Cool Tool Tuesday #13: Hands on with 11 more new tools

Cool Tool Tuesday #13: Hands on with 11 more new tools

So you like new tools, eh? As promised, I’m back with more!

This Cool Tool Tuesday gallery continues from where last week’s new tool round-up left off. Below is a look at interesting new workshop items from Wheels Manufacturing, Noble Wheels, and Campagnolo. There are a few more affordable tools in the mix from Prestacycle, CMH Design, and BSC. And you’ll also find a new cleat-fitting tool for those that are always second-guessing their adjustments.

It’s worth noting that this is my fifth gallery of new tools in the past 12 months. In addition to last week’s gallery, there are also parts one and two of what’s new in the world of cycling tools and what new tools were revealed at the Sea Otter Classic. That’s a lot of new tools in one year!

Let’s get into it.

Wheels Manufacturing may be best known for its derailleur hangers and bottom brackets, but the Colorado-based company has also long been a popular choice for tools related to bearing servicing. This past year has seen many of these bearings tools updated, with many new additions to the range, too. Pictured is the new Bearing Press Pro which is sized for smaller bearings commonly found in hubs, frame pivots, etc.

Now available in two sizes, the Adjustable Press Stop is a welcomed optional upgrade to Wheels Manufacturing presses. It replaces one of the handles with the quick-release mechanism.

Pushing the large button releases the thread, allowing the Adjustable Press Stop to slide freely along the press’s threaded rod. This is all about saving time in a busy workshop.

A look inside reveals how it works. The thread only covers one side of the nut. When sprung closed, the press’s steel threaded rod is pulled against the threaded sided. Push the button and that threaded side is pushed out of the way, providing a smooth surface to slide on.

Wheels Manufacturing first released the larger Adjustable Press Stop for use with its headset and bottom bracket press kits (1/2″ UNC threaded rod), and more recently added the smaller version for use with its hub bearing presses (3/8″ ACME threaded rod). The big one is US$58, the small one is US$52, and both work exactly as you want them to.

This is the new Thin Flange Bottom Bracket Socket – Pro Kit (US$229). It’s designed to overcome the wide-spread stupidity that is new T47 “internal” bottom brackets that often leave you far too little tool engagement for simple tools to be used without tears. The kit includes three common sizes of bottom bracket sockets, a 1/2″ UNC threaded rod, an Adjustable Press Stop, and some bearing drifts to keep things aligned with the opposite-side cup. The sockets work with the company’s pre-existing bottom bracket/headset presses, and the company also offers each piece individually.

The sockets feature a threaded interface that allows them to be securely held against the bottom bracket you’re trying to install/remove. Such a threaded design is becoming increasingly common, with Park Tool and Abbey Bike Tools having recently made the switch to such a concept, too. These Wheels Manufacturing sockets also feature a chamferless design (no curvature on the edge of the tool interface) which means you’ll have the most tool engagement possible.

Currently Wheels Manufacturing offers three sizes of socket intended to be used with its press. These are for the Wheels MFG 48.5 mm 16-notch, SRAM 52 mm 16-notch pattern, and Praxis (aka Trek) 50 mm 12-notch pattern. The sockets can be purchased for US$45 apiece.

The threaded rod runs only partway through the socket before it stops. The backside of the socket features a 3/8″ square drive interface for use with a common ratchet or breaker-bar.

And here’s the newest of tools from Wheels Manufacturing – the Ultimate Benchtop Mat (US$52). This style of mat can be real handy for component rebuilds where dropping pieces is common and the need to keep them in check is critical.

In addition to a generous work area and organised storage pockets, this mat also provides drop-in style sizing gauges for sealed (cartridge) and loose ball bearings. Rulers are provided on the side (Imperial) and bottom (Metric).

At 50 cm (20 in) wide, Wheels Manufacturing’s is noticeably larger than other similar work mats. Here’s the Wheels Manufacturing mat against the similarly constructed Park Tool OM-1.

The Cleat Key is a surprisingly simple tool that aims to provide a reliable and repeatable method for helping to set the rotational placement of road cycling cleats – specifically Shimano SPD-SL and Look-style (sorry Speedplay users, this tool won’t work for you). This tool was successfully backed on Kickstarter by nearly 600 people.

