Gear

The Best Bike Tool Kits for Handy (And Not-So-Handy) Bikers

Yes, you can raise seats and tweak brake levers.

by Chris Hrenko
Updated: 
Originally Published: 
A great bike multi-tool set against a yellow background

Kids grow. And fast. That means when you pull their bikes out (and yours, for that matter), seats need to be raised, brake levers tweaked and the shifting smoothed out. But there’s some good news: You don’t need an engineering degree or a funny little mustache to do these DIY fixes yourself. Quite the contrary. Bike tools, which are often part of handy bike tool kits, plus a few YouTube videos will take you from never-turned-a-bolt noob to neighborhood-shade-tree-bike-mechanic hero — but only if you’re willing to put in the effort and learn as you go. Not looking to go deep? We’ve also included a few bike multi tools for down-and-dirty fast jobs. But a word of caution: Get too skilled, and before you know it, you’ll be fixing bikes for friends of friends of your kids. Our advice? Make space in the garage.

Bicycle Repair Tool Box by Cyclists
$79.98
Multi Tool 19 by Crankbrothers
$30.70
SK-4 Bicycle Home Mechanic Starter Tool Kit by Park Tool
$184.95
Pro Ratchet Bike Multi-Tool by Bontrager

Higher-end bikes usually come with carbon fiber handlebars, stems and seat posts, which is terrific, but has one minor downside. Carbon tubes don’t stand up well to excessive clamping force, and the margin of error for correctly tightening things like handlebars and seat posts isn’t very forgiving. The manufacturer’s torque spec will be just tight enough to make them stay put without crushing and destroying these top-shelf, featherlight (and expensive) components. To be sure you’re hitting the mark, you need a torque wrench. Bontrager’s Pro Ratchet Multitool is adjustable from 2-8 Nm and includes 6 hex tools, 3 torx bits and a #2 Phillips head. The waxed canvas carrying case is a nice touch for this premium multitool.

$125
DAG-2.2 Bicycle Derailleur Hanger Alignment Gauge by Park Tool
$83.95

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