J.Higgins 

Multi-Tools, especially the good ones, are not light. Do any of you carry one on tour? My son and I do a lot of back country fly fishing, and we both carry one. Indispensable when you need it. I have yet to take my first tour, so looking for some more interesting opinions.

mstateglfr 

Yup.
Crankbrothers 18 or something like that.

My bikes all have different fitments due to differing eras, so its easier to use a multitool vs having a few indiidual tools for each specific bike.

Machka 

I carry a Topeak Alien ... an older model than what is picture here.

https://www.topeak.com/global/en/products/tools

djb

can't recall at the moment which one I have now, but its a good one, and the chain breaker tool on it works really well, better than my old stand alone ones I have had in the past. I figure getting one that feels that its made better is worth the extra money in the long run, but in any case, having one with the tool that you need is always important, even if we tend not to use them that often.

Carbonfiberboy 

I carry a Topeak Hexus II, a Leatherman Juice CS4, and a big allen wrench for my pedals. I don't carry cup and cone, headset wrenches, cassette tools, or that sort of stuff. I only carry stuff I've either used or wished I had.

Jazzba

Touring tip #5: Resist the multitool | The Bike Show - a cycling radio show and podcast from Resonance FM

Doug64

Are you asking about a multi-tool like the Leatherman, or a bike specific multi-tool? I suspect that you are taking about a Leatherman-like tool if you use it fly fishing.

I do carry a Sogg multi-tool on tours. There is always a use for pliers, file, cable cutter, etc. I use it on almost every tour.

I also carry a bicycle specific multi-tool. Something to consider regardless of brand: make sure the hex wrenches have a log enough blade to be able to reach the attaching bolt on STI shifters. Often in crashes and "fall overs" the shift lever will shift, which is a good thing. It usually takes a hex wrench to loosen the mounting bolt enough to put it back in the proper position. This is the primary reason I do not tighten my STI shifters too tight. Just tight enough to be secure, but loose enough to move in a mishap. IMO there is less likelihood of damage if there is a little give. Also make sure there is a hex that small enough fit the tension adjusting bolt on cantilever brakes if you are using them.

My bike multi-tool goes in my small saddle bag along with a spare tube, tire levers, and a patch kit. I carry a "real" tool kit in one of my panniers.

It varies, but this is my basic tool kit. I'll also take a regular bottle of chain lube, and leave the old toothbrush home.



The contents of my small seat bag.

GamblerGORD53

It depends on your bike. I would take every damn tool necessary to fix or take apart everything you know how to. Modern derailler bikes use fewer than my IGH roadster style, no doubt.
A multi is OK for something like pliers/ knife/ saw/ file/ can opener. For hex keys or 7/8/9/10 wrenches then it's a bad idea IMO. Way too many tight corner spots often. What about using 2 at once? A 3 arm 4/5/6 mm hex is by far the most useful there is. Maybe one with interchange tips is the trick. Take chain tools, pedal and crank tools, several spokes and wrench. For a 2 week trip, then don't go overboard.

I went to LBS nomans land VN + CN and carried 2 dozen tools or so, 7 or 8 lbs. 8 or 9 tools just in my pockets. I even took a cable cutter.

jefnvk

Nope. I carried an entire tool roll, out of the lack of having a multi tool. I can't imagine being more than a short ride from home without the ability to fix anything that could go wrong on a bike.

That said, I just got a small bike specific multi-tool for Christmas, that I am looking forward to sticking in my saddle bag for longer day rides.

mrveloman

I carry a mini multi tool in all my seat bags. My favorite is the SOG Crossgrip (2.0 oz/57g) which is no longer available. I also have a Gerber Clutch (2.6oz73g). Both are much lighter than a full size Leatherman which runs around 8.5 oz. They come in handy especially when I need some pliers - had to use it to pull a piece of wire out of a tire not long ago. A also carry a Topeak Mini 15 tool set (1.55oz/45g w/o case - unfortunately no longer available as well). With the SOG and Mini 15 I can make most repairs short of removing a cassette. I also carry the chain tool for the Mini 15.

mike

andrewclaus

I carried one someone gave me until I lost it. Now I just carry a few individual tools in a seat wedge. I'm too cheap to buy one.

SparkyGA

Carrying a Park Multitool, a tiny little Leatherman, couple of tire levers, a stand alone Topeak chain tool and quite often a small pocket knife. Can fix nearly anything with this combination. Its enough tools to get you to the next town to fix your bike properly.

