Cycling UK Forum

About ten years ago, I was given a vernier caliper as a gift by an engineer friend, and at the time thought, 'that's an interesting novelty... but it will only get used once in a blue moon.' It now lives in its case right at the top of the tool box, because it gets used so often, for bike jobs and for other jobs around the house that involve taking measurements.



Mine has a scale marked in 0.02mm steps. The top does internal diameters, the bottom does external diameters, the end is a depth guage. It's here..

Essentially, the vernier shows me if parts I've assumed to be a certain size, really are that size, and therefore if they really will fit with other parts properly. So useful when pairing up handlebars with stems (25.4mm vs 26mm especially). Ditto seatposts and seat tubes (27mm vs 27.2mm). I used to squint at a ruler for this, which, when I think back, was obviously daft, as a ruler was not nearly accurate enough.

And yet if someone had told me I should buy one ten years ago, I'd have said, no thanks, I don't need one.

So I guess sometimes you don't know how useful a tool is until you own one, and you have it to hand. Perhaps that's a special category of tools: the ones you don't know you need until you've got them, and then you can't work without them. Which other tools come into this category?..

Decent cable cutters?

..so true. No more frayed cables.

A thor leather faced mallet:

Bought it because it appealed to me and seemed quite well priced but not sure what I thought I'd use it for.

Incredibly useful for hitting things pretty hard without damaging too much. More use on car parts than bicycles to be fair
When my first one got nicked, I bought two more in different sizes

i find myself squinting at my vernier calipers these days. Age related no doubt but fortunately i have one of these now handed down from my Dad.

the dial sort are pretty good (and don't need batteries) but...twice a year Aldi and Lidl have digital vernier calipers for about ten quid. These are tops! Just make sure you have a few spare batteries to hand....

cheers

Like many, I love tools, so much so that I have to keep my tool buying within bounds by only buying one when I find a need.

Brucey wrote: ......... Aldi and Lidl have digital vernier calipers for about ten quid.

I have a digi set, excellent for the price, but I think they are TOO accurate.

They measure down to 0.01mm (imperial too of course) but I find the measurements aren't repeatable as it depends on how tight you fit them. In the old days with a micrometer, you used the little knob on the top with a slip-clutch to get the same pressure. I have an ancient 1" micrometer, but rarely use it.I've recently been using my vernier calipers. They're much easier to use ........ less accurate at 0.1mm ............ but that's enough for my uses.

As for a tool I never knew I needed until I got one, is a cassette lockring tool with a handle, rather than using an insert and a spanner.

Pedro’s bottom bracket socket holder. In fairness, I did know I needed something like this. I just put it off for years.

It makes removing a stubborn bottom bracket or tightening a new one up much easier, since it prevents the bottom bracket tool from slipping and damaging the splines or your knuckles.

I also have a cassette removal tool a bit like Mick F’s above. Does the job nicely!

I have some mikes, some picked up at boot sales for a song, far more accurate, verniers are really for agricultural measurements.

Al

Here's a nice screwdriver found in my uncles toolbox. He was a fleet air arm technician.
It has no manufactures marking on it so it may have been an apprentice training test specimen.
Bit like a Russian doll.

Just the thing for digging out that gravel rash.

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I think I've seen one near identical to that; the one I saw looked like an apprentice piece too.

cheers

I used to own a FULL SET of fancy 'Snap On' spanners....Metric/AF/Whitworth you name it, I had the lot.

THEN, I discovered these......



I've honestly never looked back. They fit EVERYTHING....I don't even bother with that notched ring spanner thing that's needed for Shimano HT2 bottom brackets. A quick twiddle on the fully integrated adjustment system and on she goes (and here's the clever bit) EVEN IF IT'S CROSS THREADED....They are SO powerful that they can make ANY female thread fit ANY male thread.....and visa versa....nip/twist/nip/twist, minor coil of swarf and in she glides.....bl**dy clever....Really !!

My mates Mum reckons that they use them on space shuttles ( wise ).....Recommended.....

Hi,

Tiberius wrote:I used to own a FULL SET of fancy 'Snap On' spanners....Metric/AF/Whitworth you name it, I had the lot.

THEN, I discovered these......

WR169.jpg

I've honestly never looked back. They fit EVERYTHING....I don't even bother with that notched ring spanner thing that's needed for Shimano HT2 bottom brackets. A quick twiddle on the fully integrated adjustment system and on she goes (and here's the clever bit) EVEN IF IT'S CROSS THREADED....They are SO powerful that they can make ANY female thread fit ANY male thread.....and visa versa....nip/twist/nip/twist, minor coil of swarf and in she glides.....bl**dy clever....Really !!

My mates Mum reckons that they use them on space shuttles ( wise ).....Recommended.....

..........Bang
Don't give up the day job.

Tiberius wrote:I used to own a FULL SET of fancy 'Snap On' spanners....Metric/AF/Whitworth you name it, I had the lot.

THEN, I discovered these......

WR169.jpg

I've honestly never looked back. They fit EVERYTHING....I don't even bother with that notched ring spanner thing that's needed for Shimano HT2 bottom brackets. A quick twiddle on the fully integrated adjustment system and on she goes (and here's the clever bit) EVEN IF IT'S CROSS THREADED....They are SO powerful that they can make ANY female thread fit ANY male thread.....and visa versa....nip/twist/nip/twist, minor coil of swarf and in she glides.....bl**dy clever....Really !!

My mates Mum reckons that they use them on space shuttles ( wise ).....Recommended.....

you are a bad man !