Classic & Vintage - match bartape to a brooks saddle

Has anyone matched their bartape to a brooks saddle in antique brown? I have a brooks team professional saddle on my benotto and I want to shellac some cloth bar tape to match it. I found this link:
http://www.mindspring.com/~d.g1/shellac.html
but he is matching to the honey saddles so I was wondering if I should use a tape other than yellow to get the brown color or if I should just do more coats. Any thoughts/help are appreciated.

Form follows function.

Are you going to ride it? Or hang it on a wall?

I was thinking that shellac would reduce function, but I stand corrected...

Applying shellac to handlebars wrapped with cotton bar tape was popular with the French back in the first half of this century, especially with tourists. It leaves a beautiful, long lasting finish. Unlike other bar wraps that only last a season of riding before needing to be replaced, shellac'd bars can last decades. The shellac provides a protective, texturized coat to the bars. If it wears, you can quickly apply another coat of shellac for a like new finish. Shellac is also environmentally friendly and non-toxic, in fact candy is often coated with shellac.
Stop licking your handlebars!

why not just get some tan bar tape?

One solution I've seen is using
Tennis racket tape. Simulated leather and you could
match almost any colour. I haven't seen Shellaced handle
bar tape in a while, there were some post about it on CR list
you should do a search at:
http://search.bikelist.org/
(be sure to search ClassicRendezvous list only).

Marty

...ignoring all the taunts and name-calling and getting to the point:

Try brown cotton tape and amber shellac. I've taped and shellaced in a few combinations, and this one seems to produce a nice deep rich brown, very close to the color of an antique brown Brooks; it almost even looks like leather after 7-8 coats. Brown cotton tape is a little difficult to come by, but I see that Riv has some in stock. Get 4 rolls if you haven't used cotton tape before--it's less forgiving than cork or spongy tapes.

Have fun--after all, that's what it's about.

Has anyone matched their bartape to a brooks saddle in antique brown? I have a brooks team professional saddle on my benotto and I want to shellac some cloth bar tape to match it. I found this link:
http://www.mindspring.com/~d.g1/shellac.html
but he is matching to the honey saddles so I was wondering if I should use a tape other than yellow to get the brown color or if I should just do more coats. Any thoughts/help are appreciated.

Try starting with brown cloth tape. Cateye used to make some. I think Rivendell probably still sells it, but if you can't find any, I still have a few rolls. With 2-3 coats of shellac, it should probably look pretty good (I've never shellaced the brown, so not sure about the color match). BTW- anyone who doesn't appreciate the look of shellaced bars may have never seen any; they're quite cool, and very functional.... To some people (like me), doing this stuff IS having a life... ;)

Form follows function.

Are you going to ride it? Or hang it on a wall?

You may want to do a little research on cloth tape, and using shellac on it... It's one of the longest lasting, most functional AND good looking ways of applying a grippable surface to your bars!

Here are some I just shellaced over two layers of red cloth, done to match the red lettering of the frame (yes, this will be a rider, not a wall flower):

Garrett Wade and other woodworking outfits sell different grades of shellac that are different colors. They also sell non-toxic dies to allow subtle staining. The catch is that a minimum order would probably outfit you for the next 30 bikes, but it isn't too expensive.

www.rivbike.com
These guys know. Call them. They'll be very happy to talk to you. They've had instructions in the Rivendell Reader awhile back that address exactly what you're looking to do.

I hate to say this, but why not just order a long strip of tanned leather or suede and use that as bar tape? Cushioning, long lasting, plus it's real leather.

One-stop shopping for shellac: http://www.shellac.net/

John D.

This might be all you need. I've never done it, but there is a crowd riders who swear by this method.

http://d.g1.home.mindspring.com/shellac.html

FYI I deleted all the off topic posts. If anyone REALLY wants to
see them PM me and I'll put them back.

Marty

thanks everyone. gonna do it this weekend. i think theres a shop here in philly that'll have the brown cotton tape