Birzman Feexman 12-function multi-tool

The Birzman Feexman 12-function Mini Tool is an ideal piece of kit to carry on longer rides. It has everything you need for most road-side repairs, and is surprisingly light for the number of functions provided, thanks to aluminium parts and some other skilful weight-shaving, though this pushes up the price a bit.

There's a wide range of bike tools and accessories in the Birzman range, most displaying the company's signature combination of ingenious design and excellent build quality. The Feexman 12-function Mini Tool is no different. Each individual allen (or 'hex') key swings out smoothly, and when you tighten a bolt there's little sign of flexing, even at the pivot point. This is thanks to a manufacturing process by which the base of each allen key is drilled and completely surrounds the main connecting bolt, rather than being simply wrapped around the connecting bolt as on some other brands of multi-tool.

The tools you get on the Feexman 12-function Mini Tool are: allen keys at 2mm, 2.5mm, 3mm, 4mm, 5mm, 6mm and 8mm; a T25 torx key; two screwdrivers (cross-head and flat-head); and a chain rivet extractor. Unusually for a multi-tool of this size there's no spoke key, which may be seen by some cyclists as a serious omission.

The 12th function is a tyre lever. It's surprisingly small, with a couple of sharp edges that looked like they might damage tyre or rim, but tests in the road.cc lab revealed that it did work, but only in conjunction with other tyre levers. So if you normally carry three levers, you can now take just two and use the one on this multi-tool. This may not be seen as much of an advantage.

To save weight, the Feexman has aluminium side panels and chain tool plate, and some of the larger allen keys are hollowed out. This shaving results in a weight of just 120g, which is pretty impressive for a tool with this many functions. Other tools in the Birzman range have steel side panels and are cheaper than aluminium equivalents, or have carbon side panels and are more expensive.

The chain tool functions very well when removing rivets. The idea is that you'll completely remove a broken link and fix the chain with that spare quick-link you carry with you at all times. However, loosening a stiff link proved harder; the plates in the tool seemed too small to hold the chain in place, so when pressure was applied to the rivet extractor, the chain lifted out of the tool.

The recommended retail price for the Feexman is £29.99, although you can find it nearer £25 at various on-line stores. This is not a bargain, but it's about on a par with similar tools with aluminium parts from other brands. Leyzene, for example, make a 10-function tool with some aluminium parts which sells for about the same price and weighs just over 100g, and a 20-function tool with some aluminium parts which sells for about the same price but weighs 180g. There's a Crank Brothers 17-function tool that goes for a few quid less than the Birzman and weighs a bit more, while Brooks offer a 21-function tool that goes for almost £50 and weighs 300g. If you want to stick with Birzman, but save a few more quid (and add a few grams), get the steel version of the Feexman. You can also find even cheaper models from other manufacturers, but many of these don't have the same build quality.

Overall, if you want something well-made, light-weight and fair-priced, that does pretty much everything you're likely need when you're out on the road, the Birzman Feexman 12-function tool is certainly well worth considering.

Verdict

Lightweight multi-tool suitable for most road-side repairs; high-quality build and fair price tag