Brompton tools

[quixoticgeek]

I've been slowly putting together the tools I need to maintain my Brompton on the road, but I keep discovering short falls in the tool box. Today I discovered the screws on the battery rear light are too small for the PH2 bit on my multitool.

This brings me to two questions:

1 - What bit size do I need to remove the screws on the Brompton Battery rear light?

2 - Is there a comprehensive list anywhere of what tools are needed for the various differnt parts of the Brompton?

Thanks

J

[GothonaBrompton]

I don't know the size, but one of the screwdrivers from my glasses/watchmakers screwdriver set fitted the back of the Brompton light.

It is handy down there but the fitting part leaves a bit to be desired.

[rogerzilla]

I just undid mine with a Philips screwdriver of some sort.  It's a crap design because you need a tool to change batteries and there is no real water sealing - but it seems to keep working somehow.

[Jurek]

I've not been able to find a thread which covers the Brompton specific tool kit, either on this board or the parts & accessories reviews one, so I thought I'd pop this in here.

I've just availed myself of one of these.
While I've yet to see how it fits the bike or how effective it is when used in anger, I have to confess that I'd be very surprised if the West London CAD jockey who designed this, didn't have a little (or, perhaps not so little) moment when the first of these came off the production line.
It would appear to be beautifully thought out and put together.

'Why tools for a Brompton?' I hear you say. 'Surely if something fails, it'd be going in the first available taxi'.

Yes, yes, yes I know....
But when I was on my way to order a picture frame for this, my stem bolt decided to make a bid for freedom, leading to some *ahem!* interesting handling characteristics, and forcing me to purchase a nasty-fashioned-from-camembert set of allen keys from the glazier.
They were literally use-once-and-throw-away.
We'll have no more of that.
Thank you.

I shall return here when I have something more to say about the tool kit

[Kim]

I have one of these (which didn't used to be so expensive), a couple of tyre levers, an inner tube, CO2 inflator and a small box of patches, glue and miscellaneous pingfuckits in a pocket of my C-bag.  So far the only thing it's let me down by not having is a headset spanner, though other than that I don't think I've actually had to do more than fix a puncture and adjust bar grips and saddle at the roadside.

The Brompton tool kit is a lovely piece of design, but it's a textbook example of the Brompton tax.

[Jurek]

I can find no argument with the second half of your last sentence.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

I've got both the Tern and Brompton multitools. Both are lovely bits of kits.

Nice things often cost quite a bit. So did the dearly departed Cool Tool. I have two of them and would welcome more.
https://wiki.multitool.org/tiki-index.php?page=Cool+Tool

The tyre levers in the original B toolkit were plastic and not up to the job. The metal levers work well.

[Kim]

While we're on the subject of the Brompton toolkit, 3D printing jibblers may be interested in https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3218448  (via https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=110483.0)

[Jurek]

While we're on the subject of the Brompton toolkit, 3D printing jibblers may be interested in https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3218448  (via https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=110483.0)

I like his use of a folded up rubber glove to prevent the multi tool from rattling.

I use a bank coin bag, stuffed with latex gloves as dunnage in the tool bottle on my road bike and fixer.

[jiberjaber]

While we're on the subject of the Brompton toolkit, 3D printing jibblers may be interested in https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3218448  (via https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=110483.0)

Oh I liek that 

When I got Black Bess from Ian it came with the brommy toolkit - I've used it in anger quite a few times - as LWaB says - the metal tyre levers work really well.

You'd still need a 15mm spanner for the wheel nuts which is used to pull the Brompton toolkit in and out - perhaps combining the 3d tray with a 15mm spanner would be the best combo (replace the pull but with a hole and some sort of hook towards the other end of the tray to hook it over using a spanner similar to https://www.velosolo.co.uk/vstool.html but thats ££ for a spanner!)

[Jurek]

  ^ That's Snap-On tools money!

[Kim]

You'd still need a 15mm spanner for the wheel nuts

The killer feature of the Tern multi-tool is its 15mm spanner (which does in fact work).  So that might be sufficient, if it fits.

[jiberjaber]

Tern tool wont fit in that 3d tray, tray apperture dimensions (mm) are 29Wx21Dx95L (over all it is 37W x 31H x 113L) 

Tool dimensions: 86 mm x 51 mm x 30 mm

I did measure the brommy ID some time ago as I was going to make some sort of inner tube carrier for the other side of the fold but I never got round to it and I have lost the dimensions

[Kim]

some sort of inner tube carrier for the other side of the fold

Mk 1 sock?

[grams]

If you have the two[/six] speed derailleur and the old non-integrated gear levers you need a stupidly small (1.5mm) allen key for the grub screw that holds the cable in the lever, and a high quality one at that if you don't want to immediately round off the hole  in the bolt (although you probably will anyway). God forbid you ever need to touch it during a ride.

[Jurek]

Oh! And I really like the idea of printing the destructions on the origami box which it ships in. 
And the use of magnets. For retention.

ETA - there are a couple of elements that I'm slightly guessing as to what they are for.

[Jurek]

Doesn't fit into a frame which has an aftermarket (Brompification) frame clamp 
There's a conflict over space, between the two.
Never mind.
Into the S-bag it goes.
ETA - The upside is that I'll get to see it more often...

[Jakob W]

I've seen them demonstrated and they are very much things of shininess. It would be nice if they had a chain tool as well, but I suppose with a Brompton that's a pretty rare failure mode.

[rogerzilla]

While we're on the subject of the Brompton toolkit, 3D printing jibblers may be interested in https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3218448  (via https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=110483.0)

I like his use of a folded up rubber glove to prevent the multi tool from rattling.

I use a bank coin bag, stuffed with latex gloves as dunnage in the tool bottle on my road bike and fixer.

I always carry a pair of latex disposable gloves on commutes.  Not so much to keep clean hands when fixing punctures, more to put on if involved in an altercation with a motorist...they'll soon be off if they think they're up for a full cavity search.

[whosatthewheel]

15 mm spanner for wheel nuts and 5 mm Allen Key if you need to adjust the saddle. Tyre levers might be handy, although small tyres come off easily normally. An adjustable spanner instead of a 15 mm one might help tightening the seat collar if it becomes loose
That's pretty much all you need, I would say

[Jurek]

While we're on the subject of the Brompton toolkit, 3D printing jibblers may be interested in https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3218448  (via https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=110483.0)

I like his use of a folded up rubber glove to prevent the multi tool from rattling.

I use a bank coin bag, stuffed with latex gloves as dunnage in the tool bottle on my road bike and fixer.

I always carry a pair of latex disposable gloves on commutes.  Not so much to keep clean hands when fixing punctures, more to put on if involved in an altercation with a motorist...they'll soon be off if they think they're up for a full cavity search.

 

[Zipperhead]

I always carry a pair of latex disposable gloves on commutes.  Not so much to keep clean hands when fixing punctures, more to put on if involved in an altercation with a motorist...they'll soon be off if they think they're up for a full cavity search.

"I'm going to wear you like a watch"