I used this tape on 2 bikes already. Don't be afraid to pull back and give it another go if you mess up. I start on the outside and overlap a bit more in the places my hands hang out the most.

Shown Bontrager Cork.



Make sure your overlap is consistant in both distance and direction on the flat areas.

Shown: Cinelli Cork. Comfortable but difficult to wrap since it tears easily.

Thanks everyone for your advice! I went from the outside-in, changing directions for the other bar. It could have been better, and there's a few lumps, but i still couldn't be happier. Right after I finished I went for a sprint (it's -2 here) at 3am and my hands felt GOOD, not frigid. Definitely made my bike 125019286350918734x better.

Pics, cause this is the internet:



I was going to leave some excess on the ends and stuff the bar cap/brake over them to keep it snug but in the end i went for cutting my pieces on the diagonal to have a perfect wrap.

The point isnt obvious here, since we're talking for the benefit of the guy who is wondering what size handlebars to get. I don't know whether all fit formulas are "good starting points" but it's true that this particular one will give you a number that will probably work ok, and it is probably less likely to cause problems than some of the other formulas. But it's misleading to bring it up when someone is asking for advice, and leave it at that.

Good job, looks good!

nice job OP. Looks pretty good. I am cheap, I only wrap the horns and not the centers of my bars because I don't put my hands on the centers. If you find that this is how you rid also, then you can wrap just the "horns" with a single roll of tape (split evenly between the sides), and have wrap enough for the next time your bars need new tape. Nice work for a first-time wrap job.

The narrower the bars, the easier they get through doors, strairwells, and hallways.

I ride with 39cm bars, and they feel good cruising around; however, if I get out of the saddle, the narrower bars require a little more coordination than wide bars.

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Several riders have stated that one should wrap from the bar ends to the stem, and expressed it as a given obvious.
I don't see the obvious.
Why not wrap from the stem to the bar ends?

Further, someone advised to wrap in the direction that one's hands would tend to tighten the tape while climbing.
What does that mean?

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I use bar tape on both my bars and on my top tube.

I presently use Cinelli cork tape.

Does anyone know of a tape that has more padding than Cinelli's, did they use it, and how well does it work?

Put your hands out on the horns, they would have a natural tendency to twist outwards. This is the same direction you want to wrap the bars so that you're twisting action would be pulling the tape tighter.

I've never found a good padded tape, best results have been obtained by wrapping a layer of inner tube beneath the tape.

Fizik Gel Pads under the wrap works well too. Makes aluminum bars feel like carbon bars.

I don't think I was being misleading at all. If you had the attention span to read my post past the first couple sentences, you'd see that such a formula didn't work for me, and now I'm stuck with slightly uncomfortable bars.

Here's some solid advice: everything is subjective, and nobody can help you.

OK, my bad.

Dunno if it has more padding than Cinelli, but I've used Profile Design synthetic cork gel tape. Very cushy, and surprisingly durable.

I use the Cinelli gel cork on my road bike. I've found it's a bit more durable and cushy than the regular cork. My track bike has Deda tape which is synthetic and a bit more spongy and grippy.

I was considering that (especially since the thickness of the bars gets all wonky at the centres) but I ride there way too often to leave it bare. It's a good idea, I may do that for my summer wrap and be frugal with the tape. And plus half-taped bars will give me that "old-school track" feeling i've been chasing.

What's gel tape like? I've only ridden foam and synthetic cork, which is what this tape was made out of. Any soft materials with a clothy texture for better grip?

Gel tape is basically cork and synthetic foam mixed together. I have used Cinelli Cork Gel and Bontrager tape. Both work well. Cinelli lasts longer, but is not a cushy and rips easily if you pull the tape too tight. Bontrager is cushy-er out of the box, wraps super easy and smooth, and is really stretchy so ripping is not a problem.

I don't ride w/o gloves so can't comment on tape with better grip. I have not used cloth tape for close to 15 years! Best I can remember, it was not very comfortable.

I wrap all my bars starting at the stem with the roll of tape coming toward you (if you're on your bike) as you pull it under the bar. Much cleaner look w/o the electrical tape plus once the tape starts to fray at the turn of the bar, the rest is ready for replacement anyway.

One more thing, since bar tape is sold to cover drops, you have a lot more than you need. I like to wrap the turn forward with extra overlap to use up the tape and create a cushy spot in the spot where i put the most weight on my bullhorns.