Spares/Tools - noob question

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Shewie
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Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by Shewie »

Noob question #1 :roll:

I'm just getting my kit together for my first foray into bikepacking, I'm okay with the camping gear and clothing but what bike spares/tools do folk think are necessary to carry? Does length or location of trip have any bearing on what you take?

I'll be plodding around the UK trails either on long weekenders or extended multiday trips, I hope to keep the weight down so don't want to carry loads of "just in case" bits and bobs.

This is what I've put together so far ...

Mini multitool
Patch kit
Pump
Spare inner (may go tubeless if it doesn't cost me too much)
Small 10ml bottle of lube
Mix of cable ties
Last edited by Shewie on Sun Oct 20, 2019 6:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
redefined_cycles
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by redefined_cycles »

Shewie... If anyone has a strong enough memory they might be able to locate a pdf that (I think it was) @dave barter once shared. It had insights and tool kits from some of the leading long distance bikepackers and was extremely, well, insightful :smile:

Lwt me see if I can dig it up but if someone else has then that would be so useful to be shared again.

The holy grail of toolkits and why they (it has lots of list donors) choose them as well as how to think outside the box..
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by redefined_cycles »

Dont think its this one but lets have it anyway...

https://readymag.com/u16005985/1375842/22/
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Shewie
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by Shewie »

redefined_cycles wrote: Sun Oct 20, 2019 5:50 pm Dont think its this one but lets have it anyway...

https://readymag.com/u16005985/1375842/22/
Thanks for that :-bd

time for a coffee and a read me thinks
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whitestone
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by whitestone »

Bag of worms, not literally!

Generally no one right answer. I run tubeless so bear that in mind. Not that much difference between local and remote rides.

Tools:
I use a hex bit driver and the required hex bits for the bike.
Leatherman Squirt pliers*
Chain tool with wire hook to hold the chain when working on it.
Tyre plug applicator (Sahmurai - fits in the ends of the bars)
Flexible superglue (to fix tyre plugs)*
Zip-ties*
Sewing kit (used for repairing cut in tyres as well as clothing, etc.)
Tyre lever*
Pump
Shock pump

Spares:
Powerlinks for chain
tyre plugs (two sizes)
Various nuts and bolts - for rotors, bottle cages, etc.
spare valve
spare valve core
Tubolito lightweight inner tube*
Spare brake pads.
Mech hanger
Tyre boot

I might add a gear cable for very remote rides.

The pump goes on the frame. Sahmurai goes in bar ends. Sewing kit is in its own pocket (Black Diamond Expedition Sewing Kit). Everything else apart from those with asterisks goes in a small tin. The tin of stuff weighs 130g and is about 95x14x14mm. All the above comes to 500g which sounds a lot but it's one of those things where cutting corners isn't worth it.

Image

The tin is top right and everything below it and as far left as the glove goes in it as does the glove.

Other things, for short trips I'll have chain oil in one of those plastic fish that comes in supermarket Sushi packs, weighs all of 5g, longer trips I'll take a small tube of chain oil. I'll only take a 50ml tube of sealant on longer rides. Also for longer rides I've a Fiberfix emergency spoke - you can fit it without taking rotor or cassette off the wheel.

Shaf's link is to the correct PDF.
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by HopeValleyPaul »

lune ranger
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by lune ranger »

This is mine for trips of >24hrs.

1020g to be precise:

Pump: Lezyne mini floor pump thing with gauge. 250g
Tube: Schwalbe sv9 29er. 147g
Tubeless repair kit: 70g
Leatheman Squirt: 56g
Bag of nuts/links: 44g
Wolf tooth chain pliers: 38g

Lezyne tyre levers: 26g
Park multi tool: 180g
Oil: 8g
Brake pads: 35g
Zot Nano: tubeless sealant accelerant 16g
Rag/gloves/hand cleaner: 42g
Wolf tooth dry bag(frame mounted): 67g
Brake inner: 24g
Last edited by lune ranger on Sun Oct 20, 2019 8:02 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Dave Barter
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by Dave Barter »

redefined_cycles wrote: Sun Oct 20, 2019 5:46 pm Shewie... If anyone has a strong enough memory they might be able to locate a pdf that (I think it was) @dave barter once shared. It had insights and tool kits from some of the leading long distance bikepackers and was extremely, well, insightful :smile:

Lwt me see if I can dig it up but if someone else has then that would be so useful to be shared again.

