Capecodder

I tried some NOS Benotto I have, and have to say....... I do not care for it. It looks reall good, but it is hard on the hands, and slick as ever.

So, what's your all time favorite bar wrap?

OldsCOOL

Bontrager cork/gel. 18.00. It's not C&V but I ride 'em hard and want some degree of comfort on the bars.

fender1

2 layers of cloth tape. Tressostar is the easiest to work with.

khatfull

Cloth: Newbaum's, hands down, about $5 roll.



Non-Cloth: Bike Ribbon Professional (also known as padded), can be had for $6 a box online.

khatfull

Have you tried Newbaum's?

lostarchitect 

Leather, leather and more leather. Sometimes with cloth under it. But leather.

bobbycorno

For looks, Benotto. For function, PRO Smart-Silicon. Tho' tan Cinelli cork will always have a place in my heart.

SP
Bend, OR

auchencrow

Bike Ribbon Pro for padded tape for most 80's bikes,
Tressostar for older ones.

(I agree Tressostar is easier to install than Newbaums, though the latter has some unique colors.)

Capecodder

I have not used cloth tape in 30 years, and from what I remember it was not so pleasant.

khatfull

To ride or wrap? If to wrap...try Newbaum's. Hey, you trusted me on the Club right??

khatfull

Dang, really? I thought Tressostar was a pain in the fricketyfrickfrackfruckfrick

AZORCH

Cloth: Newbaum's (or Tressostar doubled up) and I prefer to shellac my cloth wrap on 70's and earlier

Not cloth: Fizik Microtex on 80's and later

Capecodder

This question is more to do with ride then wrap........

robatsu

The Newbaum's does wrap very easily. One of the things that makes it easier is that it is a little narrower than has been customary for cloth tape. The Viva stuff from Japan is right behind it in ease of installation and is conventional width.

I like stitch on leather handlbar covers. Not the puffy elkhide stuff from VO, but the thin, finely finished stuff like Almarc in the old days and what you can find once in a while from Toshi these days.

Cork for pure comfort, but really, I don't feel that it is some huge qualitative difference. Sometimes I like the feel of a solid, hard, handlebar, makes me feel very connected to the road & bike. Nicely padded gloves further dispense w/comfort issues but I skip them a lot in my efforts not to be dependent on cycling-specific apparel.

Cloth tape & shellac is really nice, but I don't put the 6 coats or so a lot of people recommend. 3, maybe 4 tops, and after a bit, it seems to resemble leather in its characteristics.

There aren't really any clear favorites that I reject everything else, I don't think anything kills in all the categories that one judges this product upon.

khatfull

Curious, do you ride with gloves?

well biked

Cinelli cork, black.

Henry III

I like the perforated cork tape Deda makes. Though it's a bit fragile and can't be pulled tight.

khatfull

That's the cool thing about that Bike Ribbon Pro, you can hardly break the stuff. And, if you want a softer wrap, wrap a little more loosely. If you want it a little thinner, crank down on it.

And it's the easiest tape in the world to keep clean...the white works real good for that reason.

(No, I don't own stock...)

TurbineBlade

hockey stick tape.

It's cheap and it sucks, but it's cheap.

Capecodder

I ride in the nude......... (no gloves).

Old Fat Guy

On all of my bikes, sold under a variety of names:

auchencrow

You can't wet-out Newbaums to get a good old-fashioned tight wrap.
(Well I suppose you can but you have to remove the carrier first )

Capecodder

Does it have a name?

BluesDaddy

I was not crazy about the Bike Ribbon (not Pro) I got recently. It wasn't true Navy Blue like it was supposed to be and I really dislike adhesive bar tape.

Profile cork has never let me down.

BluesDaddy

Have you ever used it as a rim strip? That's something I've been meaning to try.