Handle for Pedal Taps

The Handle for Pedal Taps is the bar that turns a thread-chase or thread-cut operation from a hand-pressure job into a controlled leverage job. The crank arm is aluminum, the pedal thread is 9/16" × 20 TPI, and the alignment on the first turn determines whether the tap cuts cleanly or cross-threads. The right handle holds the tap square; a wrench-on-shank substitute holds it whatever-way.

The 1695/4BI handle has a magnetic-collet engagement that grips the square shank of the pedal tap set, the left reaming tap, or the right reaming tap. The magnetic engagement keeps the tap centered in the handle without play. A non-magnetic handle would let the tap drift; the drift compounds into off-axis thread cutting.

What the handle actually changes

Two things. First, leverage. The handle is long enough to apply controlled torque without lunging at it; important because the first turn of a thread cut requires fine torque control, and a short or slippery handle costs you that control. Second, alignment. The square-collet grip keeps the tap perpendicular to the work face throughout the cut. A handle that lets the tap pivot in the grip cuts the thread at a slight angle, which a pedal will thread into but not bottom out against.

The same handle works for our M3 frame taps, M5 frame taps, and the BSA bottom-bracket tap set. The square-shank standard on Unior's thread-cutting tools means one handle covers the whole thread-rescue workflow.

Where it fits in the Crank Saver workflow

The 1695/4BI handle ships separately, but it's one of the four components of the Crank Saver Kit (the others being the left reaming tap, right reaming tap, and pedal-thread inserts). For a shop that already has the taps and inserts, the handle is the part to add. For a shop starting from zero, the complete Crank Saver Kit is the single-purchase path into the full pedal-thread-rescue workflow.

Specs

• Magnetic-collet square-shank engagement
• Compatible with all 1695-series taps
• Article number: 1695/4BI

Built in Zreče, Slovenia

Unior has been forging hand tools in Zreče since 1919, and is the official technical partner of multiple World Tour and downhill teams. The 1695/4BI is part of Unior's broader machinist hand-tool catalog, which includes thread-tap handles across pitch ranges that go well beyond bicycle thread sizes. The bicycle subset is the same construction at the size that the workshop actually needs.

Pro tip from our mechanics

The handle's magnetic grip is what makes the alignment feel obvious as you start the cut. A loose handle on a small-pitch tap feels deceptively similar to a square one; you only learn the difference after the first cross-thread. Our workshop hand tools guide covers the pedal-thread-rescue workflow and the rest of the workshop tool layer: Workshop hand tools every bike shop needs →