So I just paid $115 to have my bike recabled including having a new basebar and aerobar set up installed. Although I have confidence in my LBS, I think I can do alot of these simple tasks myself with the right tools. So I want to assemble some essential bike tools to do tasks such as this in the future. What do I need? Should I stay exclusively with Park tools or are there cheaper alternatives out there? I appreciate any advice or guidance so that I can start buying those essential tools. At present I do have some basic tools such as a chain whip and pedal wrench and hex wrenches.
Park tools are awesome almost all my tools are park off my head I would say you would need :
Bike Stand
Torque Wrench
Hex Wrenches
Cassette removal tool
Pedal Wrench
Cable Cutters
Rags
Quality Grease
Extra Chain pins, wrap, cables and housings
that would be a start I am sure there is more my memory is failing me now
Working on bikes is fun and saves plenty of bread I have 4 bikes in my garage and maintain them all as well as a few of my friends bikes
.
I think Park Tools actually has a list on their website and some darn nice home mechanic tool kits. Pedros is another excellent source as is your local tool store that stock a fair supply of metric wrenchs. Realistically, you need minimum tools to perform maintenance on a bike, especially basic preventative maintenance checks an services. (PMCS)
Here’s a mini toolkit I put together for travel that covers basic assembly and most adjustments:
http://www.bikesportmichigan.com/features/flight-tools.shtml
Now, the most important tool you’ll need is a “Know-How”. Without that tool, the others aren’t of much use. You can;t really buy that tool with money, but you can buy it with the good old Arabic currency of baksheesh, or favors, to a trusted mechanic whereby he will reciprocate by teaching you some know-how and maybe even offering some practice.
You are the most important tool you will use! LOL Sorry, couldn’t resist.
Park Tools are great, and I get them when money allows, but there are other brands that work too. Since you don’t sound like you will be turning yourself into a bike mechanic any time soon, many of the BBB tools are more than acceptable (unless you are a tool geek like me)
There is a local (for me) New Zealand website www.torpedo7.co.nz and they are a relatively new e-tailer and I buy stuff from them just about every week, much to my wifes chagrin. Anyway, sign up to their specials newsletter that comes 1-2 times per week. They have all sorts of good stuff at stupid low prices. And remember with the New Zealand dollar hovering around 50 to 55 cents to the $USD, then the prices are even better. Shipping to the States will take a little longer, but I find that if I order before 10am, it’s waiting for me when I get home that same evening !!! (Why my LBS takes 2 weeks to tell me my order has just come in, is beyond me)
Torpedo7 sells assorted tools on their own, or various tool boxes with assortments already put together. I picked up one about a year ago. Small tackle box size and has most of the tools I need, with only a few I have no idea what they are for! LOL and I only paid $NZD 89 so can’t go wrong.
Look at their website and see if anything suits you. They also sell camping and ski/snowboard stuff (what I’m also into) so it’s fantastic to get their specials and to shop a couple of times a week.
Regards
You can never have too many tools, but it really depends on how much you are willing to take on and your comfort level working on stuff. Bicycle repair ain’t rocket surgery, don’t make it more complicated or mythical than it is.
My list of stupid little things that become important when you need them. And life is too short to buy cheap tools.
2-3X metric allen wrench sets.
4th hand tool. Seemed silly to me, but once you use one it is awesome.
Torque wrench and bits.
Pedro’s cassette wrench. Stupidly simple and great idea.
Lots and lots of rags.
Chain tool.
Assorted brushes.
Cable/housing cutters.
www.parktool.com
Zinn’s Books
Grease
Metric ruler/tape
I have heard to go with a different brand than park for cable cutters. I have not used them first hand so I don’t know from personal use, but I have heard that they don’t give as clean of a cut as some other brands. For everything else, Park is a great option.
I have heard to go with a different brand than park for cable cutters. I have not used them first hand so I don’t know from personal use, but I have heard that they don’t give as clean of a cut as some other brands. For everything else, Park is a great option.
Hozan makes a wonderful cable cutter. Also, one would need a dremel with a grind disk - or a bench grinder to properly face said cables. I also avoid parks Spoke tensiometer and allen wrenched (why pay more when you can get Craftsman?). Also, as set of Bondus allen wrenches.
I still have my Park cable cutter, because it has a nice little crimping jaw for those tiny end caps to keep the cables from fraying. Of course, you could just use pliers for that instead, but I already had it for cutting cables. For actually cutting cables anymore, though, a no-name cutter (?-red handles) I picked up at a second-hand store makes cleaner cuts.
I also have a couple Pedro’s items, and 1 or 2 others (Delta? can’t recall for sure off the top of my head) but everything else is Park.
Oh, and for the OP… chances are you know someone like me, or can find one in a group ride, who has a garage full of tools and has learned most of the tricks over the years, but has chronically poor stocking of the beer fridge. As Tom suggests, the simple, universal man-gesture of a six-pack (or 12, for big jobs) will get you far beyond the actual dollar value in return, and you can typically even drink one or two yourself while learning along with the work being done.
