Brifter hoods and bar tape issue
 

!!! MAJOR UPDATE !!!
I did some experimentation, and came up with a way to wrap the bar tape which doesn’t cover up any of the indentations in the brifter body.
The key is to start wrapping just behind the brifter clamp, and go outwards towards both top and bottom.

First put a small piece of wrap behind the brifter clamp as usual:
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...28cbf65b2.jpeg
Now place the bar tape onto here, diagonally slanted like this:

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...964e1d0e6.jpeg
You probably want to have 1/3 of the tape for the lower run and 2/3 for the upper.
Now start wrapping both towards the top and bottom
Top:
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4db9ae367.jpeg
Bottom:

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4d435228c.jpeg
Finished product:
Note that none of the indents are covered:
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...319d71b9a.jpeg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...1727237a9.jpeg
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...e81430c0a.jpeg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...9303f3837.jpeg



original post:

I was putting these Claris R2030 brifters on my bike and I notice that there are a bunch of protrusions on the inside of the brifter hoods:

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4028b4ce3.jpeg
they are supposed to go into corresponding indents on the brifter body. But as you can see - many of these indents are covered up by the bar tape. I already re-wrapped the tape to avoid the larger indents but numerous smaller ones remain covered up.
What are you supposedly to do here? I ended up slicing off some of the protrusions with a knife but I don’t think that is what Shimano meant for you to do.

Don't wrap so far up the base of the STI unit. The tape only needs to go up far enough so that the hood covers the edge.

+1 Simply don't cover the indentations on the shifters with the tape.

How do you do the figure-8 bar wrapping, without covering up those locations?

Tape usually comes with two short sections that you wrap from side to side.

Most sets of bar tape come with two strips that you stick around the bend, temporarily held by the adhesive, then overlap it with your regular tape. No need to 'figure eight' it. Don't worry about covering up the smaller holes towards the rear where the indents offset.

One option is to use the little 3" stripes of tape that come with the rolls and don't figure 8.

6:40...

I actually use the technique he recommends in 8:11 (the non-figure-8 figure-8), but it most certainly does cover up some holes. Basically you are pulling up a bar tape's width worth of tape over the brifter body so I am not seeing how you can avoid covering some indents.

So you guys don't reverse direction between the drops and the tops? Is that whole figure-8 thing out of fashion now?

With vinyl or cloth but padded tape is too thick.

I 'figure 8' every bar I wrap. I start pulling out on the drop, figure 8 at the SHIFTER, end up pulling forward on the tops. The only tape that is a problem is the 2 thicker sizes of Lizard Skins DSP, the 3.2mm and 4.5mm.

And if the tape doesn't come with them, you can usually cut 3" off each roll and still have plenty.

FWIW I have covered up the indentations unintentionally before and didn't even notice it after putting the hoods back in place and riding. Not a big deal unless it's bothering you for some reason.

I made an update to the first post- I found a way to wrap the bar which doesn’t cover the indentations, and also reverses the overlap for the drops so that it follows the same pattern as the hoods.

I was today years old when I realized you could do this. I always 'figure eight' it, but I often have trouble getting it so that the bar is perfectly wrapped. I will be definitely using this method the next time I have to wrap my bars.

Still a fail. On the drops, you've got the tape's edge facing upward; if you use the drops much, those edges will soon start to roll downward and look like crap.

Start at the bottom, roll toward the top, and just wrap the shifters without covering the little notches. It's not difficult.

But your hand would be pushing forward on the drops, no different than when your hand is on the hood, right? Does your hand pull backwards on the drops?

As I said before- it's impossible to do a traditional figure-8, or one-sided-figure-8, without covering up at least some of the indentations on this R2000 brifter. Whereas with this new method, it's very easy to avoid all the indentations. I did it the first time around, no contortions at all. The other benefit is that it's less bulky than figure-8.

With your hands in the drops, there is downward pressure on the bar. This is why handlebars are wrapped from the bottom towards the top -- so that the edges are facing downward in the drops; as you've now done it, your hands will be pushing the tape's edges downward, and hence it won't last as long before getting tatty.

Seriously, go into ANY bike shop on the planet and look at the new bikes -- I can practically guarantee that you will not find a single one with the drops wrapped as in your photos. Nor will you find a single "how to" video that wraps from the hoods downward. So don't kid yourself into believing that you've come up with a superior solution. But it's your bike, and your wrap. Knock yourself out.

btw, I have Shimano shifters on all of my geared bikes, and wrap them from the bottom up, and have never had the issues you're describing. You need to stop worrying about this 'figure eight' stuff and just wrap 'em. I couldn't even tell you how I do it, but it's easy, doesn't interfere with the hoods, and works fine. No bulkiness.

If you are talking about the part of the bar just behind the brake levers, I can agree that it is downward pressure. But the part of the drops that is further back and closer to the rider is similar to the hoods area- your hand pressure is pushing forward.
People do it the way it's typically done because:
1. People have this binary thinking of either starting from the bottom or starting from the top. They don't think of starting from the middle and going out towards both ends.
2. If you wrap from bottom up, you are favoring the hoods area. If you wrap from the top down, you are favoring the drops area. Most people spend most of their time on the hoods. Hence bottom up. It's a compromise. Whereas if you start from the middle like I am doing here, it works for both the drops and the hood. No compromise necessary.

Okey dokey.

Wrap your bars and ride your bike. If you need to re-wrap, do so. It is not the science of the rocket, here.

If you like what you do and no one is hurt, just do it.

None of this is true, and wrapped properly from the bottom up, there is no compromise. But like others have said, you do you.

I think its neat that you are trying something different.
At the same time, I have never really felt the way I do it is lacking in any manner. I dont figure-8 bar tape because the thick tape when figure-8 routed just ends up making the hood area bulbously large. Thinner tape has resulted in good wrapping with the figure-8 wrap.

Pro Tip: Make sure you still have plenty before cutting off the 3" strips. Ask me how I learned this :-)

If you have the same color of your old tape you can cut a piece out of that. It will be mostly covered anyway.