Wrappin’ Rob
So I decided to switch to some Cinelli cork tape recently and put my stock Bianchi tape on Christines newest ride, the Strada LX. This mostly came about because I thought the tan or natural color tape would look dope and bring me one step closer to being….well, dope. So I figured since I was wrapping my bars I’d try a way I heard about from James via Cory ( I think… ) where no visable electrical tape is present. Check the pic….
I started wrapping at the bottom as usual and made my way up to the hood where I stopped at the lever. I cut the tape, leaving enough to wedge up under the hood. Then I started to wrap from the top, tucking the beginning of the tape under the cables and doing a full wrap over that before starting to wind my way down to the hood. Once there I cut the tape again, leaving enough to tuck under the hood. I taped off the two ends of cork with a small strip of electrical tape and then used a small strip to hide the black tape and tucked it under the hood.
I know this isn’t really a new method of wrapping bars, but I was going for an aesthetically pleasing way to match my custom painted panels and stem spacers…..Joke.
All I have to do now is wait for the tape to get all dirty and nasty to match with the earth tones of the rest of the bike. NO, I’m not shellacing the tape James.
Also, I’ve noticed that on my last 20 miler that this tape isn’t really that comfortable. At least compared to the plush foam stuff that came stock on the Volpe. I’m sure I’ll get used to it though.
RobQ
you so want some shellac. once it ‘breaks in’ it develops these cool wear spots whereever you put yer hands the most. cinelli tape isn’t very thick, but i think the feel of the cork makes up for it somewhat.
the job looks good, btw.
The cork does feel really good, I was just used to the plushness of the foam tape. I just put on my clipless pedals this morning too…I like ‘em so far.
I did that wrap job recently with some of the foamy tape on my noodle bars. I noticed that when my hands are on the curve above the hoods, the tape wants to roll up on the edges. My palms are pushing forward on the tape overlap, which causes the edges to roll. When you wrap all the way up, the overlap lays over the layer to the front of it, keeping the edges from rolling up.
Not sure if it gets worse or stops rolling up, given that I switched to mustache bars and wrapped them with cloth tape, so I’m not using those noodle bars anymore.
anyway, thats my rambling 2 cents.
The shellac looks nice. I second that comment. It also might prevent any rolling that John was referencing.
if yer bars are high enough you dont ride in the tops. ha. ok ok thats not for everyone. also: cloth tape doesnt peel like that. cork will, eventually. beausage people: its good for you