Muc-Off 17 in 1 Multi Tool

Muc-Off's 17 in 1 Multi Tool doesn't break any new ground, but it's a solidly built and reliable on-bike tool that has pretty much everything you need to get you going again if you suffer a common mechanical. It's compact and simple, though not without a couple of niggles. For more options, check out our guide to the best bike multi tools.

You'll no doubt have seen tools like this before: all the various functions at either end of a flat tool, sandwiched between two bars that hold everything together. It's similar in form to the Lezyne V-Pro 10 and the Giant Toolshed 13 that we've reviewed in the last few years. The sides are alloy and the tool bits are chromium-vanadium steel, and the whole thing feels solid for its compact size.

> Buy now: Muc-Off 17 in 1 Multi Tool for £20 from Muc-Off

Your 17 functions include 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8mm hex keys. The bigger ones are slightly stubbier to accommodate the chain tool, and the 8mm fits on top of the 5mm and needs to be removed if you want to wrestle 5mm bolts, which thankfully aren't quite as prevalent as they once were because it's easy to lose the 8mm extender once you've taken it off. Amazingly, I still have ours. There's a T25 Torx driver, size 1 and 2 Phillips and a flat-head screwdriver too.

I've used plenty of the tools on plenty of locations on my bikes, and the tools are hard and accurately sized, so there haven't been any issues with rounding off bolts. Sometimes you'll get a bolt that's difficult to get to and the shortish tools on this unit aren't the best in tight spots, but I haven't been defeated by anything I've had to do thus far, and I've had to tweak things on a range of bikes.

There's a chain tool too, which is pretty good. It's plenty solid enough and easy to use that you can break a chain out on the road; Muc-Off says it's for 9/10/11-speed chains but it worked okay with a 12-speed one too. You can only split; sadly, there's no second set of tines for adjusting a stiff link.

On the chain tool handle there are four different spoke keys (square 4.3 and 4.4, hex 4.6 and Mavic m7) which might get a wheel turning again in an emergency, but that's really the only time I'd consider using them.

There's a bottle opener too, which you can use any time you like, with my blessing.

Muc-Off doesn't claim that the tool has a valve-core spanner but either by accident or design the bigger of the two square spoke keys will do that job in a pinch just fine.

Like I said up top, Muc-Off hasn't done anything new or special here. But it's a good tool that's compact and easy to fit into a seatpack or tool bottle, and it's only 20 quid. Those two similar tools I mentioned earlier have fewer functions, for either about the same money in the case of the Giant one (£20.99), or nearly twice as much for the Lezyne (£38). So in terms of value, it's really pretty good.

You can have it with a case for an extra £2, which is probably worth the spend, especially if it's going in a pocket. It's pretty easy to recommend if you're looking for a simple, reliable tool with a sensible set of bits.

Verdict

Solid, compact and well priced, with a sensible range of functions