KNIPEX mini-pliers

[gbb]

I have a few Knipex bits in my toolbox at work, no doubt it's good stuff but £39 for something you'll rarely use...it wouldn't make sense to me.
An 8 and a 10mm ring spanner are all you really need, lighter, cheaper, more compact than the knipex pliers.
Another issue, the jaws of water pump pliers are quite large and can make them unuseable in tight areas.

 

[andrew_s]

Anyone used these? Seen recommended as an adjunct to on-bike multi-tool. (I think the idea is to carry allen keys + this, avoiding spanners, and ... well I'm not really sure of the advantages!) Holds nuts without slipping from 23mm down to ... er tiny?

https://www.knipex.com/products/pip...wrenchespliers-and-wrench-single-tool/8603125

Not cheap - £39 - but appears to be a precision tool. Claims to be.

They are like an adjustable spanner, with an added pliers function.
As an adjustable spanner, they work rather better than the normal type does, being less likely to round a reluctant nut or bolt head.

As well as any hex huts in the bike, you may also use them for straightening a warped disc rotor, gripping something fingers don't grip hard enough for, for adding extra torque to an allen key (effectively changing an L-key into a T-key), as a spoke key, and whatever else you can think of.

N.B. they aren't water pump pliers, though Kinpex sell those too.

 

[matticus]

Thanks Andrew! (only took 15 posts to find someone who actually knew anything)

 

[battered]

Thanks Andrew! (only took 15 posts to find someone who actually knew anything)

Erm, excuse me.

 

[Blue Hills]

I have hardly ever needed a spanner out on the road in over 30 years of cycling so I wouldn't be too bothered about that. l carry a good multitool.

What I could have done with a few times was another tool to help me remove embedded objects from punctured tyres so I have now added a small pair of needle-nose pliers to my ride bag.

the fairly blunt smooth shiny flat screwdriver from a swiss army knife is excellent for that - just flick/[luck the bits out - I do this before any major ride - very rarely get punctures/wear my tyres into the ground.

 

[weareHKR]

I have a couple pairs, different sizes among my work tools, they are very good, best thing bout them is the smooth jaws leave no nasty marks on your work as mole grips do!

 

[Blue Hills]

For what I take to be the original purpose I can recommend this.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/bahco-wide-jaw-adjustable-wrench-6/24718

Opens wide so that I can use it on a threaded headset - very precise and no wobble so that I can also grip the tiddly nuts on my brake cable clips.

I don't carry it normally but do on tours/big rides.

 

[T4tomo]

That is the EXACT tool that sparked the audax-facebook thread, where the knipex pliers were mentioned! Your initials don't match, but this is quite a coincidence ...

As I said on FB this seems a good idea; chain-tools are vv rarely needed, and handlebars are wasted space :P
EDIT: I note a poster here has now found the FB thread. I hope his posts here will be more constructive ...

;-)

the splitter C R linked you refer to is quite a neat solution, especially as you use them once in a blue moon out on the road, although damn useful to have when you need it, although its a tad pricey.

Spa do a very good multi-tool (copy of fat spanners) https://www.spacycles.co.uk/m13b0s71p0/Tools-and-Workshop/Multitools with a built in splitter, which adds very little overall bulk to your multi tool.

 

[matticus]

"...another tool to help me remove embedded objects from punctured tyres ..."

the fairly blunt smooth shiny flat screwdriver from a swiss army knife is excellent for that - just flick/[luck the bits out - I do this before any major ride - very rarely get punctures/wear my tyres into the ground.

I can trump you on this for weight - the humble safety-pin. I've seen so many people over the years with broken zips (this is on loooong rides!) held together that I realised one might be useful, especially when I found how good they are for tyre excavation. And you can store them just about anywhere that there is fabric e.g. inside lid of rackpack.

Not many things will have so many uses per gram :P Of course you have to pay for really lightweight good tools:

 

[ColinJ]

the fairly blunt smooth shiny flat screwdriver from a swiss army knife is excellent for that - just flick/[luck the bits out - I do this before any major ride - very rarely get punctures/wear my tyres into the ground.

I very rarely get punctures these days myself but I got one yesterday. Fortunately, it was 5 seconds from my front door at the end of my ride.

Whatever caused it was very sharp and very narrow. I checked the tyre very carefully and there was no sign of anything left in the hole.

I reckon there is a good chance that it was a sliver of glass dropped by the local recycling van. I have noticed a few times that there have been to be glass fragments left on their route on recycling days.

 

[gbb]

Another way of looking at it...at an apprentice school, youd get a rollicking for using an adjustable spanner, as an extension of that, youd probably get thrown out for using water pump type pliers like these. I have two sets at work, they rarely ever ever get used, only as a last resort on stuck stuff and pipework and I'm not sure I've ever used them to undo a nut. Proper tool for a proper job...and these are not the proper tool for the job. (Imho)

 

[PaulSB]

I have hardly ever needed a spanner out on the road in over 30 years of cycling so I wouldn't be too bothered about that. l carry a good multitool.

What I could have done with a few times was another tool to help me remove embedded objects from punctured tyres so I have now added a small pair of needle-nose pliers to my ride bag.

I carry a pair of eyebrow tweezers for this purpose. Small, lightweight and obviously designed to grip very small/fine objects.

Also good for dealing with any eyebrow issues which may arise en route.

 

[matticus]

Another way of looking at it...at an apprentice school, youd get a rollicking for using an adjustable spanner, as an extension of that, youd probably get thrown out for using water pump type pliers like these. I have two sets at work, they rarely ever ever get used, only as a last resort on stuck stuff and pipework and I'm not sure I've ever used them to undo a nut. Proper tool for a proper job...and these are not the proper tool for the job. (Imho)

Well of course.

Just as you wouldn't go back to a bikeshop if they only used multi-tools on customers' bikes.

But sometimes compromises are made ...

 

[Randomnerd]

Swiss Army knife for embedded thorns etc. The good knives usually have a pair of tweezers on board. Mine even has a magnifying glass. Ooh. Get him! Open a bottle of plonk while waiting for the rubber solution to set....
These Knipex jobbies are better than water tank pliers, and do lock on a nut securely. I’ve a long handled set in the toolbox of a small woodland tractor, to get out of a fix when far from the truck. Maybe overkill for a bike, where a good multi tool will suffice.
As a side note, look how powerful the seller must be to knock a third of retail price. Little surprise. Pay no tax. Everyone saves. Possibly another thread.
Have you bought them yet OP, and been for a ride to see if you need them?

 

[matticus]

As a side note, look how powerful the seller must be to knock a third of retail price. Little surprise. Pay no tax. Everyone saves. Possibly another thread.
Have you bought them yet OP, and been for a ride to see if you need them?

A thread about Amazon and tax? Be my guest, a worthy subject indeed.

But no, I haven't bought any yet. I'm sure you know that riding around WITH $randomtool is the worst possible way to test if you need it - just as rain-jackets are the best-known way to encourage hot sunny weather.
I will note that my mini knife/pliers/thing has been borrowed twice since Thursday on club events, so I'm well used to being that bloke who carries too much stuff, but we often need to borrow some of it ...