Birzman Travel Tool Box - Review

Dec 31, 2014
by Mike Levy  
Birzman Travel Tool Box review test


Birzman's Travel Tool Box kit has been assembled to, as the name suggests, allow you to have everything on hand while on the road. This means that it has pretty much all of the major tools in it that you might require for most generic types of repairs, and it's all put together in a sturdy plastic suitcase that lets you easily chuck the whole thing in the back of your truck. As anyone who's tried to assemble a travelling took kit for the road knows, having it all together in one case, with a specific spot for each tool, makes it a hell of a lot easier to keep track of everything. The kit comes with twenty tools, assuming the nine-piece hex and torx sets are one each, which includes: torx key set (10, 15, 20, 25, 27, 30, 40, 45, 50), hex key set (1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10mm), chain wear indicator, patch kit, tire levers, cartridge BB tool, Hollowtech BB tool, cassette tool, freewheel tool, crank puller, cable cutter, socket wrench (1/2'' drive), crank arm tool, spoke wrench (12, 13, 14, 14g), chain tool, pedal wrench, chain whip, flat head screwdriver, phillips screwdriver, small combo wrench (8/10mm). The entire package weighs 10lb on the button, and measures 18'' x 10.5'' x 3''. MSRP $243 USD www.birzman.com

Birzman Travel Tool Box review test

Birzman Travel Tool Box review test


Pinkbike’s Take:
bigquotesThe Travel Tool Box is all about making it convenient to have the essential items on hand, be it when you're in the garage or on a month-long road trip, and that's exactly how I ended up using the kit. I'd throw it in the back of my van when heading out for a weekend adventure, with it being slim enough to fit behind my seat and go unnoticed until someone needed to use it, and it even served as our go-to kit when in Sedona for a month and needing to swap parts and setup different bikes before rides. The chain whip, socket wrench, and pedal wrench are all made with thick steel, unlike some of the thinner, cheaper feeling alternatives, and their thick rubber handles didn't hurt my hand when trying to break an overly tight part free. The hex keys have ball-ends on one side, which is nice for spinning bolts into those hard to reach places, and the tire levers are nice enough that I found myself putting them in my pocket instead of the old ones that I had been using for years. It's also worth mentioning that most of the tools have a hole or loop on them that lets you hang them on a tool board if you wanted to do so.

The individual hex keys are nice, but there's something to be said for a three-way hex tool that doesn't have you juggling and dropping separate keys, so I'd likely still go out and buy one of those. Also, I would have rather seen a much smaller phillips and flathead screw driver set than the one included in Birzman's kit - these are bike's we're working on, not cars. The only tool that I took any issue with function-wise is the cable clippers, as they just don't feel as high-quality as some other on the market. Then again, they cut the cable easily and didn't crush the housing, so what more can you ask for? The built-in awl to open up freshly cut housing ends is also pretty neat. Yes, you'll likely want to add a few specialty items to your on-the-road kit that are specific to your bike (think bleed kit, cone wrenches if you use Shimano wheels, ect), but Birzman has done well at putting all of the basics together in one easy to carry package. And when you consider that the $243 USD price tag works out to each tool costing just over $12 (assuming the hex and torx kits count as one tool each), the Travel Tool Box looks to make a lot of sense for anyone who wants an on-the-go tool solution. - Mike Levy


Visit the high-res gallery for more images from this review

Author Info:
mikelevy avatar

Member since Oct 18, 2005
2,032 articles

47 Comments
  • 51 3
 X-Tools Bike Tool Kit - 18 Piece-$55.99
www.chainreactioncycles.com/ca/en/x-tools-bike-tool-kit-18-piece/rp-prod40997

X-Tools Bike Tool Kit - 37 Piece-$87.99
www.chainreactioncycles.com/ca/en/x-tools-bike-tool-kit-37-piece/rp-prod55963

Quality kits under $100
I have the 18 piece kit and its great!
You don't need to break the bank for good equipment

Checkmate Pinkbike
  • 5 38
flag chal0080 (Dec 31, 2014 at 22:16) (Below Threshold)
 You can't shake it, it ain't no way to swallow the hatred Aim, fire, holla about a dollar, nothin in sacred
  • 2 0
 I've got the 18 piece and it's fantastic!
  • 3 1
 I have the 37 piece. Only thing is the chain breaker is quite weak but worth every penny. It's a small kit and I bring it with me every ride
  • 8 1
 I've used those X-Tools kits and whilst they're good the quality is not... but then you get what you pay for.