I did once carry a 5 pound hammer on a tour...

jefnvk

What the heck are you fixing on a bike with a 5# hammer? Heck, a 3# took care of most of the things on my old Blazer, and that was 1000x the trouble any of my bikes have been

J.Higgins 

My apologies for not being clear. Indeed, I did mean to carry a multi-tool such as a Leatherman. I find my Leatherman Wave to be indispensable when its needed, much like a gun.

As far as the bike-specific multi-tools, I have yet to find one to my liking. I truly believe that I can service almost everything on my LHT with a few tools plus my Wave. No need to carry stuff that you really do not need, but I could see where the knife blade on my Wave would come in handy, not to mention the saw and file, and especially the scissors. The pliers are nice. I'm not certain that the cutters on the pliers would cleanly cut a cable, but I do think it would suffice if out on the road.

Machka 

I did carry something like that for a while, but it was just dead weight. I never used it.

Mostly I use an Allen Key set and tyre levers, although I do carry the Topeak Alien as mentioned above.


And I buy my food in grocery stores, shops, cafes, restaurants or markets.

MMACH 5

I've broken spokes while touring, so I carry extras and my multi-tool has various spoke wrench sizes. I've never had a chain problem. However, on a weekend tour, I had a buddy who broke his chain twice. Ever since, I carry a multi-tool with a chain tool built into it.

acantor

I carry a multi-tool, plus an assortment of purpose-built tools: a small wrench (for the pedals), needle nose pliers, and tire irons. And maybe a couple of Allen keys that are also on the multi-tool.

I don't find multi-tools as easy to use as purpose-built tools, but they are portable, and good enough to basic repairs and maintenance.

indyfabz

No.

robow

Yes, I carry a Leatherman but I insist on carrying separate hex keys and other separate tools because often you can't get into that tight area for which you need or you're not be able to create the leverage you need when they remain attached to a multitool. The typical "L" shape has its purpose.

Juan Foote

As I was riding along in Terra Ceia a few years ago I came around a curve and laying on the ground was a really nice stainless Leatherman tool. It had laid there long enough to have a touch of rust on it. I took it as a sign to carry it with. The heavy joker has been in my bag since. Never used it. Hope I don't.

cyccommute 

I carry a Leatherman Squirt PS4 all the time...both on and off the bike. It comes in handy without being bulky like your Wave. I also carry a cutting blade (can't use the real name but it's usually a ceramic one or a cutout one from Spiderco) that doesn't weigh much.

As for multi-tools, the best one around for a very long time was the Cool Tool. I have several as well as a pre-Gerber Bob Seals version. It's still a pretty good tool because it fits your hand and has a lot of versatility, unlike most of the multi-tools I've tried. I also have some of the extras like the lockring and headset tools as well as the seatpost tool and quick release tool but those aren't nearly as useful as the original.

However, it's been replaced in my Camelbak by the Full Windsor Breaker. Modern components no longer need some of the features of the Cool Tool like the crank bolt tightener or even the adjustable wrench. The Full Windsor Breaker works really well, fits your hand and even comes with a really good tire lever. It's a really cleaver, well designed tool. And with the Pound being depressed, it's a bargain.

rm -rf

Bike tools
My Campagnolo levers need a Torx T20 for the clamping bolt. How annoying. I don't carry that size with me.

My everyday tool kit is this, and 2 tire levers. I had a scrap of rubber membrane roofing, sturdy rubber sheet about 1mm thick. I bring the L wrench sizes that are used on my bikes. It's 45 grams as shown.

I've looked at multitools, but still keep this roll instead. It's slower to take it out of the plastic bag, then take off the slices of bike tube that are the rubber bands, but it's nice to have real L wrenches instead of the stubby ones on the multitools. And this roll protects everything else in the bag from wrench damage, and there's no clanking noises from the tools.

manapua_man

The only multitool I carry is a leatherman.

I've always found the hex keys on most bicycle multitools were too short or really awkward to use so I use loose tools, and heaver bits like chain breakers have handles and what not cut off. The tools then get wrapped in a rag or something.

Darth Lefty 

We talk about this topic occasionally in the Commuting forum as well, and here is a thread that I recently bumped. @ijsbrand then posted a picture of a Wenger Swiss Army knife that had some bike tools. And following that up it seems they made several models of different sizes. But since Victorinox bought Wenger and wound down their line, it seems unlikely you can still get them. The ones I've found are specifically missing a chain breaker. which seems like the one purely bike-specific thing you are likely to need.

For myself, I often carry Chinese knockoffs from Walmart that I won't miss if I lose. I like the Leatherman style better because pliers and dikes are great.

https://www.bikeforums.net/commuting/...eatherman.html

fietsbob

Day rides Maybe, on tour , individual tools ..