Park Tool FR 5 2GT Cassette Lockring Review

It is very difficult to use a regular socket wrench with a crescent wrench because the head keeps slipping out due to the shallow depth. The little blue pin on THIS tool fits snugly into the hole in the hub and holds the tool firmly in place.

I bought this cassette snap ring tool as my old tool had no axle play on the new thru axle bushings. The FR-5.2GT has a large gap and has the cartridge retaining ring fully engaged. The centering pin didn't seem necessary to align the instrument, but it didn't cause any problems either.

This tool is cool! I had a very tight cassette holder ring. I put this snap ring tool in a vise and screwed it in, mounted the wheel on top and then used a pry bar chain whip to finally loosen it. I think a tool with a smaller retaining ring would have broken/failed so I'm glad I spent a few bucks more for quality.

Who can tighten up to 40Nm with a 1" box wrench? And who can bother using a chain whip when the striking tool removes the cartridge retaining ring in half a second without even holding the cartridge? This tool would be great if it supported a 1/2" drive directly, but using a 1" socket to adapt it to something makes it less useful.

I used an old park cassette tool for QR axles and while it works, the tool always tensioned sideways in the locking ring as it was made for quick release of the skewer. This tool works great with my 12mm thru axles and stays nice and straight on the locking ring. A note: I always used a 24mm socket with my old tool, but this new one requires a 1" socket, 24mm was too small.

I had to remove my rear cassette to upgrade the hub on my Shimano 11-34 GRX and no other tool would fit. Hard soviet times, like every other Park Tool product. Fits perfectly in the largest of their sockets and now has the correct tightness down to the Nm reading on the gears with a torque wrench. If you like messing around with your bike and save money on maintenance, this is a great addition to your kit. Have fun driving.