spanners

[Riverman]

I'm sorry to ask this question as it must seem so basic but does anyone know where to buy the cheapest spanner to remove a wheel?

Money is abit tight at the moment and all I want is a spanner rather than a toolkit which I don't need.

Is there a special name for those combination spanner things that come with new bikes?

 

[spandex]

Your local hardware shop all you need is a 15mm spanner or a large adjustable

 

[Theseus]

Is there a special name for those combination spanner things that come with new bikes?

Yes, landfill.

 

[Arch]

Is there a special name for those combination spanner things that come with new bikes?

They are called Dumbell spanners, if you mean what I think you mean, but yes, they are often made of cheese metal and prone to snap*. A nice adjustable spanner is your best bet - get the best you can afford so that it's not wobbly, and it'll do different bolts when needed.

*I was fixing a puncture for a member of staff once and tried using a dumbell spanner I had, just to see if it was any good. The nut wouldn't budge, so I delved into my tool kit for the adjustable. At that point, another student I knew came by and said airily "oh, I'll shift it", leaned his full force on the dumbell, and snapped it, skinning his knuckles in the process....

 

[TheDoctor]

The ones with new bikes - the flat ones stamped out of sheet metal that sort-of fit any number of bolts, BB lockringss and other stuff?

They're rubbish. A decent adjustable or dumbell spanner is what you need, as others have said. Or a cheese one from the poundshop, if you're brassic. I've often rounded one off, but never managed to snap one. Then again, I'm a soft Southerner...

 

[simon_brooke]

I'm sorry to ask this question as it must seem so basic but does anyone know where to buy the cheapest spanner to remove a wheel?

Money is abit tight at the moment and all I want is a spanner rather than a toolkit which I don't need.

Errr... are your wheels held on with the sort of nuts that need a spanner? Most these days have quick releases.

However, if yours has actual nuts they will probably be 15mm at the back and either 15 or 13mm at the front. A dumbbell spanner will do but as others have said these are often not of good quality. A cheap combination spanner (open one end, ring the other, both ends same size) is in my opinion the best bet (the one I carry on my cross bike to adjust its brakes came with four others of different sizes from Tesco for a grand total of £1.25, or 25 pence per spanner). You could carry an adjustable but they're heavier and if not adjusted correctly have a tendency to damage the nuts.

 

[Bigtwin]

So to sum up, get a ring spanner or you'll snap your balls off or damage your nuts.

 

[spandex]

The ones with new bikes - the flat ones stamped out of sheet metal that sort-of fit any number of bolts, BB lockringss and other stuff?

They're rubbish. A decent adjustable or dumbell spanner is what you need, as others have said. Or a cheese one from the poundshop, if you're brassic. I've often rounded one off, but never managed to snap one. Then again, I'm a soft Southerner...

er not good as Arch has said

 

[spandex]

Errr... are your wheels held on with the sort of nuts that need a spanner? Most these days have quick releases.

However, if yours has actual nuts they will probably be 15mm at the back and either 15 or 13mm at the front. A dumbbell spanner will do but as others have said these are often not of good quality. A cheap combination spanner (open one end, ring the other, both ends same size) is in my opinion the best bet (the one I carry on my cross bike to adjust its brakes came with four others of different sizes from Tesco for a grand total of £1.25, or 25 pence per spanner). You could carry an adjustable but they're heavier and if not adjusted correctly have a tendency to damage the nuts.

Axle nuts are very common and none have 13mm nuts

 

[gbb]

Got a local carboot ?
You should get a good spanner for 10 or 20p if you know what size you want.
Adjustable spanner, maybe 50p or £1
Carboots can be a good source for cheap but good quality tools.

 

[PpPete]

I've managed to acquire a couple of decent dumbells over the years - far better than adjustables IMO. The best quality one I have is French - marked "Inoxydable" (tr: Stainless) although it is a sort of brassy colour, although it has a weird set of sizes - up to 16 mm and nothing smaller than 9 mm.

Makes me laugh when I see shiny chrome plated ones... the underlying metal is so soft that the plating comes off around hex on first use.

 

[SavageHoutkop]

Halfords (our nearest one anyway) has a 'sale' box where all the stuff that comes out of incomplete kits seems to end up. I think they were £3 a spanner, which is good for fairly decent quality stuff (these were from the professional kits, which are supposed to be lifetime guarantee), especially if you only need one spanner. However, if you're after a multi-use one you'll need different sizes so the adjustable or dumbell might be better (the dumbell on sale at Halfords looked very poor quality).
Following my first wheel removal on the weekend, consider getting two spanners, as in my case anyway if you were trying to get the one nut off/on the wheel would rotate, so you needed to hold the nut on the other side with something at the same time.

 

[swee'pea99]

I consider myself a fairly keen & capable cycle DIY-er - I build my own bikes and have never used the LBS for anything at all - and i consider a (half-decent, nothing fancy) dumbell spanner an integral part of my toolkit.

I get tired of the old 'buy the best you can afford' line. I think it's lazy and often borderline smug/superior. Personally I recommend 'buy as good as you need' (and don't feel second-rate if you need to save money). Why buy tools designed for a professional using them 40 hours a week when you're only going to use them a dozen times a year? I think it can put a lot of people off DIY, because when pennies are tight and you see that 'the good one' costs £23, it can be a real downer. When actually, the seven quid one would be fine for you. That's my two bob's worth.

 

[PpPete]

I'm inclined to agree but the problem is figuring out how good a tool you need. Lost count of number of times I've had to "buy twice".

These days if it's really a "one-off" I don't buy the cheap tool anymore. I run down to the LBS instead, because if I can reduce it to a 2 minute job with the tools I do have, they'll often do it for now't.

 

[tyred]

.

However, if yours has actual nuts they will probably be 15mm at the back and either 15 or 13mm at the front.

Mine are 14mm at the front. I think that's the norm.