Cone Wrench Set – 1612PB

Cone wrenches are the thin-jawed flat wrenches used to set and adjust the bearing preload on cup-and-cone hubs. Their thin profile lets them slip between the locknut and the cone on a standard hub; a job that a regular wrench is too thick to do. The 1612PB set covers four popular cone sizes from two double-ended wrenches: 13/14 15/17 and 13/14 15/16.

Cup-and-cone hubs are less common on modern wheels than sealed-cartridge hubs, but they’re still in service on many older builds, lower-tier OEM wheels, and a number of specialty wheelsets where the serviceability of a cup-and-cone system is preferred to a sealed cartridge. For workshops servicing the older catalog, this set is the right answer; for a workshop that only sees modern sealed-bearing hubs, the cone wrenches see less use but are still the tool to reach for when an older hub comes through.

The two-wrench set lets you put a wrench on the locknut and another on the cone at the same time; the only way to torque the cone against the locknut while keeping the cone position fixed. A single cone wrench can adjust the cone, but resetting the locknut against an adjusted cone requires the second wrench.

Compatibility

• Hubs: cup-and-cone front and rear hubs with 13, 14, 15, 16, or 17 mm cone-and-locknut combinations.
• Bikes: legacy and lower-spec builds; some specialty wheelsets.

Specs

• Set contents: two double-ended cone wrenches.
• Sizes: 13/14 15/17 and 13/14 15/16.
• Material: premium flex plus carbon steel.
• Finish: chrome plated per ISO 1456:2009.

Built in Zree, Slovenia

Unior has been forging hand tools in Zree since 1919, and is the official technical partner of multiple World Tour and downhill teams. The cone wrenches are built to the same construction standards as the rest of the Unior wrench line: premium flex plus carbon steel for the working faces, with ISO 1456:2009 trivalent-chrome plating for corrosion resistance. The thin-jaw profile is what makes them cone wrenches in the first place; the construction is what makes them last through years of bench work.

Pro tip from our mechanics

When servicing a cup-and-cone hub, set the cone preload to just bind, then back off a hair before locking the locknut against it. A cone that’s tightened down too far will pit the bearing balls within a few rides; a cone that’s too loose will let the axle wobble. The two-wrench technique (one on the locknut, one on the cone, working against each other) lets you set that preload precisely. The full wheel-truing workflow is in How to true a bike wheel