Elmhurst Bicycle Club, Elmhurst, IL
They will say:  OFF ROAD 45 By the way, frame mounted
EBC Bicycle Safety Series:
PSI ON ROAD 65 PSI pumps are choice items for
stealing. Make sure you take it
Commuters have a good
with you when you park your
reason to keep tires hard. A soft
Bicycle Maintenance
bike.
tire picks up little bits of gravel
and glass off the road, these get
mm, 8 mm, 9 mm, 10 mm, 11 mm
If you ride in winter
Overview
and 12 mm. In a mutli-tool set you
imbedded into the tire, and chew
You should still keep your tire
Sometimes in an effort to get
can put it in your seat pack.
away at the inner tube. Sooner
pressure up. You may want to
out there and enjoy cycling we
3) Hub (Cone) Wrench
or later the tire goes fl at.
give in a little bit on the tire pres-
overlook basic bicycle main-
Unless you have sealed-bearing
If you have a skinny (narrow)
sure (fi ve to ten pounds below
hubs, you ll want to have the follow-
tenance. In so doing we leave
ing sizes around: 13mm, 14 mm,
tire, say 1.5 (or less), you have
the maximum recommended
ourselves vulnerable to trip inter-
15 mm, 16 mm.
to be really careful with the pres- pressure is as far as you should
ruption or worse. Here are some
4) Chain Remover
sure. Its possible to run a fat
go). Your aggressive tire should
ideas on what kinds of tools to
This is a must for those broken
2.5 tire at 40 psi but if you run
be in the front, not the back.
own and maintenance checks to
chains or chain problems on the
the skinny ones at low pressure
An aggressive tire is a tire that
make on a regular basis.
road.
you ll destroy the rims.
grips the road. You want some
5) Third Hand
Top 9 Bicycle Tools Guide
traction on the driving wheel, of
You often see people squeeze
This tool is used to hold brake
course, but in terms of security,
Picks
shoes closed while taking out cable
the tire. Squeezing can tell you if
your best tire should be in the
[e-mail], H. Weiss, slack.
the tire is too soft, not if its hard
Ph.D.
front.
6) Spoke Nipple Wrench
enough. You need a proper air
This tool is used for truing wheels,
gauge to check the tire pressure.
Every cyclist needs to carry
You can survive a back wheel
replacing spokes, lacing wheels.
You can t use a run of the mill air
some basic tools on a ride or
skid quite easily; in fact kids
7) Tire Tube Patches
pressure gauge on your bicycle
keep in your  bike shop at
often make it a game of skidding
Ah, fl ats are a fact of life. You know
unless you operate in the 45
home. Whether you re a pro at
the back wheel. A front wheel
you re riding hard when you blow
- 60 psi range. Buy a gauge that
fi xing your bike, or you simply
skid, however, is a different story.
two tires in one ride! You ll always
will read to 120 psi.
need to use the tools for main-
It is almost impossible to an-
need a spare patch kit.
tenance, you will at some point
ticipate and when it happens, it
8) Headset Lockring Wrench
Get a good pump
need a tool box of basics. Here
happens quickly and you can t
You should choose the size and
Most compressors won t give
are my favorites for the person
recover from it. If it s an  either
brand that fi ts your head set.
you the 80 or 90 PSI you need,
who has little need for tools in
 or situation, stud the front tire
9) Pin Pliers
in fact, you re lucky if you get
general.
rather than the back.
For your bottom-bracket adjustable
more than 35 PSI from a gas
cup.
1) Allen Wrenches
Questions
bar compressor. If you don t
Allen wrenches are handy to have.
All-In-One Tools
I keep a 5 mm, 6 mm and 7 mm
have a source of high pressure
If you have any problems with
around. You can also buy them in a
in your neighborhood you must
Kevin s list is pretty good. I
this document or just want
set or as a part of a basic set that
buy a high pressure hand pump.
carry single tools for the most
to provide feedback you can
might include other products.
