Tool recommendations

[PscyclePath]

Strong recommendations for a Park MTB-3... I can just about take a bike apart by the side of the road with this thing and put it back together if I have to. I carry a separate set of tire levers, several CO2 cartridges, one of those little micro-inflators, and various patching & booting supplies. So far it's worked well for me, on either the road or trails...

[Owlie]

Timely thread. I'm looking for one myself, as I'm starting to venture out without DBF, who is otherwise known as The Packhorse.

[msincredible]

One thing to think about is that generally the more features on a multitool, the bulkier it becomes and the harder it is to get into tight spaces.

[DebW]

As far as carrying on the bike, I bring the 2 allen keys that fit most everything on my bike (4 and 5 mm). Much smaller and lighter than a multi-tool. When I've got the fenders mounted, then the 3 mm allen and an 8 mm open wrench would also be useful if they were to come loose. I also carry 2 tire irons, 2 tubes, a patch kit, and a fiberfix spoke with tiny spoke wrench. I always have a frame pump and my pocketknife which includes screwdrivers as well. Recently I found a need for pliers when a piece of wire got imbedded in my tire, but that piece was at such an angle that it didn't pop the tube so I rode home and used pliers. A spare chain link (try the Missing Link or a SRAM powerlink) is another good idea, though a chaintool would probably be required to remove the broken link.

[msincredible]

Next time I need to get one I may just make my own kit, like this:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Bicycle-Mini-Tool-Kit/

[Medianox]

Great info everybody! Thanks for the tips and sharing...