Which multi-tool should ride with you?
For long or remote rides, carry a full-size tool with a chain breaker, like the Crankbrothers M20 or the Silca Italian Army Knife Venti. For local rides and races, a small tool plus a tubeless plug kit covers most of what goes wrong, and it weighs a lot less.
Most rides go fine. Some end with a loose bolt, a punctured tire, or a drivetrain that suddenly has opinions, and then the only question is whether you brought the right tool. Nobody wants a tool chest in the saddle bag, so here is how we think about it, along with the three setups we like.
Start with your bike, not the tool
Bikes are not all built the same, and each one has its own mix of bolts, heads, and spots that are hard to reach. Before you buy anything, go over the whole bike and note every fastener you might need to touch on a ride. The one bolt that works loose will be the one you have no tool for.
One of our own bikes needs a 3, 4, 5 and 6mm hex and a T25 Torx, and that is about it. A 2mm hex trims the front derailleur, but that adjustment almost never comes up, so the 2mm usually stays home. Saying that out loud is probably how the next ride goes wrong.
Then look at the chain and the tires. If you run tubeless, a plug tool earns its spot. If your chain uses a quick link, carry a spare. Also check the angles, because integrated cockpits hide bolts in places that are beautiful to look at and miserable to reach, and some tools are too long or too short to get there. We have learned that one at the worst possible moments.
Finally, practice with whatever you pick, because a little time with it in the garage beats figuring it out on the shoulder of the road.
The Crankbrothers M20: almost everything
The Crankbrothers M20 has close to the whole kitchen sink. Crankbrothers lists 20 high tensile steel tools: 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8mm hex, T10 and T25 Torx, Phillips #1 and #2, a flat screwdriver, three spoke wrenches, an 8mm open wrench, a valve core remover, a rotor straightener, and a chain tool for 8 to 12 speed chains. It also carries a tire plug tool, with the plugs in a case that mounts to the tool and doubles as storage for chain links.
It is good enough that one of us has grabbed it off the bench at the lab more than once, because somebody else was using the proper tool at the time.
The catch is size: Crankbrothers puts it at 89 x 48 x 19mm and 203g, which is a lot of steel to carry on a road bike where riders count grams. One more detail worth knowing: Crankbrothers rates its plugs for tires up to 40 PSI, so check that number against the pressure you actually run. Crankbrothers backs the M20 with a lifetime warranty, and in our experience it holds up for years of hard use.
The Silca Italian Army Knife Venti: built to keep
We were sold on the Italian Army Knife Venti as soon as we saw the Silca name. It is 20 forged tools with Silca's high-grip chrome plating, which Silca says gives better torque transfer at the bolt. You get 2 through 8mm hex including 2.5mm, T8, T10, T20 and T25 Torx, a Phillips, a 7mm box wrench, an 8mm flare nut wrench, a 10mm open wrench, a disc pad spreader, a valve core remover, and 13g and 15g spoke wrenches.
The chain breaker is the standout. It handles 10 to 12 speed chains, Silca says it is more than twice as long as other designs, and it slides off the tool completely so the rest of it is not in your way. Magnets in the side plates hold a spare master link.
At 160g and 80 x 46 x 14mm, it is 43g lighter than the M20. Our one wish is a tubeless plug, and it still does not have one. Otherwise this is a tool that could last you the rest of your riding life, as long as you do not lose it, and we are speaking from experience there.
The light setup: a small tool and a plug kit
The original version of this post praised the PNW Components Pebble, a tiny tool with a Dynaplug built in. As of October 2026 it is no longer listed on PNW's own site and we do not carry it, so it is out of this lineup.
The idea behind it still holds: most of what is on a big multi-tool never gets used on our local rides, so we pair a small tool with a dedicated plug kit.
The Crankbrothers F10+ carries 10 tools: seven hex keys from 2 to 8mm, Phillips #2, a flat screwdriver and a T25 Torx, all held in a magnetized case. Crankbrothers lists it at 116g and 61 x 40 x 16mm. Next to it goes the Dynaplug Racer Pro, our favorite tubeless plug. Dynaplug machines it in Chico, California, from billet aluminum and stainless steel, it weighs 26g loaded, and it carries four plugs: three standard and one Megaplug for bigger holes.
The tradeoff is that there is no chain tool. It has been years since one of us broke a chain on a ride, so on local loops we like those odds. When we head somewhere remote, a Park Tool CT-5 Mini Chain Tool goes in the bag too, and Park says it works on 5 to 12 speed chains. Small tools are also short tools, so make sure they reach every bolt on your bike before you count on them.
- Long ride in the middle of nowhere, or bikepacking: the M20 or the Venti, so you have a fighting chance at pulling a MacGyver (and if you are too young for that reference, IMDb can fill you in).
- Local rides and races: the small tool and the plug kit, every time.
- If you can swing it, own one of each and pick based on the ride plan.
- Whatever you choose, carry something, because riding alone without the basics is tempting fate.
Buy your own tool.Your friends will appreciate it, and you can stop paying them back in coffee.
Every multi-tool we carry is on one page. Questions about which one covers the bolts on your bike? Ask us.
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