stapfam

I have had a set of aftermarket C.F. bars in the shed for one of my bikes for about 6 months now This is the only one without "Compact" bars and being a bit on the short side- that bike has never really been comfortable. Well today I decided that I had done enough sitting around so on with the fleece- the windproof and another fleece and I would make a start on changing them. Weather is none too warm and the shed felt even colder. Radio on and find the tools. Only two necessary to start with and they are both in one handy tool--4 and 5 mm allen keys. Took the tape off and I was hoping to save it but there is no way that will go back on. Brifters off next and left them dangling after noting the position in relation to the bend in the bars.

Fitted the bars onto the stem and left just enough slack to nudge the bars into position and fitted the brifters. Tightened up just enough so that every thing was held in place. Adjusted the angle of the bars first then roughly located the brifters. Short trip up the road and everything feels fine so I will be riding this bike to the Gym tomorrow to finally check out that everything is in the right place before I tape the bars. Torqued down to correct pressure (2nd click on the wrist as I do not have a torque wrench) and I am ready to go. Checked the cables and I was surprised. This bike is 6 years old and no corrosion and no frays so it has not had that hard a time.

So one job "Jobbed" and it was one I was not looking forward to. Only took about 30 minutes but I still have to tape the bars. That is one job I am not looking forward to as the only bike I have ever done before was the Pinnie--and it took two attempts to get that right.

So why has it taken me so long to undertake a job that needed doing on the bike? Wish I knew but as the wife said--"Garage Next" and that is one I might leave for a little while longer.

skilsaw

Yeah,
Taping handlebars is deceptively difficult.
I watch the guys at the shop who do it all the time, and it looks so simple.
Getting the tension correct on each wrap and the right overlap doesn't sound hard, but for me it is.
However, I will sometimes ride with halfassed handlebar tape for a while before I unwrap it, and do it again. When I finally get it right, I get a little boost of pride each time I ride my bike.

Enjoy the ride.

GeorgeBMac

I hope you enjoy the new carbon bar. I put one on my Trek DS (flat bar) to add hand positions -- but I was amazed at how much more comfortable they made the bike. The vibration mostly went away and now my hands don't go to sleep. The vibration damping was an added bonus that I was not anticipating...

rdtompki

I also have lots of jobs to be put off:
1. replace 20-30 in-cement fence posts
2. paint house, barn, shed
3. remove rocks from an acre or so
4. improve drainage around barn
5. rewire swimming pool equipment
6. add filter to barn water supply

So: Let's see your real list. Bike stuff is easy!

qcpmsame 

Taped the bars for our daughter's R500 yesterday, delivering it to Atlanta Thursday. Next big non-bike jobs: paint the living room, reading room, Monica's office, hallway and our bedroom, then new flooring throughout, save the two bathrooms.

Bill

fietsbob

Lawn has gone dormant for a while..

stapfam

Right the real list

Re-felt the bike shed------Temporary repair done in Septemebr and another section before Christmas.

Drain the bottom of the garden around the chickens due to the Sodden ground not taking any more.

On the Campavan (RV) make and fit the interior completely and replace the Exhaust.Then there is the bodywork that needs some tidying and a couple of new panels.

Dig up paths laid in concrete and replace with something that does not crack with earth movement (We are on Clay that moves all the time)

Fit new liner to the Fish pond but don't think it will be necessary if we have as much rain as last year.

Cut down A couple of trees that are beginning to get too large for a residential environment.


Then there are the Mountain bikes. Both MTB's and the Tandem are in need of complete strip down if they are to be used aggressively offroad again but should be OK for gentle rides.

Other than the bike shed and the RV- none of the jobs are urgent but will just take Time that I might feel could be spent doing something else.

But that job of changing the bars I felt would take a lot longer than it did but finished up being a doddle. All I have to do now is find the workbench before the fine weather comes so I can find the tools that are currently lost which means I can't start any of the other jobs.

Artmo 

Stapfam - from which end did you begin winding the tape? The top of the bar or the bar end?
When I were a lad, growing up in the old country, we always started at the top with a couple of overlaps and ended at the bar end. However, when I got back into biking here in the US some years ago, I found they did it the opposite way( I also noticed they drive on the wrong side of the road) with the need for sticky electrical tape in the center of the bars to hold down the tape ends. This tape eventually becomes unstuck and is a nuisance, not to mention ugly. I stay with the old way and have never had the tape unwind. The most difficult bit for me is making a neat tuck into the bar end and inserting the plug.

qcpmsame 

Art,
Not speaking for Stap, but, like you, I used to wrap the tape starting at the top, over-wrapping the first band to hold it in place and at the bottom I would wrap down and then tuck a small length into the bar, then insert the plugs. Now I have gotten used to the new wrap directions, bottom, with an overlap and wrap to the desired point on top, I use 2" of bar left umwrapped with three turns of electrical tape.