The holy grail of toolkits and why they (it has lots of list donors) choose them as well as how to think outside the box..
It was the one with Shona and Rich in it. A pdf of advice and I can’t for the life of me find it!!
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techno
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by techno »

Personally I carry this lot on longer and remove a few bits when local or on a shorter ride:

Mountain morph Pump with gaffer tape wrapped round.
Crank bros Multitool Inc chain tool
Allen key to fit rear disk mount (awkward Multitool won't reach)
CO2 inflator (to re-seal tubeless incase of serious puncture)
Tubeless plug kit
Bottle of sealant
Chain hook (bent section of spoke)
Tyre levers
Tyre boot (cut up toothpaste tube)
Small bottle chain lube
Mini pliers+ Tyre sewing kit (needles are hard work in a tyre!)
Inner tube + puncture kit
Spare pads
Chain links
Quick link
Mech hanger
Valve core
Cable ties
+ Probably a couple of little things I've forgotten.

Might be overkill but should pull me out of the shiz in all but the most serious of circumstances
whitestone wrote: Sun Oct 20, 2019 6:06 pm Flexible superglue (to fix tyre plugs)*
What glue is that Bob?
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redefined_cycles
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by redefined_cycles »

Dave Barter wrote: Sun Oct 20, 2019 9:13 pm
redefined_cycles wrote: Sun Oct 20, 2019 5:46 pm Shewie... If anyone has a strong enough memory they might be able to locate a pdf that (I think it was) @dave barter once shared. It had insights and tool kits from some of the leading long distance bikepackers and was extremely, well, insightful :smile:

Lwt me see if I can dig it up but if someone else has then that would be so useful to be shared again.

The holy grail of toolkits and why they (it has lots of list donors) choose them as well as how to think outside the box..
It was the one with Shona and Rich in it. A pdf of advice and I can’t for the life of me find it!!
Yes.. thats the one. I remember it well as it was the ultimate go anywhere tools list... Oh well :smile:
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whitestone
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by whitestone »

It's Loctite Superglue Power Flex. Comes in a pack of 3 x 1g tubes, I paid just £3.40 for them at our local hardware store.

One thing with all this kit is: Practice beforehand!!!!

On today's ride I got a puncture that the sealant wouldn't handle. This is the first time it's happened to me since I started carrying tyre plugs. The first attempt at inserting the tyre plug lasted about five minutes. Fortunately this second occasion happened just as I got to somewhere sheltered so I took my time and it held for the rest of the ride and is still holding air six hours later. I'll trim it and apply some superglue tomorrow.

I'd had a play fitting a plug with an old tyre but it's a bit different when the tyre's on the rim and you can't risk puncturing either the tyre on the other side or the rim tape. Probably worth having a practice on a tyre that you are about to retire before you take it off the rim.
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redefined_cycles
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by redefined_cycles »

Found that thread.. looks lile it was the one I posted earlier... Thanks again Dave

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=14588&p=180325#p180325
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Pirahna
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by Pirahna »

Here's my thoughts, what I take depends on how far I'm going, a 20 mile loop from home or a multi-day tour.

Something to fix a puncture. Could be a spare tube, or spare sealant, or a noodle to fix a cut in a tubeless tyre.

Something to fix a cut tyre. Could be a tyre boot or maybe a piece of old road tyre if you're using tubes.

Something to fix a punctured tube. Even tubeless riders carry a spare tube, I carry glueless patches as well, they can also be used for sticking on the inside of a cut tyre.

Something to tighten bolts, or loosen bolts to adjust things, or spare bolts if the originals have fallen out.

Something to repair a chain. Could be a chain breaker and spare quick links, might include an extra length of chain. You might need something to break a quick link.

Something to repair brake. Could be spare pads or a spare cable.

Something to fix gears. Could be a spare cable.

Something to fix wheels.

Chain lube.