If you have a chain whip, pedal wrench and hex wrenches you already have 90% of what you need. (you probably could have done the cable/bar assembly job with just the hex wrenches you already own although with out a real cable cutter it would have looked a bit crappy).
The first thing I would suggest getting is a bike work stand if you don’t have one yet. If you do nothing more than use it to wash your bike and lube your chain it will be worth the cost ten times over.
I suggest just buying one tool at a time as the need comes up. The labor cost savings for almost any job you’re likely to do yourself on a bike will cover the cost of the tools needed. The next time you do that job, it will be free. As for non bike specific tools you’ll need, you can usually do much better on price for the same or better quality by going to the home center or Sears than buying them at a bike shop or from a bike catalogue.
It is important to get quality tools. I’m still using a couple crappy tools I bought 20+ years ago. I don’t use them often enough to get around to actually replacing them but every time I do pull them out, I do wish I had bit the bullet and forked over a few more bucks way back then.
QR, what bikes do you have?
I ask because I do think that it’s easier to try out a lot of new stuff on older, more basic bikes than on newer, fancier ones.
For instance, I think it’s easier to learn how to change cables when your dealing w/ external cables before giving internal cables a try.
-charles
QRooster - you’ve had some solid response thus far and I’d like to specify some of the items:
Regarding Stand - I’ve had several and am nutty about the Ultimate stand. It’s the best I’ve tried so far.
Regarding Torque wrench - since we’re working on bikes get one that’s 1/4 inch drive and show NM as well as inch lbs.
Regarding Allen wrenches - you’ll likely need a narrow range say 8mm, 6, 5, 4, 3mm but get 'em in both longish T handles and in a multi tool or short L shapes too as some spots on the bike require different approach.
Regarding cable & housing cutters - go big here, this is NOT a place to get a cheap set. You’ll likely still need a small set of pliers/dikes to crimp cable caps and trim zip ties and such but get the very best cable/housing cutters you can find
It’s nice to approach the tools you want for each job. You’re coming off this big ticket for new bars and cable routing so go after all the tools you need for that first. Then in a couple months get everything you might need to true a wheel (truing stand, spoke wrench, spoke tension device, etc). Then perhaps it’s bottom bracket/crank time - etc. In a year you’ll own everything you need.
Lastly - the know-how part is critical and you should put the word out to respected mechanics in your LBS and cycling community about dropping to observe. you’ll likely drink it in quickly.
Ian
This post gave me the perfect excuse to post a picture of my new workshop.
I recommend the Utimate stand. very stable and cna get the bike up nice and high. The other essential item (as another poster mentioned) is the beer fridge. Mine is large enough to accept donations for that full build up 
The performance bike essentials tool kit is a great starting point, and it is very inexpensive. You can buy tools individually from there as needed.
http://www.performancebike.com/…;subcategory_ID=4218
The quality of them is pretty decent. Throw in a cable cutter and you should be good to go for most routine and annual maintenance.
Pedros starter tool kit on chainlove
Has 17 minutes left.
QR, what bikes do you have?
I ask because I do think that it’s easier to try out a lot of new stuff on older, more basic bikes than on newer, fancier ones.
For instance, I think it’s easier to learn how to change cables when your dealing w/ external cables before giving internal cables a try.
-charles
My bikes are as follows: 2008 Specialized Transition Expert, 2007 Trek TTX 9.5, and a 2007 GT Series Two Carbon Road bike (external cables). I was planning on fiddling around with the GT and possibly building up a bike with excess parts lying around.
I have heard to go with a different brand than park for cable cutters. I have not used them first hand so I don’t know from personal use, but I have heard that they don’t give as clean of a cut as some other brands. For everything else, Park is a great option.
Hozan makes a wonderful cable cutter. Also, one would need a dremel with a grind disk - or a bench grinder to properly face said cables. I also avoid parks Spoke tensiometer and allen wrenched (why pay more when you can get Craftsman?). Also, as set of Bondus allen wrenches.
If you get a Park cable cutter, make sure you have a Dremel tool also since you will need to undo the damage that the Park cable cutter does.
So I just paid $115 to have my bike recabled including having a new basebar and aerobar set up installed. Although I have confidence in my LBS, I think I can do alot of these simple tasks myself with the right tools. So I want to assemble some essential bike tools to do tasks such as this in the future. What do I need? Should I stay exclusively with Park tools or are there cheaper alternatives out there? I appreciate any advice or guidance so that I can start buying those essential tools. At present I do have some basic tools such as a chain whip and pedal wrench and hex wrenches.
the tools of wisdom, good hand-eye coordination, and reasonable manual dexterity.
the rest will follow naturally if the sensations are good and your form is reaching its peak.
Do you need a chain tool if you use a Wipperman or SRAM chain? Does it serve more functions than breaking and inserting new pins (ala Shimano chains)?