I am looking for a suggestion for home made bar tape padding. I am using cotton tape which will be shellacked for aesthetic reasons, plus its nice and grippy. But no padding. I want something like this https://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=
but I don't feel like waiting for shipping. I saw a similar item at the lbs but it was rediculously overpriced. There must be some thing I can use from around the house/hardware store to do the same function. I poste d this in road cycling but figured more people here actually use cotton tape so maybe someone else has done this before?

Will the padding make the grip flexible enough to crack the shellack?
I've never tried shellac, but I do use 2 layers of cotton bar tape. Works great.
Good luck!

Shellac over cotton tape over gel tape:

https://community.webshots.com/photo/...68014369jHohCP

You could also use an inner tube for padding.

an old inner tube, exactly the sort of idea i was looking for. Your bike looks good, and I really like that seatpost. What is it?

That's a Control Tech post. They only come in black. I stripped and polished it.

I use an old tube, preferably a thin one. Works great.

I wonder if you could form your own pads by using some silicone caulk. ? Would have to form it on a piece of tape in order to apply to the bars since it's acidic
and then you'd have to bridge the silicone with tape anchored to the clean bar to give the cork something to stick to to help keep it in place a little better than with friction alone
But silicone is nice and flexible/soft

I see these gel pads placed where you rest your palms

I think I'd be more interested in some squishy pads where you grip the bars with your fingers in order to get a really good grip when sprinting or going downhill.