Always worth have good quality tools. There is nothing more annoying than breaking a tool when you trying to use it Smile
  • 1 0
 I've got the 18 piece X-tool too and it's super nice and useful. I've not broken any piece of it in 2 years.
  • 1 0
 Check out this kit from on one/Planet X. I have one and it's very good, and on the right day can be had for less than £40!!
  • 2 0
 I use a cheap plastic tool box and throw in the tools I have collected over the years in that I'll need for the trip. That way I can have the Park Tool stuff for the tools that matter and lesser used items can be cheaper. The Xtools kits look good though
  • 1 0
 Made in China?
  • 6 0
 Ill stick with my blue tools.
  • 1 0
 @T1mb0 or when you break a component, due to tool failure (strip screws, etc.)
  • 15 3
 Completely agree with rupintart - The quality of birzman tools are not to a workshop standard - I will stick with my park tool thank you very much. Being a bike mechanic and having to work with BIRZMAN tools makes my job very frustrating. simple things like cone spanners snapping , and the pedal wrenches are made of material so soft i could comfortably wipe my ass with it... Was disappointed when i was sent this product by my head office. not to mention the price.
  • 5 0
 Yep, there's a reason 95% of shops use Park. They're what you need to get the job done
  • 10 0
 I'm personally not a fun of "package deal" tool kits. They never include all the tools you need and often include stuff you don't realy need. Also if you want to add more tools there's no space in the tool case and you have to buy another toolbox. I prefer making my own toolkit using the tools I like and the quality I want. I can go for top quality on the tools I use more often like hex wrenches and go for more budget options for tools I rarely use ie cable cutters, pedal wrench etc. I also like to have one toolbox with the tools I frequently use and another for tools used less often cause I'm OCD like that. Smile
  • 3 0
 Yeah I never liked the packaged tool kits due to the number of different standards (e.g. bottom bracket, cranks) requiring different tools. For me I like to use a portable 3 drawer tool box like this one (www.sears.com/craftsman-3-drawer-plastic-metal-portable-chest-red-black/p-00965628000P). The drawers are really useful for keeping all my tools organized including smaller parts.
  • 1 0
 I like that tool box. Thanks
  • 11 0
 Would totally be worth it....if most of the Birzman stuff weren't completely made of soft cheese.
  • 1 0
 First time I used one of their spoke key, it rounded on an aluminium nipple ... then got another one on warranty, completely different and definitely not what I wanted (I had a 2 size spoke key, ended up with a 6 or 8 size one) ... Don't even know where it is now ...
  • 5 0
 when it comes to tools, after years of experience, save up some money and buy the best quality ones you can get, snap on, park tools, britool, etc, they will last a life time and not let you down at the worst possible time unlike cheap crap tools will do, listen to peoples advice on whats good and not good tooling to buy, you wont regret it
  • 1 0
 Though Halfords professional range is a quarter of the price of snap on and has the same warranty, plus the added benefit of theyre open till 8 rather than having to contact your snap on rep. For bike specific tools though it doesn't get better than park tools.
  • 1 0
 yeah inked-up, Halfords professional are very good tools for the money, I have a few myself and must say I am impressed with them
  • 1 0
 Agree with you re halfords professional tool, all very good and when I have broken one I've taken them back to the store and they have replaced without any questions about age or anything else! But there non professional and bike tool gear is crap, will not go anywhere near that stuff!
  • 3 0
 Park and Pedro's for bike specific tools, Halfords Professional (same factory as Snap-On Blue Point).

Park for non-bike specific are a waste of money as their quality is poor for what you are paying - especially their screwdrivers and ring spanners
  • 3 1
 Indeed, & Pedro's tools are often nicer as well. Park is becoming the choice I make for tools far less these days.
  • 3 0
 For bike tools Park Tools are good but you can get some of the same tools cheaper from Ice Toolz which I've found to be decent for the money. And non bike brand tools I would go for Facom, Sealy, Draper, Bacho...although plenty of other good brands. These boxed tool sets have never appealed to me, would much rather make my own set up.
  • 1 0
 I've got a draper bike tool set and am pretty happy with it so far, and had it for abt 5 years or so. Tyre levers were crap and chain tool broke, but other than that fine.
  • 3 0
 Half those tools are useless. Haven't used a BB tool like that in years... And that spoke wrench is a POS. I'd say 12 useful pieces which comes out to more like $20 a piece... And when was a screwdriver, Allen's, or tire levers worth $20 a piece?
  • 2 0
 All this Snap On talk is funny, you'd pay $100 just for single tool from SO.

