Allen Sizes
 

I cant seem to find the correct size allen wrench for my Bianchi Giro Seat? I would like to move my seat up a little bit. The one I have is JUST to small? Are these european sizes?

bikes = metric.

/thread

If you're looking for wrench set, these are great:

http://www.rei.com/product/705922

Nine times out of ten, it's either gunna be 4mm or 5mm

6 is fairly common for seat clamps as well.

^ eh...not so common these days

I see it on cheaper posts.

OP - go get yourself a few tools to go with your new bike, you're going to need them eventually. Virtually all bikes use metric sized tools. leave your english tools in the box, they will only damage the heads if the size is not correct.

Order some ikea furniture. Throw it away and keep the wrench.

I agree it should be a 4 or 5. what year Giro? carbon? if you do not have a set make sure you buy the ones with the 'ball' on the end.

I'm nort sure, I think he's talking about the collar

Ok, yeah collar would be 4 or 5, I was thinking the saddle clamp. You can cover most everything on a bike with a 4/5/6 allen wrench...

The saddle rail clamp is usually 6mm.
Seat post collar 4 or 5.
Stem bolts 5 or 6.
Rear derailleur mount 6.
Front derailleur mount 5.
Crank bolt 8.
Bottle cage 4.
Rack bolts 4.
Cable pinch bolts 5.
Brifter bolts 5.
Pedals 6 or 8.

Some cage bolts and Keo cleat bolts are 3mm

The top cap is usually 5mm, the bolts that tighten the stem to the steerer are usually 4mm, and the bolts that clamp the handlebar are usually 4mm.

Since when does any given piece of Ikea furniture come with the proper hardware, let alone the tools to assemble it?

I work in hardware retail. Honestly, we should probably be feeding Ikea kickbacks for all the business they bring us.

Every Ikea item I've purchased has come with an allen wrench and/or open ended wrench. Granted, they're tiny pieces of crap and I prefer to bust out my own tools, but they almost always include those. It's the stupid dowels or odd connecting pieces that always seem to be short by one.

Oh, and don't throw the furniture in the trash. Ikea designs its melamine to be recyclable.

It's an 05 Giro, I cruised over to my friends. He had the right gear, no worries.

Doesn't matter what the bicycle is. Go to your local Canadian Tire, Mitre 10, or wherever and get a metric allen key set for $5, and you'll be set.

Eh, there's a fair degree of variation, sometimes associated with price. E.g. I've only ever seen 6mm bolts for the handlebar and stem clamp on cheap OEM stems. 6mm top caps for expander plugs intended for carbon steer tubes are not uncommon; I didn't realize this when I first got my bike and used a 5mm to adjust the bolt I could see through the hole in the top cap, almost lost the expander plug down the steerer! :eek:

Anyway, point is, get a metric set of Allen wrenches. There are fairly standard ranges that certain fasteners tend to fall into. 4-5-6 are by far the most common of the "everyday" bolt head sizes found on a typical bike. If you need to make a minor adjustment during a ride, it'll be one of those sizes. Get a multi-tool with at least those three sizes. 3 and 8mm are also good ones to have handy, though small 8mm wrenches might be hard to find and/or use, and big ones aren't worth carrying with you.