There are several models avail-
part as he suggests. But the all-
reach me via E-mail at eric_
2) Box Wrench
able, ask for a demo and make
in-one tools have raised the bar
[e-mail]
Get a set that has as many options
sure it can stand the pressure.
for would-be roadside mechan-
as possible. I have 5 mm, 6 mm, 7
©03.31.2004 Bicycle Maintenance & Repair
Elmhurst Bicycle Club, Elmhurst, IL
ics. But if your flat count exceeds What's A Good Tire? compounds for their tires. This
that of your spare inner tubes, offers great traction for dry, hard-
http://edmontonbicyclecommuters.ca/
Tools include:
you will appreciate that patch kit. packed trails, but will also wear
(by Vincent Cheng)
" 8,9,10mm Box Wrenches
out very quickly.
" 2,2.5,3,4,5&6 mm Allen Keys
Pumps One of the most overlooked
For the winter time, most agree
" Phillips and Flathead Screwdriver
topics for bicycles is tire selec-
As with everything else pump
that the back tire should be
" Universal Chain Tool
tion. Many people assume that
technology has improved as
wider in order to leave a bigger
" 2 Spoke Wrenches
all tires work the same; however,
pumps have gotten smaller and
 footprint on the snow to get
" Torx-25 bit for disc brakes this is not the case.
lighter.
maximum traction. If there is
" 8mm. open end wrench for disc
For optimal performance when
ice, try using studded tires. For
brakes
I prefer the ones which convert
road riding, one of the key fac-
the front tires, some believe that
" 2 Tire Levers to floor pumps and yet take up
tors is low rolling resistance. To
skinny tires will allow the tire to
very little space. Regardless of
" Stainless Steel Knife
reduce rolling resistance, most
 cut through the snow instead
your preference in style of pump
" Bottle Opener
tires that are aimed for road rid-
of plowing into it. Others believe
make sure you carry one with
" Pedal Wrench
ing are very narrow and are rela-
that wider tires is still good in the
you at all times.
" Nylon Carrying case w/ velcro clo-
tively smooth. There is still some
front. Again, if there is ice, stud-
sure
Compressed CO2 cartridges
tread to channel out water if the
ding in the front will help a lot.
" Weight - 220 grams
are small and lightweight and
tires are used in the rain. These
My favorite tires are:
for most rides can supplant a
As you can see all you need to
tires are great if the roads are all
" Road:
pump. But if you flat count ex-
add are tire tube patches and
perfectly smooth. In Edmonton,
 IRC Paperlite
ceeds the number of cartridges
a pump to be a self-sustained
we have some of the roughest
 Avocet Cross
you will need that pump!
rider.
roads. To reduce vibration, wider
" Trails:
tires can be used, just be sure to
Maintenance Training
Tire Repair
 Panaracer Smoke and Dart
pick ones with relatively smooth
treads.  Specialized Team Master and
Sheldon Brown has an exten-
Patch kits are essential but not
Team Control
sive web archive on all things
quite as practical for quick flat
On the trail, the general rule
 IRC Missile
bicycle (including tips on repair.)
 repairs as spare inner tubes.
is that the softer the trails are,
" Winter:
You can find some of his tool
the more spaced out the knobs
 Studded tires using the Edmon-
tips here:
should be. With more spaces
ton Bike Club instructions
" http://sheldonbrown.com/tooltips/
between the knobs, the tire will
index.html
be able to  self-clean by throw- How much air?
" http://sheldonbrown.com/begin-
ing the dirt off. Generally speak-
http://edmontonbicyclecommuters.ca/
ners/index.html
ing, back tires should have more
(by Bernie Jacques)
Jeff Napier has produced an
horizontal bars to get better trac-
Bicycle tires have a pressure
extensive collective of online
tion for acceleration and braking.
rating stamped right on the wall.
articles about bicycle repair that
The front tire should have more
You can carry them wrapped in
Look for the words:  INFLATE
can be found here:
pointy knobs running along with
cloth as Ted Sward does to keep
TO 90 PSI MAX
" http://members.aol.com/biketune/
the tire. This offers more trac-
the rubber oxide off your hands
tion for turning. There are some
Some tires indicate a minimum
and the tubes from sticking to
companies that are offering soft
and a maximum tire pressure.
anything else in your kit.
©03.31.2004 Bicycle Maintenance & Repair