Made of a strong clear acrylic and aluminium, the Cleat Key is basically a very fancy protractor that clamps onto the cleat. The company offers detailed instructions for how to use it, a method that aligns closely with how we recommend setting up your cleat position.

The top of the tool is used as a protractor to measure your natural foot angle when you’re off the bike. The company offers detailed explanations on how to do this.

With that first number, you then use the angle guides at the bottom of the tool to align the angle of the cleat in reference to the centre of the shoe’s heel. Some shoes have this position marked, while you’ll need to add your own mark to others.

These shoes did not have the centre marked and so I used some calipers to find it.

The tool simply clamps onto the cleat via spring tension. It’s quick and easy to use.

The Cleat Key certainly isn’t the only cleat-fitting tool on the market. Ergon has long offered relatively affordable cleat-specific tools to assist with such setup (I’ve owned them for well over a decade and find the edge of a table easier to use). The Ergon tool can be used for fore-aft, width, and angle setting. By contrast, the Cleat Key really is focussed on the rotational angle of cleat fitment, and it does this task impressively well. However at US$89, you’ll need to be quite pedantic about your cleat angle to get benefit from this one.

Here’s a cool tool I only briefly mentioned in my best inflators for use with an air compressor article. It’s a Prestacycle adapter that lets you connect any CO2 pump head to your air compressor line. Just note that this US$10 adapter (shown on the right) is based on the Industrial/Milton hose coupler standard, something that isn’t the go-to fitment outside of the USA.

Prestacycle also sells the combo of its CO2 inflator head and air compressor adapter for US$27. The adapter serves as an extremely cost-effective entry into using an air compressor as a bicycle tool.

OK, there’s not a whole lot of newness about the products in this image. However my recent torque wrench articles provided me with a good reminder that Prestacycle has quite the extensive range of pre-set torque keys. The “Torqkey” is quite neat as you can safely undo bolts with it, too. The company offers the 4-12 Nm preset torque Pro keys as a set (with bits) or you can purchase them individually for US$20 each.

Prestacycle also sells a smaller-handled version with the same internal workings. The Pro Torqkey (left) is US$20, while the Mini Torqkey is US$18 and includes the bits shown. It’s worth noting that these same tools are available under a few other brand names, with the “Torqkey” stamped on the silver shaft being the key indicator for a tool that works as a preset torque wrench in clockwise direction, and acts as a fixed tool in the opposite direction.

Here’s an excerpt from a previous Cool Tool Tuesday focussed on tools for installing disc brakes. “One tool I’m still waiting for is a high quality 8 mm ratcheting flare nut wrench. Cheap options can be sourced from AliExpress, but they have a habit of jamming in annoying ways. Meanwhile, the good quality ones only start from 10 mm sizes. I’m mentioning this simply in the hope that someone makes one.”

Turns out such a thing does exist, and it was Trek-Segafredo mechanic Mike Jenner that pointed it out to me. It’s the Laser 4899, a tool I personally purchased on eBay (for about AU$38) but is also available though various random UK-based sellers.

A flare nut spanner offers more surface contact than a regular open-ended spanner – it means you can get more torque with far less chance of rounding off the hose nut. This one has an opening just like any regular flare nut spanner, but then adds the trick of ratcheting.

The ratchet mechanism can greatly speed up the job by not having to reposition the tool when the handlebar is in the way. This is certainly a niche application tool, but this is Cool Tool Tuesday after all.

This is a nipple shuffle box. You use it by chucking in a bunch of spoke nipples, giving the box a quick shuffle, and then having easy access to pick-up each one with a nipple drive tool. It turns a fiddly job into a neat one-handed operation. The concept has been around for a number of years and such tools were traditionally handmade from wood. Elevation Wheel Company (USA based) offers a 3D-printed version (US$25), and for an additional US$5 you can get custom logos and/or colours.

These simple tools really are a huge help when lacing up a wheel. As a bit of a tangent, Elevation Wheel Company also produces DT Swiss drive ring hub tools that work with an air impact wrench – they’re a game-changer for rear hub bearing overhauls.

The Elevation Wheel Company shuffle box (right) next to an earlier Wheel Fanatyk wood version. The more expensive wooden version feels like a small piece of art, however I think I actually prefer using the smoother-edged and lower-walled 3D-printed plastic version.

