Best Bike Tools

Your bike is incredibly important to you, so when it comes time for maintenance, you’d rather do it yourself at home. To ensure your bike is in optimal working condition, you can’t just use any ol’ tools. You want only the most quality ones.

Tools is such a broad word, though. What exactly should you have in your bike maintenance arsenal? From which brands? Those can be tough questions to answer, until now. We’ve compiled this page on the best bike tools for passionate riders just like you. The following products we recommend will keep your bike in tip-top condition.

A List of Bike Tools You Need:

• Bike stand
• Crankarm dust cover tool
• Chainring bolt wrench
• Hex wrench set
• Screwdrivers
• Wrench adapter
• Chain tool
• Multi-tool
• Link pliers
• Chain connector
• Missing link replacements

Our Favorite Bike Tools:

For the Highest-Quality Bike Stand — Park Tool Home Mechanic Repair Stand PCS-10

When it comes to bike stands, we can’t think of a better brand than Park Tool. This is the same stand you’d typically find at your local bike store and is thus an industry standard. Of course, it’s not cheap at all, but for the price, you could have this stand for years.

The repair stand boasts a reinforced center yolk so it never wobbles on you. With its three-point leg system, you can also expect greater stability. You can easily change the height, switching between 39 and 57 inches with the quick-release height adjustment.

Its tube is made of composite material for easily rotating the 360-degree clamp. If you want to change up the clamping pressure, you quickly can. You can even replace the jaw covers if you prefer. The clamp itself is designed in a cam-type style so you can clamp one tube at a time.

For a Less Expensive Bike Stand — Yaheetech Pro Mechanic Bicycle Repair Workshop Stand

If you can’t spend the money on a Park Tool stand but still need something, Yaheetech’s stand is a solid budget option. For less than $75, you get a highly-rated stand with a ton of features. For instance, the stand includes a bracketed tool tray so you can always see all the tools you need for bike maintenance right in front of you.

Yaheetech’s stand has four legs instead of three and is made of heavy-duty iron. It’s compatible with bikes that are 66 pounds and under. With a telescopic bracket, you can switch the height so any bike tinkering you have to do is made easier and less painful (no more sore backs!). The shortest available height for the bracket is 42.5 inches and the tallest height is 74.8 inches.

Another standout feature is the 360-degree swivel clip. With this, you have the freedom to move your bike in several positions, including different heights and pivot points. There’s no need to worry about damaging your paint job either, as the clips are covered in rubber.

For a Great All-in-One Kit — Spin Doctor Essential Bicycle Tool Kit

You can buy half the tools on the above list separately and drain your wallet or get them all in the Spin Doctor Essential Bicycle Tool Kit. To start, there’s the crankarm dust cover tool and the chainring bolt wrench. You also get a hex wrench set with six generous pieces of varying sizes: two millimeters, 2.5 millimeters, three millimeters, four millimeters, five millimeters, and six millimeters.

The double-sided screwdriver lets you switch between a flathead and a Phillips head with ease. You also get an integrated bottom bracket wrench adapter and a chain tool for fixing chain damage at home. Who could ask for more?

For Another Awesome All-in-One Tool — Crank Brothers Multi-Tool

We, of course, have to mention the Crank Brothers Multi-Tool. We’ve reviewed this highly-rated product before, but in case you missed that, here’s what you should know.

The Crank Brothers multi-tool has 19 tools in one. They’re labeled so you can easily find them all. What kind of tools will you get in this Crank Brothers gem? Let us share just a couple:

• Speed Chain Tool: The Speed Chain Tool is made of 17-4 ph stainless steel for great durability. It’s compatible with chains of five speeds, 8 through 12.
• Tool Flask: With the M-19 stainless steel tool flask, you can forget about annoying rattling noises in the saddlebag. You won’t hear a thing with this sleek addition. The design of the flask is also meant to prevent moisture and liquids from settling on the bottom and rusting it.

You also get four spoke wrenches, a universal chain tool, dual flathead screwdrivers, and dual Phillips head screwdrivers, to name a few more tools.

The M-19 itself has a high-tensile steel frame that’s reinforced with precipitation-hardened 6061-t6 aluminum alloy. Handling the multi-tool is easy and comfortable with dual side grips.

For Pliers That Pack a Punch — Park Tool MLP 1.2 Chain Plier

Sometimes you need a pair of pliers for bike chain repair. Park Tool’s pliers are just about as renowned as the brand’s bike stand. This highly-rated product is also more much more affordable than said stand, so you should certainly invest in a set or two.

The pliers can be used on many derailleur chains with a master link, including 5 through 11-speed chains.

For Quick Bike Chain Fixes On-the-Go or at Home — SRAM PowerLock Chain Connector Links

Another cheap but great product to always have on hand is SRAM’s PowerLock Chain Connector Links. You get two chain connector links with your purchase so you can fix two bike chains at once.

SRAM’s PowerLock links are intended for road bikes or mountain bikes that can achieve up to 11 speeds. With tool-less installation, whether you have bike chain issues on the side of the road or anywhere else, you never have to stress. You can quickly get your bike working again so you can continue your ride.

For a Great Solution to Lost Bike Chain Links — KMC Missing Link

Uh-oh! Lost a link in your bike chain? There’s no need to stress when you have KMC Missing Links in your arsenal. You can get a two-pack or a three-pack so you’re never without spare links if yours disappear.

The links are silver and 5.9 millimeters wide each. They work with most 10-speed chains, including Shimano and other KMC products. You don’t need any tools to attach the chain, which means no more derailed rides. The links are also reusable, so hold onto them for future use!

For a Small On-the-Go Chain Tool — Park Tool Mini Chain Brute Chain Tool CT-5

We also recommend you include Park Tool’s chain tool on your list of essentials for bike maintenance. It’s small, measuring 60 millimeters by 55 millimeters by 15 millimeters, so you have plenty of space to stash it. It also weighs just 77 grams, so why not bring it with you on your rides?

If you ever lose the pin on this tool, it is replaceable. That makes the Park Tool chain tool a great value for a low price. It can be used for undoing tight links and works on a variety of chains. These include 12-speed derailleur chains and 1/8-inch single-speed chains.

Conclusion

If you’ve decided to start doing bike maintenance at home, the above tools we linked to should all be in your collection. Many of them are small, lightweight, and portable so you can bring them with you on any ride. This way, if you ever run into issues with your bike chain or other parts of your bike, you’ll have a quick fix. Stress-free riding? Sounds good to us!