Originally Posted by
gugie
I didn't clean mine, but they could use some brightening! Using hot water to soften the hoods is a smart move, I'll await your Blech-White results, thanks for posting the details!
Originally Posted by
daka
I think I've "cleaned" them with a light wipe of Acetone. I put "cleaned" in quotes since with Acetone you may just be removing the top layer. Try it in an inconspicuous place first.
Results are in,
photo(s) to follow; the Bleche-White works (I think this stuff was used to clean wheels on Roman chariots BITD so it's clearly C&V). (A) I did this in the laundry tub with a new toothbrush, figuring a steady stream of water for rinsing. DO NOT DO THIS. the fumes are a bit strong, even wearing goggles my eyes were irritated for a few hours afterwards. (B) Figuring I'd have to re-soak in hot water to soften them for reinstallation, so I made extra sure to scrub the oxide (?) off the
inside of the hoods so it does not re-stain the
outside. They are a nice creamy white I presume OEM color, not quite the blinding white of, say the handlebar plugs.
Now I have to make a decision. The included "fat" ferrules are plastic, I have encountered them before a long time ago. But elsewhere on the forum I read "
do not use plastic ferrules", do they fail in service? While looking for ferrules, I saw Velo Orange had Dia-COmpe metal adjusters, that's neat, and I got a set. But that means opening up the top hole in the hoods with a Dremel
with the risk that goes along with it.
Originally Posted by
bertinjim
tiger1964- The tape looks good and seems an excellent match against the head tube paint. The gel pads give the bars a nicely chunky look without the poor results often seen with gel tapes. The white plugs are small in diameter. It took two wraps of tape on each plug to bulk the plugs up to where they would stay in the ends of my Cinelli Giro d'Italia bars on the Carlton.
I thought I was under-overwrapping (is that a word?) the tape, not a huge amount of overlap perhaps 1/4 to 1/3 of tape width, and still I had 1"-2" left over on each side. Perhaps I have some scraps of old Tressostar in one of the parts boxes.
Originally Posted by
daka
The Carlton hoods are AMAZING in their durability compared to gum hoods.
Good to know; well, all gum hoods everywhere seem to "perish" eventually. But they do not seem as "squishy" as gum hoods. Perhaps this is not critical.