If you own a bike, you need a flat-fixing kit. It’s really that simple.Sure, maybe you’ll get lucky and get a flat close to a shop, or the buses will be running on time for once, but even with all that going for you, getting stranded will cost you time, money, and precious sanity.(If you’re running tubeless tires filled with sealant, you may feel immune to flats. Still, we’ve never regretted having a flat-fixing kit with us, even in those circumstances.)You can put together a great kit in less time than it takes to read this guide.We sorted through 40 tire levers, almost 30 different kinds of patches, and nearly 60 seat bags before we narrowed our choices for testing.And then we changed and patched tires more than 50 times, using four different bikes, five different wheels, six different tires, and almost 10 different sizes of tubes.After more than 100 hours of combined testing, we agree these essentials are some of the best you can buy.