Bicycling

Bicycling

Bike Multi Tools for Repairs on the Road

As an avid cyclist, at some point you'll experience a breakdown or need to make a minor adjustment to your bike when out on the road.  A mishap such as this could become a really big deal if you don't have any tools to make the repair, leaving you and your bike stranded looking for a way to get home.  Carrying a bike multi tool can help you avoid this situation.

A bike multi tool is necessary equipment for any cyclist that rides a lot, especially if you venture very far from home.  I've carried a bike multi tool for several years now and it has saved my bacon on many occasions.




There are numerous bike multi tools available from Topeak, Crank Brothers, and several others.  When making your selection, make sure the bike multi tool you choose will fit the various nuts and bolts on your bike.

The bike multi tool that I use is the Topeak Alien II Bicycle Multi Tool.  It has numerous hex keys and wrenches that fit the most common sizes of nuts and bolts found on modern bicycles.  It also has a knife, spoke wrenches, a phillips and flat bladed screwdriver, a pedal wrench, and a chain tool.  The whole setup is very compact and fits in a saddlebag very well.

Twice I've had to make vital repairs with my bike multi tool when out riding.  Once I was going down a steep hill.  I braked at the bottom of the hill to make a turn and the handlebars spun in the stem.  I was able to get the bike stopped without mishap.  With my bicycle multi tool I tightened the handlebars to keep them from spinning.  The second time was when my seatpost worked loose and went lower into the frame, making the bike hard to ride.  I raised the saddle back up and re-tightened the seatpost binder bolt.  My bike multi tool has also been used to make numerous minor adjustments and repairs on the road through the years.

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