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I spent the better part of my 20's in the saddle of my 12 speed. I would ride for hours going the distance; no real agenda, no real destination. I simple loved to ride. Under the seat, hanging from strap loops, I tied my tool bundle. A few essentials that would keep my excursion rolling should my ride suffer from mechanical difficulty. That was better than 25 years ago, but I'm still involved with bikes. In fact I've spent the last eleven years as an in-store service tech. The largest part of my duties were to build bicycles. I know bikes; as well as what it takes to keep them running. I also know what to carry in a bike toolkit.

In many ways bike technology has improved, as has the ability for the average person to purchase specialty tools cheap. So the kit we will be assembling in this article will be in many ways better than what I carried back in the day. Almost all of the gear will be obtainable at either the tool department or the bike accessory rack of the local department store. There will be a couple of optional specialty tools that you may want to purchase, and to do so you will need to go to a Sporting Goods Store or a Bike Shop. I will also try to explain why they are needed and how to use them. This kit will work just as well for off the road riders as it will for over the road riders.

The parts of the bike that takes the most abuse are the wheels, so we will address them first. Nothing will end a good day of riding quicker than a blown tire or a bent rim. In most cases both repairs can be made easily in the field. So the first things we need to include in our bundle are the spare tube, a tube patch kit (I have found it best to carry both), a 15mm combination wrench ( avoid anything to cheap, they tend to stretch and/or slip) and either a set of tire irons or a speed stick. You will also need a spoke wrench, and you might consider four light weight bungee cords about a foot long - they have a variety of usage. And of course let us not forget a tire pump; invest in a good frame pump or one of the new co2 pumps.

First lets fix that flat tire. Before you start, do a quick inspection to see if you can figure out why it went flat. Nothing is worse than having the new tube go flat as soon as you pump it up because a piece of something was stuck in the tire and re-punctured it. With that done remove the wheel to be repaired. If it doesn't have quick release levers on the axle it will normally have 15mm nuts. Turn them counter clockwise with the wrench

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