PRO TOOLBOX XL
£299.99 › One stop mechanic’s shop
PRO IS SHIMANO’S component and accessory sister company, so as you’d imagine the Toolbox XL mainly contains tools for Shimano-equipped bikes. SRAM users will also find everything they need, but Campagnolo owners will need to supplement a few extra items.
The injection-moulded ABS plastic box is tough, with slots for each of the 38 tools, which include a cable cutter, chain quick-link pliers, needle nose pliers, disc calliper alignment tool, Phillips screwdriver, small flat-blade screwdriver, file, mallet, tyre levers, torx L-key set, hex L-key set, Shimano cassette lockring tool and Shimano cartridge, HollowTech II, Dura-Ace/Ultegra bottom bracket tools.
The XL kit has some excellent disc brake-specific tools. The rotor alignment tool is a compact device that slots over your rotor and into the calliper, you then simply squeeze the brake and tighten the calliper bolt. The in-built shims in the tool provide an equal gap on both sides of the calliper to ensure perfect alignment. The large disc pad spreader tool – a tapered wedge to push the pistons back – is well made and comfortable to use.
The chaintool is one of the best around and the bottom bracket bearing press is a welcome addition too, and often missed out on multisets. We love the bearing-loaded dead-blow rubber mallet, the weighted head means it doesn’t bounce, making it much more accurate and easy to use.
The tools are all decent quality. Even the flat cone wrenches, which are often made from cheap steel in boxed kits, are hardened steel. The only downsides are the L-shaped Allen and torx keys. They are great quality, but can’t match a set of long T-handled wrenches for usability, see our six shootout on p82. It’s missing a couple of often-used spoke keys (3.23 & 3.45mm), but those included are the ones most often found on Shimano’s own wheels. We can forgive the lack of a torque wrench as that would inflate the price, but we’d like to have seen a chain checker, as that’s one tool you’ll reach for when servicing. If you add up the individual RRPs of the tools included, it comes to in excess of £450, so the XL has to be considered great value.