www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TOJW41PCTK/jobsworth-pro-41pc-swap-shop

and

www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TOJWMTWS/jobsworth-pro-torque-wrench-set

is all you need unless you run Fox forks IME.
  • 1 0
 Planet x tools are good. You have just reminded me to get there torque wrench! As for there 41pc tool kit, I like there 30pc more!! But thats my preference.
  • 2 0
 Most bike-specific tools are very poor quality. I have had the best luck with a mix of Shimano and Park for bike specific tools. All my other tools are from Klein, Chanellock, or Proto. Buy the best you can and you will never have to buy again.
  • 2 0
 Have used Birzman tools at home and Park tools in the wortkshop for years and I can say that the only thing that i would always have from Park tools at home is the cable cuts, crank pullers for the older bikes in the fleet and a 2x 3 way hex keys (2,2.5,3) The rest of the tools i need at home or in the car are found in the Birzman range.

Their torx keys are far superior from any offering from Park tools and with more and more bikes using these heads instead of hex its pretty handy.

Bottom line if you want long lasting tools for at home buy Birzman. Not to expensive and great quality. If its good enough for the Santa Cruz Syndicate mechanics its good enough for plebs in their sheds.

Just such a shame Bike Barn in NZ does such a hideous job at distributing them.
  • 2 0
 it looks like a mash of 8spd and 9spd tools. maybe if your an on the road mechanic working on other bikes then those old style bb tools would be good. For me the box empty would be better because then I can add my own tools according to my bike I'm using. There should be a custom tool selection kit so you get the tools only you need
  • 4 0
 At that price it seems like we're paying a massive premium for the case.. definitely not my cup of tea.
  • 3 0
 Try this kit people! On the right day, can be had for under £40!!
www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TOJW30PCTK/jobsworth-pro-workshop-quality-30pc-tool-kit
  • 1 0
 I just have a bag with a drawstring that i throw my basic tools in. i dont need bottom bracket tools and crap because if that needs to come out on the trail I dont have a replacement anyway so the ride is done until I can get to a shop. I carry spoke wrenches, small torque wrench allen keys a chain break a casette tool pump tube and tire levers misc. sockets and a wrench. and a couple shifter ables as my demo just eats them. Ive spent more than that on the tools I carry but atleast Ive used everything i carry.
  • 3 0
 As a farmer I've learned (and many times read it as well!):

Always buy the best tools you can.

You never know if and when your very life and well being will depend upon it.
  • 1 0
 I use Park for a few speciality bike tools - which are not even included in this kit. And quality general purpose tools - like Knipex pliers, cutters and such, or Bondhus allen wrenches, etc. And some of the more useful tools - like a DAG derailed gauge - are not in this set anyway. If you just need a set to work on your bike, cheap options from Nashbar and such will get you through.
  • 2 0
 i have a set of those allen keys. on the normal head the keys have small serrations so you don't slip and destroy screw heads.
  • 3 0
 Convenient kit, but like others have said. Price is a bit high compared to other similar kits.
  • 1 0
 Depends on the quality, if it's comparable to X-Tools you're getting ripped off but if it's Snap-on quality it's the deal of the year.
  • 1 0
 I doubt either are anywhere close to snap on quality, but with snap on you get a tool that is precise, will last a long time and is most likely warrantied for life. I would't want to even guess what a snap on bike repair kit would cost if it existed. So if you put it into that perspective than the msrp on this isn't bad. Also I would even guess at some point in the future we will see this on amazon for much less than msrp. Just like Pedro's apprentice kit:

www.amazon.com/Pedros-Apprentice-Tool-Kit/dp/B00HYHO4V8/ref=pd_sim_sbs_sg_10?ie=UTF8&refRID=05K51BK8J4262H1XV0W4
  • 2 0
 You can't put a price on a leatherman out on a trail when you need it most - toolbox in your pocket
  • 4 2
 Well it seems I'm on my way to the bank......*Loads shotgun*
  • 2 1
 Nice but if it could cost 100$ lower will be better Wink
  • 1 1
 Does this kit have a pedal spindle straightening tool? Mine is bent a bit.

www.pinkbike.com/photo/8952731
Below threshold threads are hidden







Copyright © 2000 - 2024. Pinkbike.com. All rights reserved.
dv65 0.038028
Mobile Version of Website