Wrapping handlebar tape

[Dombo]

Re above, is it best to start from the tops and work down to the ends, or vice versa?
Park Tool website suggests starting at the bar ends, but then you have a free bit on the tops needing to be taped down with lecky tape or similar.

[Rob Q]

Bottom up my good man!!!

[Ivor]

I believe Eddy Mercx always taped from the middle down for an elegant finish.
everyone else (me included) tapes up from the bar ends to the middle. Just get some insulation tape coloured to match your tape then trim it at an angle for a lovely finish.

[Dombo]

[quote="Ivor"]I believe Eddy Mercx always taped from the middle down for an elegant finish.
everyone else (me included) tapes up from the bar ends to the middle. Just get some insulation tape coloured to match your tape then trim it at an angle for a lovely finish.

[quote="Dombo"][quote="Ivor"]I believe Eddy Mercx always taped from the middle down for an elegant finish.
everyone else (me included) tapes up from the bar ends to the middle. Just get some insulation tape coloured to match your tape then trim it at an angle for a lovely finish.

[Elliot M]

Bottom up definitely

I think you do it clockwise on the left, anti-clockwise on the right?

[Andrew G]

Other way Elliot.

- Start at the bar end with half a tape width overlapping the end (to be pushed in snug with the bar end when you've finished) and with the start of the tape at the bottom of the bar.
- Wrap whilst pulling taught overlapping approx half the width of the tape all the way.
- Wrapping from the bar end you should be wrapping from inside to outside, so clockwise on the right, anti-clockwise on the left, this means that when riding the bike on the drops if you grip the bars tighter you will, if anything, be tightening the tape to the bars rather than twisting against it and risking undoing it. It is also the way your hands will naturally move, being to rotate out not in on the drops.
- When you get to the brake levers you do a turn tight up against the underneath and then bring the tape round as if to do another wrap but bring it up the inside and over the top of the hood (having first put the little bits of tape behind the levers so no gaps show).
- Continue to wrap along the top of the bars with the half width overlaps.
- When you get towards the end of the tape, or where you want to finish it bring it over as if to do one wrap too many and then cut the tape at a diagonal to finish the end at a taper, this gives a neat finish that's parallel to the stem and not at a jaunty angle.
- Wrap some insulating tape over the end of the tape to seal it off, if you wan to be uber-neat you can apply a little bit of heat gently to the insulating tape and it contracts a bit for an even tidier job.
- Put the bar end plugs in making sure you have all the excess tape tucked in behind, if you do this with a slight twisting motion then it normally makes it a tighter and neater fit.
- Pull the rubber back in place on the levers, all done .

The more you do it the easier it gets and, normally, the neater the finished result. Some tapes are easier than others to use, I've found Stella Azzura the best and the Bontrager and Specialized stuff isn't bad.

[Phil H]

And reverse direction at the brake levers so your hand pressure is tightening the wrap both on the drops and on the top.

[Elliot M]

ah yes - in fact i did do Phil's trick last time, am sure it make the tape last longer as the edges don't end up sticking out on the upper bend of teh bar and getting scuffed

[Phil H]

Final bit of advice: don't put white tape on the winter bike. It'll look nice until you ride it.

Question: What's the best thing for cleaning white handlebar tape?

[Grahame]

[quote="Phil Hawkes"]Final bit of advice: don't put white tape on the winter bike. It'll look nice until you ride it.

Question: What's the best thing for cleaning white handlebar tape?

[Jon H]

[quote="Phil Hawkes"]Question: What's the best thing for cleaning white handlebar tape?

[Mulberry]

In addition to Andrew's very comprehensive reply I recently saw suggestion of placing bar tape on a radiator to heat it up and make it more compliant before fitting - this ties in with one of his comments about heat. I've not tried it but it makes sense.

As for white tape - should be race / summer bike only as it will only turn grey on winter bike. Some white tape cleans better than others. Fizik = good, Pro = bad. You can use the Muc-Off cleaning wipes (pink & white wet-wipe thingies) which work very well to clean up all things white on a bike. Dave K can take credit for this suggestion.

Finally - white is so 2009, Pink is what you want for bar tape........

Marcus

[Ivor]

[quote="Mulberry"]Finally - white is so 2009, Pink is what you want for bar tape........

[Andrew G]

Still got your pink TT fame Ivor .
[quote="Mulberry"]In addition to Andrew's very comprehensive reply