Tools

 I was just over on the crazy cat lady's blog (a.k.a. The VV) reading about The Right Tool For the Job and it got me thinking about two recent bike specific tools that I have recently come in the possession of.  Over the years I've been gradually been building my home bike workshop's tool inventory - in between buying bikes, new parts and Doritos finding the money to squander on tools is no easy task. 

With some gift certificates that I received over this past Christmas I bought myself a Park Home Mechanic Truing Stand - it's much, much cheaper than the professional grade, does a very good job at allowing you to true wheels and is much better than my old idea of how to true a wheel.  To go along with this, and hopefully some wheel building for a new bike in the future, I added to my collection a Park Spoke Tension Meter. 

It's fairly easy to true a wheel, but to do so properly, making sure that the wheel is balanced and strong throughout you really should be making sure that all the spokes are evenly tensioned.  In the past I've used the 'twanging' the spokes like a guitar method listening to how they sound.  This works if you have an ear for it, but me, I'm a little musically challenged. 

While picking up the spoke tension meter I also nabbed me a Park derailleur hanger alignment gauge.  Yes, I know what you must be saying: "Don't you ride single speed?" Yep, I does.  But, I also have a road and CX bike that are both geared (though the thought of running a single speed CX bike this fall does sound like fun).  Also, with my hints of a new wheel build at some point in the future, I may be needing this tool from time to time. 

I got these two tools from the fine folks at Biking.com.