We love shiny, pretty things at Cyclo and the Crank Brothers 19 Function Multi Tool is oh-so shiny and pretty – the kind of gadget you’d expect to win design awards or to have been invented by HR Giger if Alien needed to fix a bike on the run. But is it all style over substance?
A little yes, a little no. It certainly punches well for its not inconsiderable weight (175g without the “flask” casing – more on that below), feeling reassuringly chunky rather than bloated or weighty and serving up two open, four spoke and seven hex wrenches, plus 8,9 and 10 speed compatible chain tools, one flat and two phillips-head drivers. The tools are all high-tensile steel, with the frame made from weight-saving aluminium and the carry “flask” that it can be packed in to is a polymer with steel logo. In actual fact the “flask” is something of a weak point and rather redundant; at Cyclo we have pretty much discarded it in favour of a little stuff-sack containing all our other on-the-fly bits and bobs.
Also on the down-side our 19 is showing a few rust-spots in places and the fold-outs have a tendency to loosen over time, requiring the occasional back-home maintenance if you want to avoid “floppy tool syndrome” (and who doesn’t!) No tyre levers and with a RRP of £25.00 it’s not the cheapest option out there. But if all this sounds like grumbling, let’s redress the balance a little: the Crank Brothers 19 Function Multi Tool has an almost perfect feel to it, carries a lifetime warranty, performs it intended functions peerlessly – still no sign of any “rounding” on the hex tools after prolonged use – and is (have we mentioned this already?) truly a thing of beauty…