Skip to main content

SKS Tom 18 multi-tool


This versatile if slightly stumpy tool comes with a small Neoprene posing pouch with TOMTOOL on the side.

With 18 tools the SKS is inevitably heavy. At just 7cm the Tom is stubby, while the 5cm girth can make tight access difficult. The bolts of the aluminium frame are recessed in rounded domes, however, so comfort at high leverages is adequate.

Tools include a tyre lever, brake pad separator, bottle opener, and more. Unfortunately though, some of the casting is very rough, and deep gouges from the machine that bent them around on the axles make it look cheap. The chrome-vanadium bits are well shaped at the tips however.

The simple stretch-fit pouch weighs almost nothing and stops the thing from gouging at fragile things such as phones in your pack, and the mysterious orange bit? It holds a spare Shimano chainpin, which you’ll need once you’ve used the chaintool, which also doubles up as a spoke wrench.

Versatile, but bulky for awkward spots and middling in look and feel.

Tools
- 2-6mm and 8mm Allen keys
- T25 Torx
- Crosshead and flat screwdriver
- chaintool
- Chainpin holder
- G14 and G15 spoke keys
- Pad separator
- Tyre lever
- Bottle opener

Weight 180g

Price 40$


Popular posts from this blog

KONA SHRED

With a reputation for no-nonsense ruggedness and a background in the always progressive and punishing riding of Canada, Kona have been building hardcore hardtails for longer than almost anyone else. The Shred is the most expensive bike on test but it’s a proper trail tank.

ENVE M50 29" Wheels

Utah based company ENVE have been making drool-worthy carbon components for some years now. Despite the fact that carbon rims are becoming more and more common on mountain bikes these days, you can guarantee that ENVE wheels will be a talking point when someone is eyeing off a steed. Instantly, the big bold logos on each rim scream "fast", "light" and to some extent, "expensive" The kids call this 'bling'.

Cannondale Trail SL 29 SS

The fat aluminium tubes are a constrast to the skinny items seen elsewhere in the test, but this rigid Cannondale uses them to create one of the most old-school - and lightest - rides here.

COMMENCAL EL CAMINO 3

Commencal are going from strength to strength at the moment and they’ve taken their tough trail hardtail bang up to date with 650b wheels. With its skinny rims, crankset and fork, the El Camino certainly isn’t perfect and it’s the least hardcore bike here. The handling, smoothness, speed and all-round agility of the basic bike still make it a real blast for technical trail riding though, and it’s a great base for upgrading over time.

CANYON NERVE AL 8.0

  S ince their entry into the UK market a few years ago, Canyon have made a name for themselves as purveyors of well-made bikes that exhibit often extraordinary value. The secret (or catch, depending on your point of view) is that the brand don’t have dealers – they ship bikes directly to your door.