Doing your Own Bike Maintenance - What Tools do I Need?

Many of our customers service their own bike(s). It’s an absolute joy to leave the house for your next ride on a shiny and well-maintained bike. Do you own a road- or mountain bike and want to do your own maintenance? Go for it! You don’t need to be a mechanic to perform most maintenance jobs yourself; everyone can learn. It does take time, patience, and the right tools, all of which pays for itself once you get the hang of it!

Another effect -one which can’t be expressed in a monetary value- of maintaining your own bike is the small mental victory you feel every time you fix your own bike.

This blog describes the basic and essential tools required to successfully maintain your bike. Don’t forget: every rider -no matter how experienced they might be- has moments when they can’t quite figure out how to fix something, and everyone has stripped the thread on their bolts at least once. Don’t worry about it, it’s all part of the process.

Basic Bike Tools

It doesn’t take long to realise that working on your own bike is best done with quality tools. So instead of getting a cheap set of allen keys at your local Action, go for a decent set by Park Tool, BBB, or Trivio.

These keys are tough as nails, which reduces your chances of stripping a bolt or nut significantly. Before we get into job-specific bike tools, here are some of the basic tools you’ll need to work on your bike.

Basic tools:

• Allen Keys
• Wrenches
• Torque Wrench
• Screw Drivers (Flat and Phillips head)
• Assembly Paste

Replacing your Bar Tape

Bar tape gets dirty and wears out, both of which reduce your grip on the bars. It’s good to know how to wrap your bars with a new one, but it’s something many people dread doing. There’s no need though, because it’s an easy enough job once you know how to do it. Learning how is easy with the abundance of YouTube videos available on the matter!

Required

• Electrical Tape
• Scissors
• Bar Tape

Replacing Cables

While you’re at it, now might be a great time to replace your cables. Brake- and gear cables don’t need to be replaced often, so if your brakes or gears aren’t performing like they used to, check your set-up first.

If your brakes aren’t working optimally any more, then it’s important to immediately check why. Plan on doing some work on your bike this weekend? Why not use our blog on changing your cables!

Required

• Derailleur Cable Set
• Brake Cable Set
• Allen Keys
• Phillips Head Screwdriver
• Cable Cutters

Remember that the ends of Shimano and Campagnolo brake- and shifter cables differ, and you can’t mix and match them because of this.

Cleaning or Replacing your Chain

It’s time to give your chain a thorough clean when it’s covered in mud or squeaks while you ride. Depending on the weather conditions, we recommend you clean your drivetrain every other ride.

If you’re a winter warrior and ride all year long, then it pays to clean your entire bike at least every week. More information on maintenance and cleaning is available in our extensive blog on bike maintenance!

Required

• Degreaser
• Wet or Dry Chain Lube (depending on the weather conditions)

How long a chain lasts depends partly on how clean you keep it. The dirtier it gets, the quicker it will wear out. Some riders manage to get 6000 kilometers out of a single chain.

Others manage to break their chain in half that distance. In order to replace your chain, you’ll need the following:

Required

• Chain Checker
• New Chain
• Missing link Pliers or Chain Tool

Changing your Cassette

Like your chain, the cassette will wear out. These two components affect each other when they wear, so if you’re replacing one, it pays to also replace the other.

If you don’t, you’ll then often notice the chain slips or jumps when you really put the power down. If you plan on a vacation to the Alps, then you could fit a cassette with larger sprockets to give your legs an extra hand up the steepest climbs.

Check out our blog on replacing the cassette for the finer details. Note that the wrenches used for Shimano and Sram are different than those used by Campagnolo.

Required

• Chain Whip
• Cassette Removal Tool (Shimano or Campagnolo)

Adjusting or Replacing the Headset

The headset connects your front fork and frame. If turning your bars feels “sandy” or harder than usual, then it’s definitely time to check your headset.

Before you get to work on this though, why not have a read through our headset servicing and replacement-blog?Required

• Allen Keys
• Bearing Grease
• Cup Removal Tool
• Hammer
• Bearing Press

Maintaining and Replacing your Bearings

The bearings in your wheels might be one of the most important components on your bike. They spin for mile after mile, and while they’re often well-sealed, they’re not impervious to wear and tear.

There are two types of bearings: cup-cone bearings (most Shimano hubs) and industrial bearings. Some manufacturers seal their bearings in such a way that they require specialised tools to open them. DT Swiss is one of those brands who often do so.

Required

• Bearing Removal Set
• Bearing Press
• Bearing Guide
• Bearing Adapter

Servicing or Replacing your Bottom Bracket

The bottom bracket: that thing deep down in your frame which holds your cranks in place and lets them spin freely. For many riders, it’s a component which never really gets any maintenance, often for a variety of reasons.

First off, it’s a component you don’t really notice on the bike, and you can’t really tell from the outside whether or not it requires any maintenance.

If for whatever reason you need to look for a replacement part however, you soon discover the number of bottom bracket standards and dimensions is increasing exponentially every year. Time then to clear up a few things.

Servicing your bottom brackets is something you can easily do yourself. Besides getting a smoother, creak-free bike in return, you’ll also launch yourself into a sprint on your next ride with a little extra confidence. More information on bottom brackets is available in our dedicated blog.

Required What tools you’re going to need largely depends on the type of bottom bracket you’ve got. We’ll walk you through the various options.

Square taper

The “oldskool” square axle requires an axle removal tool. These are different for Shimano and Campagnolo. Campagnolo uses identical removal tools for their cassettes and axles.

External bearing cups

External bearings cups are called this way because they’re located on the outside of the frame. The large diameter allows manufacturers to fit a hollow-axle bottom bracket, which has a larger diameter and is therefore more rigid. In order to remove external bearing cups, you need a bracket wrench.

Press fit bearings (BB86 and PF30)

Press fit bearings have become more and more popular over the last few years. In order to remove the bearings, you need a bearing removal tool. When you want to put them back in the frame, you need a bearing press.

BB30 bearings

If you’ve got a BB30 ready frame, then the bottom bracket bearings are placed freely in the frame. Don’t get these mixed up with Press Fit BB30 bearings. In order to remove the BB30 bearings, you once again need the bearing removal tool. The Cyclus Press is required to install the new bearings.

Tool kits

When you add it all up, buying yourself some decent bike tools can cost you quite a pretty penny. In reality, chances are you won’t be buying it all at once, instead starting with a set of proper allen keys first.

As you ride more and more, you’ll see your toolbox grow accordingly. If you do want to purchase all your tools at once, then it often pays to go for an entire tool kit.

The Starter Kit The Trivio tool kit is a great start. This kit contains all the basic tools a home mechanic needs. The only thing missing in this case is a decent pair of cable cutters.

The tools are only compatible with Shimano components. If you use Campagnolo, then you’ll have to get the wrenches separately. The lips holding the tools in place in the case aren’t the strongest.

This means some of the tools will be roaming freely in the case after a while, something we can live with at this price.

The Expert Kit The BBB Cycling Toolbox Allround BTL-91 is an extra sturdy toolbox with 16 of the most used BBB Cycling tools required for bike maintenance.

The tools are compatible with both Shimano and Campagnolo. The foam padding holds your tools in place and protects them. The toolbox has additional space available to store some of your own gear.

The Mechanic Case You can always go above and beyond… The Park Tool AK-2 case contains 40 of the best tools by Park Tool. What makes this kit particularly great is the addition of a number of must-haves besides the regular tools other kits don’t have.

Examples of which are the adjustable torque wrench, crank puller for square- and spline axles, a pair of missing link pliers, cleaning gear for your chain, and even a bottle opener…