Topeak Alien X Multitool

The Topeak Alien X Multitool is the latest update to a venerable classic kitchen-sink of a tool that's been keeping cyclists going for 25 years. Bang up to date with Torx, quicklink and disc brake features, its two-piece design makes working on your bike easy.

Topeak's Alien tools have been a go-to choice for serious adventurers for over two decades. I own one from the mid-90s that reflects the ancient bike tech back then – not a single Torx, but 8, 9 and 10mm ring spanners and a 15mm pedal flats wrench.

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Topeak has kept pace with improvements to bike-tweaking tech, and probably the most notable change here is that there's no dedicated Phillips screwdriver – rather, a PH2 magnetised head that fits onto the 4mm hex. Chances are your modern bike doesn't actually have a single Phillips head screw on it, so all is well here. There's also a Torx T30 magnetic bit; T30 has appeared recently on some Shimano chainrings but I'd expect to see it more often as it replaces 6mm hex bolts in high-torque applications.

You also get T10, 15, 20 and 25 dedicated tools, which should cover everything else. A few older bikes might have T27 fittings, in which case your best bet is to just replace the screw with a T25.

You get a full range of hexes, starting with a teensy 1.5, then not one but two 2mm – one at a right angle for getting into tight spaces, one straight. Then there's 2.5, 3, 4, 5 and 6mm just as you'd expect, followed by a stumpy 8mm for pedals and finally a 10mm cap on the 6mm hex, retained with a spring-loaded ball.

The cap also includes a valve core remover slot – handy, because if the core remover was on the tool itself it could make for many on-off-on rotations where the tool couldn't pass through the spokes.

The straight 2mm is on the end of a fold-out with cutouts for 14 and 15G spokes nipples, plus Mavic's 7mm and Shimano's 4.5 nipples.

Next to that is a pretty sharp 3.5cm serrated blade, which should make short work of fencepost-as-chopping-board for salami or shoelaces, should creativity be needed to solve a problem. The blade comes with a plastic safety cover – nice. My 20-year-old Alien had an actual lock for the blade that required a press on a lever to close up – the blade and tubeless plug tool on the Mini PT-30 tool has a locking mechanism also – but on the Alien X an actual lock is replaced with a detent that is pretty easy to overcome, so not quite as safe/solid as previous.

Also on this side of the tool is the chain breaker, good for all chains from single speed up to and including 12 speed but not Campy's 11-speed hollow pins. The chain tool pin screw is driven by the 4mm hex that's in your other hand when separated, so you can get plenty of leverage in. The tool's 4mm hex head doubles as the chain pin snapper-offer. You also get a chain retaining hook, so you can put a loop in a tensioned chain for easier working.

The fact that it splits in half makes for a few other bonuses. Firstly, with the 5 and 6mm hexes on different sides you can tighten chainring bolts without having to find another tool. Secondly, the tool pivots can be tightened by the opposing tool – 2.5mm and T20 to be specific – so you'll never be left with floppy or hard-to-fold tools.

There's storage for two quicklinks in the body, held in place by little retaining clips. There's also a disc rotor spacer, for if you need to remove a wheel but are paranoid about compressing the lever. This isn't capable of spreading pads that have been compressed too far – the metal tyre lever would be a good shout for doing that, as it's really too short to be of serious use as a tyre lever itself except in dire emergency.

> How to replace a chain

The standout feature of the Alien X (and I believe the inspiration for the 'X' moniker) is the quicklink plier tool. Comprising two arms that fold out and then fit together to pivot like pliers, you get loads of leverage to quickly separate even the toughest quicklink.

Topeak advises in the manual that the quicklink pliers are not compatible with Shimano 11/12-speed quicklinks, but this was a hangover from an early batch of links that were mega-stiff. Shimano has sorted it now, so they work just fine with them.

On the side of one of the quicklink arms there's an indent measuring 2.1mm or thereabouts, identified as a 'spoke holder'. Topeak advises this is to prevent spoke wind-up when tensioning bladed spokes, but 2.1mm is way too fat for every bladed spoke I've ever encountered.

When assembled the Alien X is pretty chunky – roughly a 4 x 4 x 7cm cube, it's considerably fatter than most tools. Of course packing in 34 functions is going to take up space, but it's the split design that necessitates the bulk. The edges are pretty square, especially when split in half, so gripping tightly for high-torque use can be a tad hurty if not wearing gloves. You can add leverage by folding out and locking all the tools on the opposite side to effectively make the tool longer – this is the 'extendable' mentioned in Topeak's marketing blurb.

The Alien X comes in a tough nylon pouch secured by Velcro. Unlike my older pouch it doesn't have a belt loop to facilitate quick-draw trailside fettling, so you'll still have to rummage for it. There's a thin pocket under the flap that you can slip a spare few tyre patches into.

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Although it's not cheap, with a two-year warranty and made of premium materials, the Alien X will likely last you decades, the same as my original has. Compared with the Topeak Mini PT30, for your extra £10 and 34g you're getting a T20 and T30 Torx, a tyre lever, and the split-in-half functionality that enables dual-sided tool use. The PT30 includes a tubeless tyre plug reamer and locking insertion fork, and overall is about half the thickness of the Alien X. The 2mm on the Alien is straight as opposed to the PT30 where it's a right-angle – meaning the Alien X would be a much better tool for tweaking a mech that used 2mm hex screws. Of course you could just cut the J-end off the PT-30 tool and grind it flat to make a straight 2mm, were you so inclined.

It compares well with Silca's 20-function Venti multi-tool, too, which has gone up to £50 since Stu tested it back in 2018.

Ultimately, whether the Alien X suits your needs is down to the bikes you need to fettle. If this ticks the boxes, you won't be disappointed.

Verdict

It's a chunky tool covering pretty much every option you'll need