Unich Stepless Tool

The Unich Stepless Rachet Multi Tool Wrench is a multi-tool that looks a bit like a CO2 inflator – compact enough to carry for beside-the-road adjustments, with an unusual ratchet giving instant engagement. It houses a good selection of durable bits, providing most of the tools you're likely to need while out on a ride. It's a pleasure to use, although its design means there's no chain tool.

If the concept seems familiar, it is not dissimilar to that seen on the Fabric Chamber that we reviewed not that long ago. Unich says that the patented design of the ratchet mechanism is a key advantage for when you're working on hard-to-access parts of your bike.

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A conventional ratchet has a certain number of engagement points (just like a freehub), and this means you can have a few degrees of rotation before you start to loosen or tighten the fastener you're working on. Here, a miniature clutch mechanism means there are effectively infinite starting positions. Compared with using a fold-out multi-tool, this certainly makes it much less fiddly to access bottle cage bolts, for example. For any bolt where you've got a very limited space and hence less than 60 degrees of rotation, it's a really benefit.

The body of the Unich tool is made from CNC'd aluminium and is pretty nicely finished, appealing to the engineer in me. The bottom cap unscrews smoothly to allow the bit clip to be removed. There's a small magnet fixed to the inside of the cap, presumably intended to prevent rattling. It's quite a satisfying process putting it together, although it takes a few seconds longer than just folding out the tool you need.

There are hex bits in 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8mm sizes as well as T10, T25 and T30 Torx bits, and a flat and a Philips screwdriver bit, giving pretty much everything you're likely to need to tighten or loosen anything on a ride. Through the centre, there's a 55mm extension piece like you'd find in a socket set, which is really helpful for getting access to fiddly screws.

It's a different approach to that seen on the Fabric Chamber, which has long, double-ended bits with detents to allow different positions through the head. To my mind, the Unich's extension is a much better solution – as our reviewer found, the Fabric tool's longer bits would protrude out of the other side of the Fabric, which could make access trickier.

The round head of the tool also unscrews from the barrel and can be used to finger-tighten a screw, although the time taken to do so meant I usually just did this with the bit between finger and thumb before using the whole tool to tighten fully. You can also get significantly more leverage than with a fold-out tool thanks to the barrel acting as a comfortable handle.

One inherent downside to this type of tool, compared with the sort of ratchet you'd get in a socket set, is that to reverse the direction of rotation, you need to pull the bit out of the head and push it in from the other side, rather than being able to just flick a switch. This is particularly bothersome when you need to just loosen something enough to make an adjustment before nipping it up again; an Allen key can be wielded with one hand – this can't.

> Read our guide to the best multi-tools

For me personally, a bigger issue is the absence of a chain tool, given that for a similar price and weight you can get multi-tools with one. You also don't get a blade, useful for digging sharp things out of tyres and sabotaging your foes. Consequently, I mostly ended up keeping the Unich by the back door for last minute fettling before heading out, a role that it performed with some flair, and reverted to carrying my fold-out Birzman tool on rides with me.

Weight is 173g so it's heavier than the Birzman and slightly more than the Fabric tool, but I didn't feel the weight was unacceptable. Pricing is keen, at £23 compared with £35 for the similar Fabric tool.

I really enjoyed using the Unich tool – it's a pleasing concept, well made and with a good selection of tool bits. Whether it is for you will probably hinge on whether you think a chain tool is a must.

Verdict

Lovely machined multi-tool with neat ratchet and quality bits for tightening and loosening things – just not chains