One thing that I think most riders need to pick up on over time is how to work on their own bike. Growing up, my older brother and I used to hit up garage sales and pick up bikes just to fix them up. I learned a lot about how a bike works just by simply taking things apart and figuring out how to put it all back together. Back then, things were a little more complicated and 9 times out of 10 I found myself regretting pulling a set of cranks or a headset out when I was stuck chasing ball bearings around on the floor (I can only imagine how many of you older guys just started laughing). Now days, BMX bikes have become easier to work on with pretty standard sizes and sealed bearings. Along with that, tools have been developed to simplify the task even more. One of those tools would be the Multi-Tool from The Shadow Conspiracy. Whether you’re just a beginner learning how to avoid stripping out all your bolts or a mechanic that’s turned plenty of wrenches at a shop, this is one tool that will make your life a little easier. Let’s take a closer look!
I decided to talk to the Shadow guys a little bit about what makes their tool unique in comparison to the other ones available with similar features and options and it turns out there is actually a pretty interesting back story behind this thing that I had no idea about.
Some of the original concept drawings…
One thing that really blew my mind was that the concept for the multi-tool actually started floating around the offices at The Shadow Conspiracy back in 2002 when they originally started trying to figure out how they could take all of the necessary tools a rider needs to fix their bike and roll it into one item.
What took them about 11 years to actually get this done? Well, the original concepts didn’t work out how they wanted and they found the tool not being strong enough to handle some of the torque loads applied on it while doing things like tightening down axle nuts. It probably didn’t help that brands were using a handful of different sizes of axle nuts and bolts back then too. Ultimately, Shadow decided to put the tool on the back burner until they could come up with a better way of doing things.
Fast forward to the end of 2010 and somebody decided to dust off the old file and see what they could come up with to make this thing work. Collaboratively, John Paul Rogers, Byron Anderson, Greg Lanthorne and Joey Juaristi all had some input and they ended up with a tool that would not only allow you to work on everything on your bike, but simplify things so it all fits in a small tube instead of having to haul around a full bag of tools.
So what can you find inside this little package? Shadow figured out a way to fit 13 tools into one small package that includes a 17mm deep socket for the axle nuts on your wheels, a 10mm wrench for you guys with brakes, a 15mm wrench to keep those pedals tight, hex heads in USA and metric sizes for all the bolts on your bike, a chain breaker that works with Shadow Interlock chains, a spoke wrench, a hammer for when things really go wrong and a bottle opener for a cold one while you’re in the garage.
The guys designing this at Shadow were able to make all of this fit by finding ways to create some 2 in 1 pieces. The tire levers have the spoke wrench and 10mm box on the ends. You can take the 10mm box and make it the handle for the chain breaker. They made a socket that does not need an extension to fit into the peg which you can hold the tire levers inside that… All of which fit into the body of the tool. Based on what I was hearing, this thing is the cause for John Paul Rogers actually losing his mind due to the design of this tool.
One thing I found pretty interesting when I was asking some questions about how they made this, Shadow admitted that they failed plenty of times in the process of making this from the design to making the pieces all strong enough to hold up to you guys putting all your power into tightening shit down without snapping the tool. I’m not sure exactly how many prototypes they went through, but I do know that the final version is years beyond the original idea in 2002 (literally). That’s the interesting part about producing a unique product that you never really hear about – How the original idea failed and was improved on.
So to recap a little bit since this thing that seems pretty simple is actually pretty complicated. The body of the whole tool is made from chromoly and uses investment casting, CNC machining, forging, welding and heat-treating which gives it the unique look and strength to hold up to the torque loads put on it while tightening or loosening hardware. The tool creates 13 tools with each of its extensions… Here’s a full list of what is has contained in this 10.5″ long, 33.6 oz. package…
1. 15mm pedal wrench
2. 17mm deep socket
3. Interlock Chain breaker
4. 10mm box end wrench ( doubles as the handle for chain breaker)
5. Spoke wrench 15 gauge / 3.5mm
6. Tire levers ( also spoke wrench and 10mm )
7. 8mm hex
8. 6mm hex
9. 5mm hex
10. 1/4″ hex
11. 7/32″ hex
12. Hammer
13. Bottle opener
Sure, there are a few other tools available on the market that do work similar and are also going to get the job done, but it’s definitely cool to know there’s a bit of a back story with the tool that The Shadow Conspiracy put their time into it to make sure it was done right.
If you’re looking to get your hands one one of these guys, you can pick one up for $59.99 on Dan’s Comp or you can have your local shop hit up Sparky’s Distribution to get you one ordered up!
So that wraps things up for this Insight. If you have any questions, feel free to drop a line in the comments or hit up Shadow!
You can find out more about The Shadow Conspiracy and their products by visiting their website — TheShadowConspiracy.com
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