PNW Components Pebble Tool review

Mar 25, 2024

A pocket-friendly multi-tool designed to bail you out when things go wrong trail-side

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By Alex Evans

Published: January 31, 2023 at 2:00 pm

The PNW Components Pebble bicycle multi-tool is claimed to offer the most commonly used tools to help you fix the most frequent issues you’ll encounter while riding.

Its size (65x21x15mm) and weight (51g), plus its smooth edges, make it suitable for storing in the pockets of your riding shorts or trousers, and are also claimed to reduce hand pain when wrenching trail-side.

In its arsenal are 3mm, 4mm, 5mm and 6mm Allen keys, and a Torx T-25 key that’s hidden by the screwed-on Dynaplug brass-headed, gummy rubber tubeless tyre repair plug.

The plug’s brass nose fits in a recess in the 6mm Allen key to help keep it in place.

Although it ships with only a single Dynaplug bung, replacements can be purchased online, costing $12.99 for a five-pack.

Each bit sits on one of four tension-adjustable (using a 2.5mm Allen key) pivots.

The multi-tool has an anodised finish with a choice of four colours (black, purple, red and orange).

The extent of the Pebble tool’s utility caught me off-guard, having assumed the rather spartan quantity of bits would seriously limit its usefulness trail-side.

Clearly, the Canadian company has done its research on which tools to include, and maybe more importantly, which ones not to.

I’ve been using the Pebble for just over two months and have yet to find myself in a scenario where I wished I had different tools available.

Still, it strikes me that not having an 8mm Allen key adaptor, that could slide over the 5mm or 6mm bits, or screw onto the T25 in lieu of the Dynaplug, is a bit of a missed opportunity.

It could be stored comfortably within the hollowed-out central portion of the tool when not in use, and add only a relatively small amount of bulk. Maybe something is in the pipeline.

That said, the Pebble’s bits are well shaped and, when open, offset from its body.

This means accessing bolts in nooks and crannies, such as the seat clamp, is way easier than their stubby length (9mm) would suggest.

It’s true you can’t reach the most hidden bolts. For example, the 3mm Allen bolt used to adjust Shimano I-SPEC EV mounted shifters is just out of reach.

A smooth body and rounded edges make performing torque-heavy operations, such as removing pedals, pain-free.

Equally, I felt comfortable storing it in the pocket of my riding trousers without fear of it causing serious injury in the event of a crash.

It also has a quality, solid and dependable feel, helping justify the price tag.

That quality feel is helped by the tension-adjustable pivot bolts. As PNW states on its website, these are very sensitive, and a little adjustment increases tension vastly.

Dynaplug’s repair barb is a great feature, especially if you can plug a tyre before it goes flat. The likelihood of that happening is quite high, given the quick-draw nature of the tool.

However, replacing or re-filling the plug into its hollow store is tricky because of the plug’s sticky, rubberised and flexible design.

The plugs are also quite expensive, and the tool’s design limits you to using Dynaplug’s own barbs or an identical design made by a third-party.

Despite its small form, low weight and relatively limited tool count, the Pebble has the right amount of must-haves for repairing your bike trail-side.

I suspect it’ll appeal to people who prefer to ride without a pack and stash things on their person or bike instead of taking the kitchen sink.

The lack of an 8mm Allen key and its cost – both for the tool itself and replacement Dynaplug barbs – are my only gripes.

Overall, the Pebble is impressive, and performs as PNW claims it should.

Senior technical editor

Alex Evans is BikeRadar’s senior mountain bike technical editor. He started racing downhill at the tender age of 11 before going on to compete across Europe. Alex moved to Morzine in the French Alps at 19 to pursue a career as a bike bum and clocked up an enormous amount of riding. Hitting those famous tracks day in, day out for eight years, he broke more bikes than he can remember. Alex then moved back to the UK and put his vast knowledge of mountain biking to good use by landing a job working for MBUK magazine as features editor. Since working for MBUK, Alex’s focus has moved to bike tech. He’s one of BikeRadar’s lead testers and knows how to push bikes and products to the limit, searching out the equipment that represents the best value for money. Alex is also a dedicated eMTB rider, and still dabbles in racing of a sort, doing his best to top the Strava leaderboard on the steepest, gnarliest and twistiest trails the Tweed Valley has to offer – just for fun, of course. Alex is also a regular on the BikeRadar YouTube channel and BikeRadar podcast.