What I have for a tour is:
Park tyre boot
Park glueless patched
Two spare tubes
A couple of quick links
A Crank Bros multi-tool. It has a chain breaker and spoke keys built into the chain breaker bit. I've built wheels and assembled bikes from scratch using it, just to make sure it worked.
Knipex mini pliers. Not cheap but I can split a quick link, true a disc and tighten anything the multi-tool can't.
Spare brake pads.
Spare rear brake cable, this can also be used on the front.
Spare rear mech cable, can also be used on the front.
Dyneplug tubeless repair kit. Again not cheap but it's saved me very big walks in Canada and Wyoming,

The entire toolkit, excluding tubes fits into a bottle sized tool thingy. I pad it out with a couple of pairs of nitrile gloves and some rag to stop it rattling.
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by benp1 »

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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by benp1 »

My kit is similar to the above, although I tend to be out for 1 night, most ever is 4 nights

Mine fits in the little revelate pack by my seat tube, I can get the tube, tools and spares in the pouch, only my pump is separate. Pump lives attached to my bottle cage. I've found I just leave the pack on the bike, means I can carry a hippack for rides and still be able to take a spare layer
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by Shewie »

Great info, thanks all
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whitestone
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by whitestone »

I get the feeling I'm going to be the awkward one in class who keeps sticking their hand up and saying "But you've forgotten ... What about ..." :???:

Maintenance. Not just of the bike, that goes without saying, but of the tools and spares themselves. A couple of months ago I got a snakebite puncture when out on my road bike. "No problem", off with the wheel, remove tyre, check for thorns, fit new inner tube, inflate. Except that I could get to about 30psi - the seals in my pump had dried out. Fortunately I was in a group and someone had a working pump. I had probably never actually used the pump from the day I'd bought it some years earlier.

Glue in repair kits degrades especially if you've used the tube for a patch.

Environment: sounds daft but if it's chucking it down it might be worth putting up some form of shelter so you can work on the repair out of the wind and rain especially if it's going to take a while. Yesterday was really windy round here and when I got my puncture I couldn't hear where the leak was. Of course since I was pumping the tyre up with the valve at the bottom of the wheel, the hole was near the top and the sealant had drained away from there so there was no obvious trail of white liquid to point me to the spot.

When it's colder I shove one of those chemical hand warmer sachets in: you can use it to warm parts and tools as well as your hands. If temperatures are around freezing there may be ice in screw slots, etc. so you can use the handwarmer to clear those.

Knowledge: Partly practice but it's also learning from things going wrong. When the first tyre plug came out and I was trying to put the next one in the applicator I realised that the jaws were too narrow for the size of the plug and that some of the plug material ended up on the outside of the jaws so didn't get pushed in through the hole properly. I used the flat screwdriver to prise open the jaws to allow me to fit the plug, they then sprung back closer. Until you actually do something you often don't realise how much reality diverges from the instruction leaflet!

I meant to say that I've one of those tins (as in the photo) for each bike (a work colleague vaped so I grabbed some of the empty gunk tins off him and ran them through the dishwasher a couple of times to get rid of the smell) so each tin is specific to the bike - no point in heading out with bike specific spares like mech hangers or brake pads if they are for the wrong bike. :oops: Since I'm using hex bits rather than a multi-tool it's not an expensive way to do it, probably about the same cost.
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Re: Spares/Tools - noob question

Post by Lazarus »

As noted it depends on terrain and distance and what you want mine is lighhtweight but should cover everythign

Teeny tiny multitool -[60 g iirc] basically I need 3mm, mm and 5 mm allen keys as i made sure all bolts work on this
Wolftoot chain link and pliars
Unior casettes tool
Chain tool
Think all of that is sub 200g[no case]

I then have a tubeless repair kit and TWO inner tubes + instant patches

i know most folk take 1 tube but i dont want a once in a lifetime trip to be ruined for the sake of only having one inner tube - though I have never punctured both tyres since going tubeless on any ride - Often consider it and then plump on safety first

Pump - usually a pocket rocket

The main thing to consider is
1) what ids LIKELY to coccur
2) what coudl you reasonably fix on the side of mountain

Back your hopes not your fears ans you cannot possibly cover all scenraios so go for the most likely
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