I wrote about our Kuala Lumpur accommodation requirements in 2 Into 6 ft². The tale of my ever-expanding collection of tools is in Giving it the Full Muller. That blog post has a photograph of the work bench I was forced to buy after coming home from the Downland Cycles Bike Maintenance Course with yet more tools. I have since rearranged how the tools are hung on the peg board. I am not sure how it happened but the number of tools has grown as well.
Here is what lives on my work bench today.
Starting at the top:
| Number | Tool | Notes |
| 1 | Rubber Mallet | So far only used with pedal wrench to “persuade” tight pedals to come off crank arms. |
| 2 | Pledge Furniture Polish | Makes bikes shiny. Helps stop road grunge from sticking to bikes. Comes with lemon scent if you so desire. |
| 3 | Hex Wrenches | Ironside. Sizes 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 10mm. |
| 4 | Pedal Wrench | Standard 15mm pedal wrench. |
| 5 | Chain Tool | Park Tool CT-3. Used to remove links so that new chains are the correct length. |
| 6 | Vise Whip | Pedro’s. An excellent alternative to a chain whip. For removing cassettes without skinning your knuckles. |
| 7 | Radio & CD Player | Bose Wave Radio. You can’t wrench without tunes. |
| 8 | Long Nose Locking Pliers | Stanley. For clamping and holding parts to be worked on. |
| 9 | Cable Cutters | Pedro’s. So far used only to cut zip ties. |
| 10 | Missing Link Opener | KMC. Makes easy work of removing SRAM Powerlock chain connectors. |
| 11 | Rubber Gloves | These give you sweaty hands, but that beats greasy hands. |
| 12 | Needle Nose Pliers | Straight needle nose and curved needle nose pliers for holding small and fiddly bits. |
| 13 | Chaingrip Chain Holder | BBB BTL-50. Keeps chain under tension when rear wheel is removed. |
| 14 | Torque Settings Crib Sheet | List of torque setting for various bolts. Crucial for proper tightening of said bolts. |
| 15 | Hex Bits | Britool Expert. Sizes 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 14 and 17mm hex bits. For use with the Syntace torque wrench. |
| 16 | Grease Gun | Weldtite TF-2. |
| 17 | Chain Wear Indicator | Park Tool CC-3.2. |
| 18 | Multitool | Park Tool MT-1. My first bike tool. 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8mm hex wrenches. 8, 9 and 10mm socket wrenches. Flat blade screwdriver. |
| 19 | Pen Knives | Swiss Army. |
| 20 | 3-Way Hex Wrenches | Park Tool AWS-1 (4, 5 and 6mm bits) and Park Tool AWS-3 (2, 2.5 and 3mm bits). |
| 21 | Screw Drivers | Assorted Park Tool and other flat blade and cross tip screw drivers. |
| 22 | Touch-Up Paint | Orbit Industries. Fortunately only used once. |
| 23 | Ultrasonic Cleaner | James Ultra 7000. One of the tools I bought after the bike mechanic’s course. Excellent for cleaning cogs, chains etc. |
| 24 | Chain Lube | Finish Line Dry Lube and Purple Extreme. The Purple Extreme is my current favorite. |
| 25 | Cable Puller | XLC. Unused to date. I have to refer to my course notes to remind myself of how to use it. |
| 26 | Cone Wrench | Cyclus 19mm. Fits the preload adjuster on my Easton EA90 SLX rear hubs. |
| 27 | Spoke Wrench | Park Tool SW-0 3.23mm. Fits the spoke nipples on my Easton EA90 SLX wheels. |
| 28 | 3-Way Socket Wrench | Park Tool ST-3 with 8, 9 and 10mm sockets. |
| 29 | Magnetic Parts Bowl | Pedro’s. Bolts, screws and other ferrous parts stay put. |
| 30 | Bottom Bracket Tool | IceToolz MO91. For use with the Syntace torque wrench. |
| 31 | Cassette Lock Ring Tool | IceToolz with pin. For use with the Syntace torque wrench. |
| 32 | 8mm Hex Bit | Britool Expert. Most used size. For use with the Syntace torque wrench to remove and install SRAM self-extracting crank bolts. |
| 33 | Utility Knife | Park Tool UK-1. |
| 34 | Magnetic Knife Rack | IKEA Grundtal. Knife rack that is a convenient size to hold various tools that cannot be hung on a peg board. |
| 35 | Chain Wear Indicator | Wipperman. A giveaway item from a bike show. |
| 36 | Hook & Pick Set | Bluespot. For cleaning bolt threads, removing debris from tires etc. |
| 37 | Aluminum Rim Cleaning Block | Mavic. For cleaning and smoothing the brake tracks on aluminum rims. |
| 38 | Mini Torque Wrench | Giustaforza 2-16. Click-type torque wrench comes with a variety of bits. Torque range of between 2 and 16 Nm. Good for tightening stem bolts, seat post bolts etc. |
| 39 | Torque Wrench | Syntace. Click-type torque wrench with a range of between 5 and 80 Nm. Essential for tightening crank bolts, bottom bracket cups and cassette lock rings. |
| 40 | Wipes | Bison. Degreasing wipes in a convenient dispenser. |
| 41 | Degreaser | Cyclon Bionet. A biodegradable degreaser. |
| 42 | Chain Lube | Pedro’s Ice Wax. Good in wet conditions. |
| 43 | Anti-Rust Spray | Hunter’s. I’ve sprayed some down the seat tube of my steel bike. I figure it can’t hurt. |
Not visible on my work bench, but probably my most-used tool, if you can call it that, is a Lezyne Classic Floor Drive pump. Worth every penny for the threaded chuck alone.
Also not in the photo is my Feedback Sports Pro-Classic work stand. The second most-used item in my home workshop.
It may have taken me a long time to figure out why my steel bike was creaking, but it wasn’t for the lack of tools!
Old Roots, New Routes 