A starter kit for flats and chain checks is short: a floor pump, tire levers, a patch kit, a spare tube, a multi-tool with hex (Allen) keys and screwdriver blades, a wrench if your wheels use nuts, and a ruler. In priority order, buy the flat-repair items first; they are the core of Sheldon Brown’s bare-minimum list. Brake bleeding, wheel truing and bottom bracket work call for other tools; ask a bike shop about them.
The kit at a glance
| Tool | Used for | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Floor pump with gauge | Routine top-ups before rides | Buy first |
| Mini-pump | Inflating after a roadside flat | Buy first |
| Tire levers | Removing and refitting the tire | Buy first |
| Spare tube and patch kit | Repairing a flat | Buy first |
| Multi-tool with hex keys and screwdriver blades | Cable and small fitting work | Buy second |
| Wrench (only if you have nutted wheels) | Wheel nuts | Buy second, if your wheels use nuts |
| Ruler | Chain wear check | Buy second |
| Bicycle chain lubricant | Chain care | Buy second |
Flat repair: the first things to own
Sheldon Brown’s tire-tools guide, revised by John Allen, lists the bare minimum for repairing a flat during a ride. Each item below is worth owning even if you never ride far from home.
- A pump that fits your valves. A mini-pump is the most convenient to carry. The smaller ones are less prone to theft, and larger ones pump faster. Some newer mini pumps work on both the push and pull stroke, which is faster.
- Tire levers. They come in sets of three. Very tight-fitting tires need levers with thin ends.
- A patch kit with rubber cement. The kit should contain patches, cement and sandpaper. Avoid “glueless” patches, which the guide says are not reliable. The guide also says the metal scraper is not advisable for inner tubes because it cuts too deep, so use the sandpaper.
- A spare inner tube. If removing and replacing the wheel is easy, replacing the tube is faster than patching it.
- A way to release the wheel and open the brake. On a rim-brake bike you need a hub quick release to remove the wheel and a brake quick release to get a deflated tube past the brake shoes.
If you have Presta valves, the same guide suggests carrying a Schrader/Presta adapter, and keeping it screwed onto a valve so it is not lost. For the full procedure, see flat tire: exactly what to do and what to do if you get a puncture on the way to work.
CO2 inflators: a backup, not the plan
CO2 cartridges are the fastest and lightest way to inflate a tire when everything goes well, but they have downsides. They are expensive, each cartridge is normally good for one tire one time, and CO2 seeps out much faster than air, so a tire can go soft in a day or two. The guide advises against relying on them except in competition. A pump is the dependable carry.
At home: pump, gauge and chain care
Floor pump
The guide calls the floor (track) pump the most effective human-powered inflation tool. It stands on a footrest and connects to the valve with a hose. It is the pump for routine top-ups before rides. Make sure the head fits your valve type; see how to choose the right bike pump.
Pressure gauge
A pressure gauge is necessary to get accurate and repeatable readings. Some pumps have a gauge built in. If yours does not, buy a separate one in the bicycle range: automotive pencil gauges commonly read only up to 50 psi, while bicycle versions go up to 120 psi. For what pressure to aim for, see tire pressure and performance.
Be extra careful with gas-station air hoses. Because a bicycle tire holds so little air compared with a car tire, it inflates too quickly, and you risk blowing the tire off the rim. The guide says the hose’s gauge cannot be trusted at bicycle pressures, so use a separate hand-held gauge if you ever do use one.
A ruler for chain wear
A ruler checks chain wear without removing the chain: measure across 12 complete links against the inch marks. Sheldon Brown says a link pin 1/16 in past the mark means replace the chain, and the sprockets are probably undamaged. The full method is in how to maintain your bike chain.
Chain lubricant
Buy a lubricant made for bicycle chains. The chains page lists lubricants not to use. Automotive motor oil contains detergent to wash away combustion products and is made to be renewed constantly by an engine’s oil pump; John Allen describes a chain that was already squeaking a day after being treated with it. Household oil such as 3 in 1 tends to gum up, and WD-40 and other thin sprays are intended more as solvents than lubricants and evaporate quickly. The same page explains that on a bushingless chain, oil applied from the inside flows through the gap in the rollers onto the link pins, so the chain is oiled from the inside and flushes dirt and sand out instead of into it.
Wrenches and a multi-tool
A multi-tool with hex keys and screwdriver blades will usually let you remove and replace an internal-gear hub or a brake with a reaction arm, but the guide advises asking your bike shop which tools your bike needs. For cable work the cables page says cable repairs need minimal supplies (spare cables) and tools, usually only Allen wrenches; see how to maintain bike cables and housing.
If your wheels are held on by nuts, carry a fixed combination wrench sized to your axle nuts, with a small adjustable wrench as the portable fallback. Anti-theft wheel locks need their own special key. The guide describes the options:
- Combination wrench (open end plus box end): the most useful and most common general-purpose style.
- Box wrench: substantially stronger than open-end because it surrounds the fastener; best for high-torque jobs.
- Small adjustable wrench: convenient to carry on the bike, but it does not fit as well as the correct fixed size, so good, well-equipped mechanics only use it as a last resort.
Do not substitute pliers. The guide notes this usually damages the nut or bolt and can cause failure through undertightening the part.
Tools for later
Torque wrenches, chain tools, cassette and bottom bracket tools and brake bleed kits are beyond a starter kit; ask a bike shop which tools a given job needs. If a brake, wheel, fork or frame feels wrong, or looks cracked or deformed, stop riding and take the bike to a shop.
Sources
- Sheldon Brown: Tools and Supplies to Work on Bicycle Tires
- Sheldon Brown: Chain Wear and Replacement Intervals
- Sheldon Brown: Chains
- Sheldon Brown: Cables
Last reviewed: October 2026.