For the cyclist who has everything: carbon-fibre tyre levers

Solid carbon-fibre tyre levers could be yours if you back a project that’s currently running on – where else? – Kickstarter.

We all know that guy. The one who has to have carbon-fibre everything. Frameset: it goes without saying. Handlebar, stem, wheels: obviously. Seatpost, saddle, chainset: check. He probably has carbon-fibre fillings in his teeth.

Well, now he can have carbon-fibre tyre levers too.

Yes, there are already carbon-fibre tyre levers out there – injection moulded carbon-fibre – but we’ve never seen any that look quite so carbon-fibre-ish as these. They’re made from 15 layers of 2x2 twill woven 3K carbon-fibre, and they're very shiny.

“Finally a project making the most boring bike tool something that is beyond cool: a full carbon fibre bike tyre lever,” says Glen Alden, an automotive engineer with a cycling passion. “You know you have always wanted one.”

Have you always wanted one?

“If you are looking for the ultimate in cycling tyre levers, then this soon-to-be-classic is what you will want in your saddle bag,” says Glen.

I might be being slightly tongue in cheek here but, I have to admit, they do look pretty neat. Sorry, but they do! What can I say? I don't want to like them, but I can't help it.

Besides their appearance, why else might you be interested in carbon-fibre tyre levers. Well, they weigh just 12g a pair. For comparison, a couple of plastic Unior levers (£3.50) that I’ve been using for yonks are 32g. Okay, we’re still only talking about a saving of 20g but we all know about the aggregation of marginal gains, right?

The carbon-fibre levers are very low bulk – 105mm x 16mm x 12mm – and they’re said to be built to last forever.

You need to pledge at least US$20 to the cause to be in line for a pair of Alden carbon-fibre tyre levers (usual Kickstarter rules/conditions apply). That’s about £16.30. They're expected to ship in January 2017.

Our man John – clearly a man with too much time on his hands – has this concept called the Hairsine ratio. What the hell’s that? It’s the ratio between the weight saved by fitting a lightweight component and its cost (named after Jon Hairsine, an early British mountain bike racer. When asked how much he'd cut off a new carbon fibre handlebar to trim its size and weight, Jon said, "About five quid!").

Anyway, compared to the Unior levers mentioned above, you’re paying an extra £12.80 for the Alden tyre levers (the Kickstarter price, which is $5 below the RRP) and saving 20g. That’s a Hairsine ratio of 1.6g/£, which isn’t very high. On the other hand, you might think that’s worth it to be the only one in the chaingang who can whip out carbon-fibre tyre levers as soon as anyone gets a flat.

More hard hitting tech news on road.cc shortly.

Check out the Kickstarter project here.