Crank Brothers Speedier Lever gets your tyres off without knuckle damage and puts them back on without pinching.
We all love things that make our life a bit easier and this tyre lever from Crank Brothers sets out to do just that, albeit for a tiny, tiny proportion of your life.
The aptly named Speedier Lever replaces Crank Brothers' old telescopic Speed Lever and enables you to remove and replace your tyre more swiftly.
Constructed using a tough nylon composite material which is rigid enough to prize off all but the tightest of wire bead tyres, the Speedier Lever resembles a knuckle duster and you hold it like one. But instead of it being designed to cause damage, the extra plastic is there to help save your knuckles from getting grated in the spokes when the lever gets moving along the beading as you chase the lever around the rim, prizing the tyre off as it moves round.
The nylon material is kind on your rims and won't tarnish your beloved carbon hoops or gouge your coloured rims.
On really tight tyres you will still need a second tyre lever to make the initial opening before slipping in the speed lever and sliding it along the hoop.
The opposite end is designed to help you put the tyre on. It has a kind of hooked claw that clips over your rim and you run it around your rim like you do taking the tyre off. All it takes is the initial seating of the tyre and then you zoom around the tyre wall and it all gets tucked in without any worry of pinching the inner tube, That is always the nightmare of fitting a tyre and in my opinion this is the best feature of this tool.
This is a great tool to have in your saddle pack for those times of emergency at the side of the road but isn't quite sturdy enough for workshop duties. After about 10 tyre changes the lever looks used and a bit tired (pun intended). Maybe if they widened the tool by a few mill it might give it the added integrity it need to stop it looking so worn so quickly?
For £6, you only get one lever, which is fine for getting folding tyres off but those can normally be peeled off with your hands. Crank Brothers seem to be assuming that you already have a lever to do any other type. I would like to see another lever bundled in that clips neatly to this as its buddy.
What I really did like about the speedier lever is the ease in which it helps you put the tyre back on without pinching the tube. We've all done it, and we all know how hissing annoying it is.
Verdict
The Speedier Lever makes tyre removal and replacement well, speedier.
road.cc test report
Make and model: Crank Brothers Speedier Lever
Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?
Home mechanics and people with fast lifestyles.
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
145mm long
looks like a plastic knuckle duster
tyre lever
tyre putter onner
Made from nylon
Rate the product for quality of construction:
8/10
Rate the product for performance:
9/10
still requires a strong arm for effective removal
Rate the product for durability:
6/10
A little on the flexi side. Better suited to tyres that are easy to take off, that way the lever will look good for longer
Rate the product for weight, if applicable:
8/10
Rate the product for comfort, if applicable:
9/10
Save your knuckles from getting shredded on against the spokes
Rate the product for value:
7/10
It's still only a tyre lever that only works on tyres that come off easily but if you have those tyres then this will save time and effort
Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose
Works well on loose tyres
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
loved how quickly and well it put tyres back on
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
doesn't work so well on tight steel bead tyres
Did you enjoy using the product? yes
Would you consider buying the product? yes
Would you recommend the product to a friend? probably
Anything further to say about the product in conclusion?
I'd like to see a more sturdy version
Age: 40 Height: 179 Weight: 79
I usually ride: Bike that I am testing at the time My best bike is: Condor Pista fixed. Kinesis Convert 2 geared work horse, Look KG241 skinny whippet
I've been riding for: Over 20 years I ride: Every day I would class myself as: Expert
I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, touring, club rides, sportives, fixed/singlespeed, bare back
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1 comments
I had one of the telescopic ones until it broke trying to put on a tight tyre. They're fine until you get something which actually needs a lever, then they turn out to be useless, I think.