I learned at work from the electricians that there is a difference in the brand and type of electrical tape used. I buy the 3M, type 33, tape, it comes in several colours, I have black and orange rolls in my box, others are available on the shelf at a hardware or home improvement store, if colours are your thing. I found if I wrap the end tape really tightly and wrap directionally clockwise on the right bar and counter- or anti- clockwise on the left bar, looking at the bar from the respective outsides. The end tape is replaced every so often, more so in the summer when I am sweating more to prevent it form coming unstuck when I am riding, you are right, it is a nuisance when that happens. Just seems to wrap tighter the entire length for me doing it bottom to top, YMMV.

BTW, in NW Florida the rural drivers take their half of the road out of the middle, no right or left lanes to worry about for them.

Bill

NOS88

As it is said, practice makes perfect. Right after I decided to get back into cycling, I took an intermediate repair and maintenance course at my LBS. It was two hours early Saturday morning over six weeks. The last Saturday we tackled what the instructor called “the most difficult” task, wrapping handlebars. He patiently walked us through the process and then watched and guided our attempts. No one in the class could come close to his speed and precision. His advice to us was to take a few hours and wrap and re-warp a set of handlebars over and over. I took his advice and spent an entire afternoon wrapping and re-wrapping the bars on one of my bikes. Since then, I’ve been able to do a much better job of getting the bars looking as good as he could. I still struggle with getting the correct tension on the tape when I start. But it only takes a few minutes to realize when I’m using too much or too little. To me it’s a lot like learning to properly use a chef’s knife. I know how it’s supposed to be used, but until I practiced it enough, I was less than proficient. (Of course, you’re not likely to draw blood from nicking yourself while taping up a set of handlebars.)

Ridefreemc

Hope this helps (and works):

https://www.rivbike.com/kb_results.asp?ID=13

I do it a little differently and do not cut the tape behind the brifters and start over. I simply continue with the tape in a single piece.

rydabent

We cyclist in the snow belt get cabin fever if we dont do something. This month I have started maintence on my bent and trike. The Stratus is only getting regular winter maintence plus some new SPD/platform pedals. The trike is getting an new real cluster, two new chain rings, and a rear fender.

This time well spent doing maintence, cleaning, and checking all bolts and nuts. You will be rewarded in the summer with a reliable bike. If you dont, you will find yourself setting along side the roadside asking yourself "could proper preventive maintence precluded this problem"?

stapfam

Bars not wrapped yet But for aesthetics-I would start at the top of the bars as it would lose that couple of turns of Electrical tape. When I get round to it-I will try a couple of times with the cheapest I can find but I am hoping to get the Pinarello tape as I found that easy to put on and look neat. The slight adhesive at the edge of the tape has held it in place since I wrapped it last spring.

But the bar position has to be altered after the ride this morning to the gym. Need coming up a bit and then the Brifters will probably be out so Small adjustments till I get it right. Those new bars are 2 cms wider and when I first pulled away they felt weird. Bit of oversteering for 100 yards but I have settled into them now.

Artmo 

I just don't like electrical tape in the center of the bars, or anywhere for that matter. Aesthetics and all that.

The drivers are the same here SW FL and in town, many can't see over the steering wheel!

qcpmsame 

Art,
That is your thing, no problems there at all. I guess all my years on dirt bikes made this a non-issue for me. I never could get the last bit if tape tucked in neatly enough for my engineer's disease to not make me twitch and shake. A good tape job, whether it is top down or bottom up and all the various mixes of colours and creative wraps, are fun to see, to me.

Bill

Wogster

The reason for starting at the bottom, is that as your hands move, the tape is pushed and unravels. I think the real issue, is the direction you wrap in, whether you go clockwise or anti-clockwise....

NOS88

Hmmm, never thought about it as clockwise or counter-clockwise. I've always kept the mantra, "Wrap toward the frame."

qcpmsame 

Pushing the bar tape up or loosening it has never been a problem for me, I ride on the hoods a lot. if I am in the drops it is in the forward portion, usually. I wrap the right bar clockwise, from the rear and the left bar anti-clockwise. I told you guys I was a strange sort, see........

Bill