The BSC PressFit Bottom Bracket Remover Set is a tool I’ve previously covered. Shown is the updated “II” version with a whole new handle assembly and means of retaining the bottom bracket/bearing puller plates.

On the left is the old handle assembly with a regular metric nut to hold the puller plates. Based on feedback from customers (including myself), the new version has moved to a lower-profile reverse-threaded bolt that makes the tool easier to get into certain bottom bracket cups.

The tool is designed to be a modular option to fit a vast array of different press-fit bottom brackets and bearings. At approximately £114, this tool remains my pick for the best-value press-fit bottom bracket puller that works across a variety of systems. That said, there are still a few tricky bearing/cup combinations on the market that defeat this tool and so it’s not quite the silver bullet most will hope it is. (Side note: Enduro Bearings produce the benchmark tool suited to this repair task, but that’s actually three separate tools with a high asking price.)

BSC’s modular design means future silly bearing sizes can be easily adapted to.

I recently chatted with Chris Heerschap about all things home 3D printing on the CyclingTIps Nerd Alert podcast. Pictured is one of Chris’s most downloaded and/or bought tools, the Bike Scruler v2.0. It’s a tool designed to take any guess work out of measuring common fasteners used on bicycles. The front is used to quickly measure thread length and thread diameter.

The backside features threads to confirm that the fastener has a bicycle-appropiate thread pitch. The latest version of this tool has inserted nuts for the more common sizes, while the M8 and M10 threads are printed in. Embedded magnets allow for easy storage.

A good digital or vernier caliper can do much of what the Scruler does, but it won’t do it faster. Chris recently started selling a number of his most popular 3D print tools on Etsy (under the handle CMH Designs), while Beaut Bike has partenered up to offer these tools with favourable shipping rates for those in Australia and New Zealand.

Here’s another Chris Heerschap original. It’s a simple gauge to measure the 1.8 mm length difference between HG and HG11, along with XD and XDR freehub bodies. The simple tool costs just a few dollars. It almost replaces the need for my article about freehub body types and compatibility. Almost.

I couldn’t possibly do a series about cycling tools without once in awhile featuring things from Campagnolo. This is the UT-CN400 (€160ish), Campagnolo’s chain tool designed specifically for the installation of its 12- and 13-speed chains. No it’s not exactly new, but it sure is gorgeous.

Campagnolo is the only chain manufacturer that requires the more detailed installation process of peening (kinda mushrooming the edge) the pin once it has been set in place. As a result, the tool offers a quick way to perform this task. But don’t fear, there are other non-Campagnolo chain tools that can perform this peening function.

Campagnolo chain tools lock the chain in place, meaning no accidental creep or movement that could cause the pin to go in wrong. The downside is that this tool really is purpose-built for a small selection of chains and so offers limited compatibility with older Campagnolo chains and chains from other brands. Price and limited compatibility aside, there’s arguably no finer tool for working with Campagnolo 12- and 13-speed chains.

Here’s a true story. I already owned three perfectly functional (and desirable) threaded presses for installing hub bearings, and yet I spent £320 on this Noble Wheels Hub Bearing Install Kit because it does something no other press offers. (Note: not all pieces shown).

Just about every bearing press on the market relies on the user to keep the press and bearing drift perpendicular to the bearing bore. The Noble design takes the unique approach of using aligning dummy axles that run from one bearing bore to the next – it’s a tool that ensures perfect bearing alignment. This system uses a hammer to guide the bearing into place, something that sounds barbaric, but actually provides an impressive amount of tactile feedback to the install pressure.

The brass dummy axles feature a removable hammer face. The machined stainless steel drifts are designed to be mounted in a bench vise. This tool is incredibly overbuilt, faster than anything else, and a joy to use. The pricing is certainly a barrier for even many well-equipped bike shops, but there are enough mechanics in the world who simply seek out the best and/or most efficient tools that will keep this company afloat.

Note: A number of the tools mentioned in Cool Tool Tuesday are not sold through traditional cycling channels and can be hard to find, which is also kind of the point of the series. Access to the tools covered will be easy for those in Europe and the United States. Use a search engine to find the products mentioned.

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