Handlebar Tape

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Mick F
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by Mick F »

NATURAL ANKLING wrote:Hi,
Start at the bar ends !

Yes, but they need to be clockwise on the right and anticlockwise on the left. All the way to the stem.
Mick F. Cornwall
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NATURAL ANKLING
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by NATURAL ANKLING »

Hi,
Mick F wrote:
NATURAL ANKLING wrote:Hi,
Start at the bar ends !

Yes, but they need to be clockwise on the right and anticlockwise on the left. All the way to the stem.

Yep ok, I don't ride drops today like I used to and that was when cloth was fashionable.
So I don't re-tape that often, its normally for cosmetic / aesthetic reasons.
I at first think that its logical to wind up because you let your hands drift or drop down the bars, you don't claw the tape if you raise your hands, just move one up and then the other.
So wear with weight is downwards?

Unless you are modern fashionable with STI's.............never tried or owned drop bar STI at all.
Every rider I see is on the hoods, I still use all the drop bars.
I think the OP's tape seems to have worn out fast / is that tape long lasting? / other I don't know.

I have found that 99p as side synthetic cork tape from china very good, I rate it.
I had to pay over a tener far a particular colour but not much between the quality.
NA Thinks Just End 2 End Return + Bivvy - Some day Soon I hope
You'll Still Find Me At The Top Of A Hill
Please forgive the poor Grammar I blame it on my mobile and phat thinkers.
londonbikerider
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by londonbikerider »

scottg wrote:
londonbikerider wrote:Am I the only one that is fine with the humble "black cork" tape for £6-7 every couple of years, without going in spending £25-40 in fancy bar tape twice a year?[snip]


Won't pay 6 quid for tape that only lasts a couple years, what a waste. :wink:
2£ for a couple rolls on ancient stock Cateye cloth is good, shellac it
well and it should last till you're tired of looking at it.


I like a little bit of cushioning, cloth tape gets tatty and does almost nothing against vibrations.
Another winning point for the common "cork" tape, is that it can be easily cleaned with both washing-up liquid or Swarfega.

Shellac on the handlebars? Then what do you do if/when have to move or replace the levers? Sounds like a lot of trouble to me, I can surely splash £7 every two years :-)
Samuel D
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by Samuel D »

You’ll get to know scottg, londonbikerider. He often mocks CTC members’ legendary reluctance to spend money. He does it gently and humourously but often enough that I do sometimes wonder if economy slightly annoys him.
TRM
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by TRM »

Mick F wrote:
NATURAL ANKLING wrote:Hi,
Start at the bar ends !

Yes, but they need to be clockwise on the right and anticlockwise on the left. All the way to the stem.


I've always "swapped" directions after the brake levers so that the natural pull of ones hands when riding on the tops tightens the tape. As shown on the park tool website.

https://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/handlebar-tape-installation-drop-bars
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Gattonero
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by Gattonero »

Wrapping bar tape it's not rocket science, but doing it the appropriate way can make life a bit easier.

I.e., old bikes with non-aero levers can use the handlebar tape starting from the tops, and taking the levers off so to not move -and likely crack- those hard rubber hoods.

But on modern bikes, especially when having both brake and gear cables running under the tape, it really makes sense to start the tape from the bottom of the drops.
This has got two advantages. For a start, on those bikes the user is likely to spend 90% of its time with the hands on the hoods and the tops. If the tape was started from the top of the bars, it overlaps in a way that its border stays up and will be moved when the rider is constantly moving front the tops to the hoods. I see many times the bar tape all curled up when wrapped this way.
The second advantage you have, is that when in need of replacing a cable, and it WILL happen with modern shifters, you have to undo only a portion of the tape and not the whole of it.
It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best,
since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them.
Thus you remember them as they actually are...
robc02
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by robc02 »

londonbikerider wrote:Am I the only one that is fine with the humble "black cork" tape for £6-7 every couple of years, without going in spending £25-40 in fancy bar tape twice a year?


No. .... and I make mine last more than a couple of years!

On my most used commuter I have moved back to plastic bike ribbon - as well as being cheap it is durable, reusable and looks and feels fine. Am I the only one that misses buying this by the metre off a roll at the local bike shop? (Wrapped from the top down and held in place by an expanding bung - so no bits of sticky tape to come undone 8) ).
Brucey
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by Brucey »

robc02 wrote:….On my most used commuter I have moved back to plastic bike ribbon - as well as being cheap it is durable, reusable and looks and feels fine. Am I the only one that misses buying this by the metre off a roll at the local bike shop? (Wrapped from the top down and held in place by an expanding bung - so no bits of sticky tape to come undone 8) ).


that is pretty much what I do too. Never seen it on a jumbo sized reel though!

