Park Tool

Park Tool, bicycle tool manufacturing from St. Paul since 1963

Park Tool is a manufacturer of tools designed specifically for bicycle repair and maintenance, based in St. Paul, Minnesota. The company traces its origin to Hazel Park Radio and Bicycle Shop, a small Schwinn dealer opened in 1956 by Howard Hawkins and Art Engstrom, where bicycle service was one of several repair tasks alongside skate sharpening, radio tube testing and key cutting. The business states that it has been manufacturing bicycle-specific tools since 1963 and describes itself as the world's largest bicycle tool manufacturer.

From a shop-built repair stand to a product catalogue

The company's founding product came from a practical problem: mechanics typically turned bicycles upside down on the ground and crouched to reach the drivetrain or remove a wheel. Hawkins and Engstrom built a stand, in collaboration with their friend Jim Johnson and using old furniture and automotive parts, that held a bike off the ground and upside down for easier access to any part. The device drew interest from other shop owners, mechanics and the Schwinn Bicycle Company, and was redesigned and released for sale in 1963 as the PRS-1, the Park Repair Stand model number one, first through the Schwinn dealer supply catalogue and later directly from Hazel Park Cycle Center.

During the 1960s and 1970s the range expanded with a wheel truing stand, a double-armed repair stand, a cotter pin remover, spoke wrenches, chain breakers and specialty brake tools. Production continued in the back of the bike shop, which moved to a new 7,000 square foot building in 1966. Hawkins and Engstrom sold the bicycle business in 1981 to concentrate on Park Tool; by then the largest of their three stores had held Top 10 Schwinn Dealer status for 16 consecutive years and the Park Tool catalogue listed 60 unique products.

Scale and product range

As of 2023, the company's 60th year in business, Park Tool reported making over 500 products and selling them in more than 70 countries. It operates from a 100,000 square foot facility a few miles from the site of the former Schwinn store. The catalogue is organised around tools, repair stands, new products, Park Tool gear, e-gift cards and catalogues, and the company also lists product documentation, replacement parts, warranty and order services.

Repair help and published reference material

Beyond manufacturing, Park Tool maintains repair help tutorial content that the company says has accumulated millions of visits to its website and over a hundred million views on YouTube. It also publishes the Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair, of which the company reports hundreds of thousands of copies sold. A Wheel Tension App and a Shop Talk section complement this educational material.

Manufacturing approach

The company states that it has made a concerted effort over the past decade to bring more of its manufacturing in-house than before, and that it updates its product line according to the demands of the industry. Its stated aim, unchanged since the first stand, is to identify the needs of professional and amateur bicycle mechanics and make tools to meet them.