Bike tools

I know nothing about the Spin Doctor tools but my long expereince with
tools is that good tools work well and last forever and cheap tools
work poorly and break (and sometimes break what you are working on.) So
if others have good experience with Spin Doctor I won't argue that but
I'd want to actually see the tools and see how they actually fit to
bike parts. etc.

I do have experience with Park tools and I'm using some that are over
20 years old, so the initial cost gets to be amortized over a pretty
long time.

Rich <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Specifically, I was looking at the Spin Doctor Essential Tool Kit. It
appears to have a fair number of the special tools I'd like to have.

The problem with those tool kits is that they only contain half of the tools
that you need, but also contain a bunch of stuff that you can't use because
it doesn't fit your bike. Read a good bike repair book or web site (e.g.,
www.parktool.com) and figure out what tools you really need to work on your
bike. You may be able to build up your own toolkit for less money than the
pre-packaged sets.

Rich said:

Anybody have any experience with the Spin Doctor tools? They seem much
less expensive then Park tools, and given I really won't be using them
much they're probably adequate. Unless they're [censored].

The few I own are OK. Their workstand, BTW, is a good deal, very
sturdy but collapsible for storage. It's really nice to finally
have one.

Rich said:

Any opinions on Spin Doctor tools or this particular toolkit?

Well, some of my tools are Spin Doctor, some aren't. I wouldn't buy
their chain tool again, though it was mostly adequate. The workstand
and truing stand were good and a good value for the money. Most of the
rest of their tools are fairly good. The toolkit looks like it has most
of what you need to get started.

I personally just bought the tools I needed as I needed them. A touch
more expensive, but I spread the cost out over a longer period of time
and only got what I was actually going to use.

--
Dane Buson - [email hidden]
Klatu barada nikto.

It kind of sounds like you want to buy a bunch of tools and then figure
out how to use them and this is OK if thats what you really want to do.

There are not very many speciality tools required for doing general
maintenance on your bike and you can buy quality brand Allen wrenches,
open end, box end, sockets, screwdrivers, etc. at garage sale and flea
markets for almost nothing.

If you plan to do a job, buy the tools to do the job, then next time
you need to do something, you'll likely find that you already have some
of the tools you need and so you will build up your toolset, along with
your skills.

Hope this helps.

Lewis.

******

Quoted message said:

It kind of sounds like you want to buy a bunch of tools and then figure
out how to use them and this is OK if thats what you really want to
do.

It didnt sound anything like that to me : it sounded like he wants to
buy a toolkit complete and was asking for opinions on a certain toolkit.

I think it looks a lot like this less expensive kit here:

https://www.pricepoint.com/detail/14585-325_SET215-43-Brands-215-Sette/Sette-Torx-ST-21-Tool-Kit---21-Tools.htm

Brian.

Rich said:

I was looking at a basic tool kit for working on my bike at home and
thought it might be wise to get a bunch of the specialty tools all at
once rather then buy them piecemeal over time.

Unless you like frequent trips to the LBS.

Quoted message said:

Anybody have any experience with the Spin Doctor tools? They seem much
less expensive then Park tools, and given I really won't be using them
much they're probably adequate. Unless they're [censored].

I have some Spin Doctor tools and I think they're pretty good, for the
home mechanic.

Quoted message said:

Specifically, I was looking at the Spin Doctor Essential Tool Kit. It
appears to have a fair number of the special tools I'd like to have.

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=22310&subcategory_ID=4218#

I think this toolkit is nice, but there are several items I use that
it's missing:
8 mm hex wrench (many MTB pedals have 8 mm sockets)
10 mm hex wrench (for removing the freehub; not a common task for the
beginnning home mechanic)
17 mm cone wrench (I have both cartridge bearing hubs and a cup n cone
hub that require a 17mm cone wrench)
Chain whip for 1/8" chain (I retrofitted my chain whip by replacing the
1/32" chain with the unused portion of my 1/8" chain.)

And, of all the tools I see in that kit the only one that sucks is the
chain tool.

Still, the price they're offering beats purchasing even half the tools
singly. So, you should go for it. If you need that 17mm cone wrench
later on, it's just a couple of bucks.

Quoted message said:

Any opinions on Spin Doctor tools or this particular toolkit?

Thanks in advance.

Brian said:

I think it looks a lot like this less expensive kit here:

https://www.pricepoint.com/detail/14585-325_SET215-43-Brands-215-Sette/Sette-Torx-ST-21-Tool-Kit---21-Tools.htm

It may be exactly the same, but as I never heard of "Sette" before, I'd
have to wonder if they were made of pot metal.

<rant>One problem with tools is that they look alike to the naked eye,
but they're often different in the materials and construction you can't
see. As a result, you have to either buy cheap and hope it's good,
replacing if it isn't; buy a name brand and hope its reputation is
justified, replacing if it isn't; or buy on someone else's
recommendation and hope it's good, replacing the tool(s) if it isn't.
</rant>

I've got a few Spin Doctor tools, and they've worked for me -- light
duty, home use only. Somebody else pointed out the kit the OP was
looking at was half the price of separate tools; if I was just getting
in to bike wrenching, for personal use, I'd buy the kit for that reason.
I might have to replace a few that either wore out or were too flimsy,
but it'd still be worth the bet.

Pat

Dennis P. Harris said:

Rich said:

Anybody have any experience with the Spin Doctor tools? They seem much
less expensive then Park tools, and given I really won't be using them
much they're probably adequate. Unless they're [censored].

The few I own are OK. Their workstand, BTW, is a good deal, very
sturdy but collapsible for storage. It's really nice to finally
have one.

I'll second Dennis' opinion of the workstand. I've had mine for about
six years I think and the only drawback to it that I've found is its a
little "tippy" with heavier bikes. That's easy enough to compensate for
though by simply throwing something heavy on the legs. I use a couple
sacks of sand I have left over from some patio repairs.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

Michael Warner said:

Rich said:

I was looking at a basic tool kit for working on my bike at home and
thought it might be wise to get a bunch of the specialty tools all at
once rather then buy them piecemeal over time.

Nope. You don't know in advance what you'll really need, you haven't
examined the alternatives in person and you haven't yet got good advice
from local bike mechanics who know your bike.

Most importantly, buying tools one or two at a time means more excuses
to visit bike shops :-)

True. OTOH, Murphy says if you don't have it, you'll need a tool the
night before a big ride after all the stores have closed. 🙁

Pat