Park Tool has released a swathe of new tools to add to its ever-expanding range.
The big blue company has announced new bottom bracket tools, designed to prevent damaging cups due to narrow interfaces, an update to the PRS-25 repair stand, a disc brake pad spreader and a tubeless plug system.
Availability is currently expected to be towards the end of 2022 in the UK. Mainland Europe, US and Australian pricing and availability are to be confirmed.
Park Tool BBT-RS
The Bottom Bracket Retaining System is perhaps the biggest highlight of the new releases in that it's intended to provide a solution to an often-reported problem.
The tool has been designed to increase leverage when you’re trying to remove or install a threaded or threaded-together bottom bracket with shallow cups.
As a result, tool engagement is limited and it's easy to slip on the tool and damage the notch surfaces, or even mark your frame’s paint (home mechanics can avoid this problem by installing some plastic packaging between the tool and the cup interface).
The BBT-RS uses a spring-based tension system to provide a solid interface.
You install the tool on the opposite side of the bottom bracket cup you want to undo and thread one of Park’s nine bottom bracket tools onto the M15 thread.
Park says you should only use the tool when the load is greatest, such as when you’re trying to initially undo the stubborn cup or for final tightening.
The pressure nut on the tool must be released after the first quarter-turn of loosening to prevent damage to both the BBT-RS and the bottom bracket tool.
The BBT-RS will work with any ⅜in drive wrench.
The BBT-RS will retail for £59.99.
New bottom bracket tools
Park has also added the BBT-69.3 and the BBT-79.3 to its range.
The BBT-69.3 fits 16-notch bottom bracket cups with 44 to 45mm outer diameters. Campagnolo, Chris King, FSA MegaExo and Hope all produce bottom bracket cups in this style. The tool is also compatible with 16-notch disc brake rotor lockrings.
The BBT-79.3 fits 12-notch bottom bracket cups with 45 to 47mm outer diameters, such as SRAM’s BSA DUB.
Park says both tools are precision CNC-machined and anodised for easy identification. They are compatible with ⅜in wrenches and feature an M15 thread on the inside to ensure compatibility with the BBT-RS.
The BBT-69.3 will retail for £37.99 and the BBT-79.3 will set you back £44.99.
Park Tool PRS-26
The PRS-26 is the brand’s lightest portable bike repair stand, replacing the PRS-25 that was originally announced in December 2015.
It has been updated with a tripod leg design, in keeping with Park's other portable repair stands. The stand features 50cm of height adjustment and retains the 100-25D micro-adjust clamp that is used on Park’s top-end workshop stands.
The stand is constructed from 6063 T6 aluminium and it comes in at a claimed 5.7kg, 300g lighter than the PRS-25.
The PRS-26 will retail for £409.99.
Park Tool TPT-1
No-one likes dealing with a tubeless puncture, especially when you have to remove the often-stubborn tyre to install an inner tube and get covered in tyre sealant. The TPT-1 Tubeless Tyre Plug Tool is Park’s take on a plug tool.
Featuring five vulcanised strips stored inside the TPT-1 (you can buy replacement strips on part number #2370K), the all-in-one tool features a sliding plug retainer to keep them in place and re-establish a seal. The tool has a knurled section to ream the tubeless tyre before installing one of the plugs.
The TPT-1 will retail for £44.99, with replacement plugs setting you back £4.99.
Park Tool PS-1
Taking more than a little inspiration from ToolBoxWars supremo Brad Kelly (who is definitely worth a follow on Instagram), the PS-1 pad spreader is designed to return disc brake pads to their correct position.
Disc brake pads need to be pushed back into their ‘neutral’ position if you accidentally press the brake lever without the wheel installed. Because the stainless steel head mimics a section of disc rotor, it can also be checked to test brake bleeds before reinstalling the wheel.
The brand says the tool features a stainless steel construction and a long vinyl-dipped handle for leverage and comfort. The PP-1 piston press remains in the range.
The tool will retail for £14.99.
