gummybear

will it work with a 1/8" chain?

Bill Kapaun

Just get a good chain tool and not have to worry about the cheap one failing when you really need it.

My first cheapie lasted 2 uses, but I learned what not to do.
Second one lasted about 3 years, but I really had to baby it for the last 2. (push a bit, back off & reset......repeat 3-5 times)
I finally broke down and got a PARK CT-3?

caloso

Yes.

bikeman715

The Park CT-3 is the one I use in the shop .

Jed19

I have both the Park CT-3 and the CT-5. The CT-5 is now a carry-along. I recommend either one as a home tool. I use to have a Topeak Chainbot, but it just broke on me one day, so I bought the CT-5 for home use.

alcjphil

up to 10 chains per year? You owe yourself a professional grade chain tool.It will have paid for itself by the third year

Barrettscv 

I've been using the the tiny folding tool in my Topeak travel tool-kit for four or more years. I feel like I can get more than 3 years from any Park tool, Mini or not.

JohnDThompson 

+1 this. I don't even replace that many chains in a year and still appreciate a professional quality chain tool.

pdlamb

It's the one I prefer to use in the garage shop. I got it when I had to use a channel-lock to hold the CT-5 so I could turn the handle with a pair of pliers on a new Shimano chain. (CT-5 had worked all right for SRAMs, but the CT-3 is a whole lot easier with either.)

leob1

This.
However, these days I usually just use it to break chains if they need it. I use a quick link to put them back together.

MileHighMark

I have a Cyclo that's been in service for 30+ years. Only replaced it (with another Cyclo) is because I needed one that was compatible with narrower chains.

obed7

none of the chain tools are really expensive...pick one and go for it.

Matariki

I have a Park CT5 as well. I bought it to replace a 40 year old Cyclo that I kept losing pins for. Yes, the Park will work with 1/8" chains.

cale

I was going to comment on the same. I've used mine with a 10-spd chain, what'd I screw up?

FastJake

Same here. My first chain tool was the CT-5. It's now a carry-along.

If you're doing even a couple chains per year just get the CT-3. Spending money on good tools that you will use is always worth it.

MileHighMark

Probably nothing. My first one was from the 5- and 6-speed era, so it was made for very wide chains. I could still use it on narrower chains, but it was sub-optimal.

fietsbob

now derailleur chains are shorten only. so the pushing your pin out to make it short enough is really not that fussy.

RoadGuy

I gave up on the smaller compact chain tools last year after having used them for over 40 years, the way that chains have progressed makes a larger/stronger chain tool a necessity .

Over the years I've broken a cyclo, then a cyclo designed for Shimano SIS chains, then a ELDI, and then bent a Park compact CT-5 (that lasted about 10-15 years). Now I'm using a larger Park CT3 and it's much easier to break the newer style chains. With the short handle (that utimately bent on the CT-5 (and the frame bent), the CT5 was getting to hard to break KMC chains with the flared or mushroomed pins/rivets. Breaking a modern KMC chain involves physically breaking the flared head of the chain pin off the pin, and leaves a ring of broken off metal on the chain tool's pin.

The compact tools work/ed fine/easily with older 5-speed type chains with straight pins. They can work with effort on Shimano chains that use oversized pins to lock the pins inplace. From my experience, compact tools are not designed for use with modern chains that feature pons that don't stick through very far, and/or are flared or mushroomed to lock to the sideplates of the chain.

Performance Bicycle (and I think Nashbar) offer a lifetime warranty. I suggest that everybody buying tools that might get broken would be better off buying them where you can get a warranty that will replace the tool, or allow you to trade up in the case that you decide to upgrade.

bikeman715

Parktools also offer a "lifetime warranty" on their tools . Just sent them a email and they take care of you .

kingston 

I have the KMC tool that I got to break the 1/8" HX chains. It also works with smaller chains and comes with replacement pins.

tjkoko

Is there any reason for not mentioning the Park CT-4.3 chain tool??

Warren128

I've been using the same old Cyclo tool for the last 30+ years, but then my newest bike is from 1996.