Essential bicycle maintenance and repair tools

Hydraulic disc brakes are becoming common on more than just mountain bikes, which means that many more riders will need to adjust them in the future. That generally includes truing rotors, blocking the pads when a wheel is out of the frame, and, in case you should forget to do that, pushing the pads back into the bore of the caliper. The Jagwire Disc Brake Multi-Tool has four common tools a rotor truing slot, pad piston spreader, bleed block, and travel spacer all in one portable package.Even in in the age of wireless and electronic drivetrains and hydraulic brakes, cables and housing still rule the roost when it comes to brake and derailleur systems. Pedro's Cable Puller, also know as a fourth hand tool, is a plier-like apparatus that allows bike mechanics to pull the excess slack out of a cable and housing system and lock the system in place.

That frees up both the mechanic’s hands to tighten bolts and make other adjustments like aligning caliper brake pads. And it’s no trick pony It can also be used to pull zip ties tight.As a teenager, my dental hygienist gave me a pile of old picks that were no longer good for use in the office. I had no idea that this simple gift would have such a long-lasting impression. They have tons of uses which make them absolutely indispensible in the shop: gently opening cut ends of cable housing, fishing internally routed cables, cleaning the schmutz out of cassettes and freewheels, prying bearing seals, removing rings, and too many other uses to list.  is a trio of aluminum-handled picks with knurled stainless shafts in  configurations: straight, 45-degree angle, and 90-degree angle. The butt-end of each tool has a magnet that’s useful for grabbing bearings out of a hub or picking up small parts, such as snap-rings, off the workbench. A vernier caliper is a type of sliding ruler with jaws designed to measure diameters and thicknesses.

It’s essential for finding the correct sizes of derailleur clamps, handlebars, seatposts, and and even measuring tire clearance. They range in price from about $10 for a simple model to thousands of dollars for medical and industry-grade items. They can also feature a simple printed scale in both metric and SAE, or dials and digital readouts. We prefer this AmPro stainless steel model, with a simple printed scale, with the moderate price of about . They usually come with a storage case and are a tool that will last a lifetime for minimal investment. In the age of pre-built wheels with proprietary spokes, few people seem to true wheelsthemselves anymore. But these tiny wrenches are cheap and useful to keep around just in case, and they’re used on the vast majority of wheels available. There are many simple styles of wrenches out there, but we like the Park Tool Master Spoke Wrench.

This well-made, color-coded tool has a pleasing heft and fits the hand well. Just make sure to get the correct size for your wheels the Master comes in three sizes. Having a proper shop-quality torque wrench is essential if you are a full-time mechanic. But for most who only occasionally work on our own bikes, the expense of a larger precision torque wrench is above budget and mostly unnecessary. In this case, smaller preset torque wrenches are great options. These tools are preset to certain torque values and are excellent for final tightening on stems, handlebars, and seatposts—the most common fittings you’ll be adjusting, and the ones that need the most care when tightening.  Prestacycle TorqKeys are available in values from  and 6Nm are the most common found on bicycles and are available individually or as a complete set. These diminutive tools take replaceable and commonly available hex bits to fit a variety of bolts and fittings.