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review
£21.99
VERDICT:
Lovely quality, but expensive and of limited use to most road cyclists
Weight:
68g
Contact:
At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.
What the road.cc scores meanGood scores are more common than bad, because fortunately good products are more common than bad.
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The Lezyne SV-7 Multi Tool is a lovely shiny thing, and it's very nicely made, but the price is steep for what you get.
As the name suggests, the SV-7 incorporates seven tools: 6mm, 5mm, 4mm and 2mm Allen keys, a flat-blade screwdriver and T25 and T30 Torx drivers.
That selection is a little odd. The larger Allen keys are uncontroversial, but Torx bolts are still relatively uncommon on road bikes, except at the high end where you'll find T30 screws holding chainrings in place. The most common use of T25 screws is mounting disc rotors.
We're convinced of the advantages of disc brakes, but they've got a way to go before they're ubiquitous. The L-shaped 2mm Allen key is supposed to be for adjusting brake lever reach and other titchy grub screws, but I can't find anything in my road bike fleet that it fits.
All this means for many of us, the SV-7 won't be the most useful multi-tool ever.
The bits are very nicely made. Each is forged and mounted to the handle by what Lezyne called "center-pivot technology". The bits aren't bent around the the mounting rod in the handle, each has a broad, forged end with a drilled hole so that they're supported all round the base. As a result, the whole tool is stiffer; it doesn't twist in your hand like cheaper multi-tools.
The SV-7 is expensive, even if you need its exact combination of tools. Wiggle's very similar LifeLine Professional 7-in-1 Multi-Tool is currently just over seven quid; their 14-bit tool is still under a tenner, less than half the price of the SV-7, and it includes the missing 2.5mm and 3mm Allen keys.
The SV-7 is very nicely finished and you get a little faux-leather loop to wrap round it. It has the kind of shiny that makes you feel slightly guilty about using it to fix a grubby bike.
Verdict
Lovely quality, but expensive and of limited use to most road cyclists
road.cc test report
Make and model: Lezyne SV-7 Multi Tool
Size tested: Leather Strap
Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?
Lezyne says:
Lezyne SV Tools are compact, low profile tools made with lightweight and durable materials. They feature CNC machined aluminum side plates and a forged and CNC-machined aluminum chain breaker (9/10/11 speed chain - SV10 and 11). The Stainless Steel bits and fastening hardware are durable and corrosion resistant. Forged, Center-pivot bits increase tool rigidity and improve ergonomics.
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
* Lightweight, low profile multi-tools optimized for modern component groups
* CNC machined aluminium side plates
* Forged, Centre-pivot, stainless steel bits
* Durable stainless steel fastening hardware
* Hex: 2.5, 4, 5, 6 mm
* Star-Shaped: T25, T30
* Flat Head
Rate the product for quality of construction:
9/10
Rate the product for performance:
5/10
Rate the product for weight, if applicable:
8/10
Rate the product for value:
3/10
Lovely though the SV-7 is, it's very expensive.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
The shiny.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
Poor selection of bits for road bike use.
Did you enjoy using the product? Yes.
Would you consider buying the product? No,
Would you recommend the product to a friend? No,
Anything further to say about the product in conclusion?
The SV-7 is flawed as a road bike multi-tool as its selection of bits isn't right for most bikes, and it's also very expensive. It's shiny loveliness pulls its score up to 5, but it only deserves that if it happens to provide a set of bits you do need.
About the tester
Age: 48 Height: 5ft 11in Weight: 85kg
I usually ride: Scapin Style My best bike is:
I've been riding for: Over 20 years I ride: Most days I would class myself as: Expert
I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, touring, club rides, general fitness riding,
John has been writing about bikes and cycling for over 30 years since discovering that people were mug enough to pay him for it rather than expecting him to do an honest day's work.
He was heavily involved in the mountain bike boom of the late 1980s as a racer, team manager and race promoter, and that led to writing for Mountain Biking UK magazine shortly after its inception. He got the gig by phoning up the editor and telling him the magazine was rubbish and he could do better. Rather than telling him to get lost, MBUK editor Tym Manley called John’s bluff and the rest is history.
Since then he has worked on MTB Pro magazine and was editor of Maximum Mountain Bike and Australian Mountain Bike magazines, before switching to the web in 2000 to work for CyclingNews.com. Along with road.cc founder Tony Farrelly, John was on the launch team for BikeRadar.com and subsequently became editor in chief of Future Publishing’s group of cycling magazines and websites, including Cycling Plus, MBUK, What Mountain Bike and Procycling.
John has also written for Cyclist magazine, edited the BikeMagic website and was founding editor of TotalWomensCycling.com before handing over to someone far more representative of the site's main audience.
He joined road.cc in 2013. He lives in Cambridge where the lack of hills is more than made up for by the headwinds.
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Add new comment
11 comments
@lolol: Park Tools chain brute... reliably managed a few dozen chain fixes before it went flying down a trailside!
I have 3 or 4 allen keys - one with a screwdriver end on it - and the chain tool from a toepeak alien, all in a plastic bank coin bag.
I'd love to find a natty multitool lighter, but I can't, not even the carbon-sided ones. I suppose weight isn't everything, but it's not like their useability beats the separate tools. Maybe I'm overthinking it.
I've recently switched to a Crank Brothers M5 as well (rather than a fully-blown Topeak swiss-army jobbie), as that covers the main bolts on my Bianchi, and I have a workshop of other tools at home to make sure the bike is always running well. So I support the shift in mindset to a more minimal tool... it's just horses for courses really, and whether your road bike has Torx bolts. It did strike me that this was aimed more at xc and flat-bar riders... nice design even so.
I probably have that same Topeak -- the one with a chain breaker. Nice tool but it was too heavy and bulky so I bought the M5 for my road bike and leave it with my XC bike. However if I did have it with me I could have used it once in the last 3 years -- to help another road cyclist whose chain had broken.
I guess the decision is: "minimalist" vs. a portable bike repair shop. Although a true minimalist would go with no tool and just flag down fellow cyclists until you find one with the right tool.
Torx are good, but I find less use for 6mm and would rather an 8 and a 2.5, not a 2. If someone sold tool you could pick'n'mix the bits you want before buying, that would be good. Plus a chain tool that doesnt crumble like cottage cheese on first use (I'm looking at you Birzman).
Fizik uses torx as well on their stems
As do zipp too, the bottle cage bolts on my Bianchi came as torx too,
And any campagnolo (well the Athena and Chorus I own) has a fair few Torq bolts across it.
chorus uses torx ...
22 pounds for something you hope to never use does seem a bit steep. I parked mine ($10 Crank Bros M5) in my saddle bag 3 years ago and haven't touched it since (I have a proper set of bike tools at home). I am curious as to how often people use theirs?
I also have a Crank Brothers M5 (which I think is an excellent balance of price, reliability, and inconspicuousness for a road tool) and in two and a half years I've used it once, to tighten up a new stem/handlebar combo that slipped mid-ride (5 Nm my arse).
Likewise, I carry a multitool on every ride but rarely, if ever use it. Which is why it's important to me that it be as minimalist as possible. For that reason I might consider a precise tool like the Lezyne, even if it's a bit expensive.
I do like the inclusion of a T30 Torx driver for those pesky chainring bolts. Those seem quick to loosen, though even that could wait until you get home.