FWIW on such bikes I use the tops and ramps much more than the drops so I tend to wind the tape nice and tight with a generous overlap on the top of the bars. Thing is, on the bends you can end up with nearly all the adhesive being against the previous turn and none against the handlebar. I therefore use a strip of thin double sided tape to help secure the bar tape. I also tape the bars with something thin before the main tape, to help prevent corrosion of the handlebars.

cheers
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Brucey~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
robc02
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by robc02 »

Brucey wrote:
robc02 wrote:….On my most used commuter I have moved back to plastic bike ribbon - as well as being cheap it is durable, reusable and looks and feels fine. Am I the only one that misses buying this by the metre off a roll at the local bike shop? (Wrapped from the top down and held in place by an expanding bung - so no bits of sticky tape to come undone 8) ).


that is pretty much what I do too. Never seen it on a jumbo sized reel though!

FWIW on such bikes I use the tops and ramps much more than the drops so I tend to wind the tape nice and tight with a generous overlap on the top of the bars. Thing is, on the bends you can end up with nearly all the adhesive being against the previous turn and none against the handlebar. I therefore use a strip of thin double sided tape to help secure the bar tape. I also tape the bars with something thin before the main tape, to help prevent corrosion of the handlebars.

cheers


I know what you mean about the adhesive being against the previous turn, but it has never caused me a problem. Maybe because I use much the same technique as for the stuff from a big roll - it had no adhesive so relied on being pulled good and tight!
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Gattonero
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by Gattonero »

Brucey wrote:
robc02 wrote:….On my most used commuter I have moved back to plastic bike ribbon - as well as being cheap it is durable, reusable and looks and feels fine. Am I the only one that misses buying this by the metre off a roll at the local bike shop? (Wrapped from the top down and held in place by an expanding bung - so no bits of sticky tape to come undone 8) ).


that is pretty much what I do too. Never seen it on a jumbo sized reel though!

FWIW on such bikes I use the tops and ramps much more than the drops so I tend to wind the tape nice and tight with a generous overlap on the top of the bars. Thing is, on the bends you can end up with nearly all the adhesive being against the previous turn and none against the handlebar. I therefore use a strip of thin double sided tape to help secure the bar tape. I also tape the bars with something thin before the main tape, to help prevent corrosion of the handlebars.

cheers


Corrosion is a wild card, from the material to the finish of the handlebars, to the amount and type of sweat the user will produce.
Using gloves is the first step, and washing the bar tape the best way to keep things clean and lasting.
The backing adhesive of the tape can differ enormously, from super sticky ones, to gooey, or the strong ones that would crumble the bar tape in bits when you're on the task to remove it.
It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best,
since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them.
Thus you remember them as they actually are...
LittleGreyCat
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by LittleGreyCat »

Just a quick query on bungs.

The plastic push in ones are almost the same price as the ones with a hex key and expanding wedge.

Is there any reason not to use bar end bungs with the hex key and expanding wedge?
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NATURAL ANKLING
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by NATURAL ANKLING »

Hi,
I think push in bungs don’t always stay in place.
I think in the past if I remember correctly I placed a bit of tape Cloth or similar the inside of the Bar end.
Thus making the hole a bit smaller and tighter on the bung.
I only use expanding bungs with a screw.
I don’t normally tape Into the hole with overlap.
NA Thinks Just End 2 End Return + Bivvy - Some day Soon I hope
You'll Still Find Me At The Top Of A Hill
Please forgive the poor Grammar I blame it on my mobile and phat thinkers.
robc02
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by robc02 »

NATURAL ANKLING wrote:Hi,
I think push in bungs don’t always stay in place.
I think in the past if I remember correctly I placed a bit of tape Cloth or similar the inside of the Bar end.
Thus making the hole a bit smaller and tighter on the bung.
I only use expanding bungs with a screw.
I don’t normally tape Into the hole with overlap.


+1 for expanding bungs.

I usually tape (with the bar tape, not an additional piece) into the hole at the end of the bar. It needs a bit of experimentation to get the right fit for the bung but I prefer the result.
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fausto99
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by fausto99 »

NATURAL ANKLING wrote:I have found that 99p as side synthetic cork tape from china very good, I rate it.
I had to pay over a tenner far a particular colour but not much between the quality.

Where'd you get that then? Do tell.
scottg
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Re: Handlebar Tape

Post by scottg »

LittleGreyCat wrote:Just a quick query on bungs.

The plastic push in ones are almost the same price as the ones with a hex key and expanding wedge.

Is there any reason not to use bar end bungs with the hex key and expanding wedge?


I prefer wine corks, use 1/2 a cork for each side. (always seem to be a ready supply :) )
Note, I'm using cloth tape, cork tape is too thick for cork plugs.
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