Drillium Dude 

Verrrrry nice! Are those Yokozuma cable housings? Whatever they are, they sure complete the total package nicely

DD

tiger1964 

This looks interesting, but I've recently discovered the benefits of gel pads on the bars under the tape. I'd presume that shellac'ed tape is rigid and would not interact all that well with he cushioning effect of the pads (like, it might crack). Or is that a false presumption?

gugie 

I've found that my hands need a larger diameter bar, so I build them up before the final tape layer. You are partially correct, shellac'ed tape won't play well with gel, but it won't crack. Technically shellac'ed cloth handlebar tape is a composite material, just like a carbon fiber frame.

unworthy1

But unlike CF, it has "soul".

and yes, more flexibility, I would think.

gugie 

Shellac on cloth tape is laterally stiff and vertically compliant.

Big Block

Good thread with excellent instructions.
I shellac my cloth tape.
I use cotton haberdashery "header" tape which is without the adhesive backing, and I use a small amount of double-sided tape on the bare handlebars. I use lengths longer than the precut handlebar tape rolls, as this allows me to get my overlaps as I want. Then trim any excess length.
I dampen the tape prior to wrapping to allow for stretching when damp, and it tightens up when dry.
To minimise any movement of the tape over time I use shellac, either amber or clear or a mixture depending on the colour change sought. And only sufficient to achieve that stability is used as I like the overlaps and cloth texture to remain. I also use cycling gloves.
The original owner of this bike scoffed at shellac, saying old racers simply removed the tape when it got dirty, washed the tape and let the tape dry then reinstalled it. So when he retired from riding and gifted the bike, I could not make the shellac obvious. Bob didn't notice!

When the tape gets too much patina for my taste it is removed and replaced using the same steps above. It is a cheap consumable item.

Drillium Dude 

Oh no you didn't!

Shots fired....

DD

Drillium Dude 

Agreed. In fact, although these bars were not shellacked, note the weave and imagine what the tape would look like with a semi-gloss coat of shellac:



Almost exactly like a carbon fiber weave, IMHO.

DD

Drillium Dude 

That old saw never gets old 'round these here parts, does it?



DD

Drillium Dude 

Well, first thing's first: beautiful bike! Never heard of that builder; care to share some background? After all, it's my thread, so I suppose I'm well within my rights to allow - even request - a hijack

Secondly: great points made here. I only once pre-soaked bar tape in water, and that was out of necessity. I used to rely on Tressostar, but that stuff is notoriously short out of the box - and I ride deep-drop Cinelli Campione del Mondo bars. In normal use, I found Tressostar just barely long enough to get to the end of the bar, and even then, I had to be overly precise with my overlaps in order to get the bar completely covered. When I soaked a pair of rolls, I had excess tape once I was finished - precisely for the reason you shared.

I think that stuff was a bit more color-fast than Newbaum's - but then again, Newbaum's is plenty long enough. Shellac takes care of the lack of color-fastness, and Newbaum's feels a bit thicker than Tressostar, too.

Thanks for sharing your photo and thoughts!

DD

Big Block

I documented the project in this thread https://www.bicycles.net.au/forums/v...p?f=23&t=88324
DD you may be amused by the opening words in that thread "shellac or not?" Click the link when you have a little time to spare.

Drillium Dude 

Thanks for the link!

I will definitely give it a look tonight. The colorway is gorgeous, as I'm sure the rest of the bike is, too

DD

CV-6 

Lightning Cables from MCS BMX. I just noticed they had a purple cable that might have been interesting. But gold is good.

Ligntning Brake Cables

Drillium Dude 

Thanks for that link! I'm thinking gold for the Colnago and red for the Medici.

I'll leave the Bianchi to stand alone with Campy grey

DD

unworthy1

..."shellac or not?"

wschruba

Even better, french polished.

tiger1964 

At the risk of topic drift, the photo below really got my attention; I've wrapped countless bars, both mine and working at a shop... and never seen this. Huh -- remove the lever housings, leaving the mounting bands in place, wrap the bars, and re-install the lever housings OVER the tape. That seems to be a way to really get max tape coverage over the bars without battling with getting the tape wrapped around at least part of the lever housings. I like that! For cloth tape, it looks like a no-brainer unless there is a contra-indication. But, does anyone do this with more modern cushioned synthetic tape? Would this interfere with lever reinstallation or, worse, make keeping the levers tightly installed due to compression of the tape under the housings? I just got some Fizk Microtex Classic tape for a project I am working on, looks great but it's somewhat squishy; a good thing for riding but dare I try this technique for wrapping?

easyupbug 

Some bikes demand cloth. Hand arthritis limits my grip and has me use gel under tape and padded tape with leather anti-vibration gloves which are much better for me than cycling gloves. So for taped bars to get as much grip friction as I can I use a light coat of shellac which must be maintained frequently at about the timing shown below with a small brush for only touching up.

due ruote 

I have done as shown with cloth, but not padded tape. I'd be worried that seating the lever on top of padding, you wouldn't get the desired firm attachment of lever to bar; or to do so you would have to really crank on the attachment bolt. There is also the possibility that the lever base could actually sever the padded tape in the process.
Moreover, Fizik et al have more stretch than cloth tape. I have never had a problem taping around the installed levers with Fizik, Cinelli, etc. and getting full coverage. With cloth, it's much trickier, and it always tends to fold in on itself when making those turns around the levers.

wschruba

Shellac, by it's nature, dries hard/fractionable. If you have padding of any significant squish under it, it WILL fracture, or as is more likely, will just make a hard, large grip.

If you're just doing it for the color pop, you only need to soak the top layer of cloth, and it'll be fine. My Serotta, I painted on 2 layers, and it wasn't enough to bind it together...so it would probably have no effect on the padded nature of the tape..

I've got a bike with the padded Newbaums. I don't think it's a good candidate for shellac, personally.

Hard pass. I wouldn't do this in a shop, because you can't guarantee that a lever's clamp will stay in place, and it also locks the adjustment in place (typically, you can 'wiggle' a brake lever up/down ~5mm from where it was taped around). I would only consider doing this with cloth or hard leather (Brooks), and only if someone agreed that it might screw up the fit. With cloth, I typically tape from the bottom, ending at the right side of the brake, and then start another piece from the other side to go up/around the brake. With adhesive tape from Newbaum/Velox, you need no further prep to hold it down, though you can use a piece of double-stick under the hood if you want. It also allows you to use two different colors on the tape, if desired

Nobody comes into a shop for cloth tape, though.

tiger1964 

Sounds like end-of-story. My next project w/cloth is a couple of bikes down the queue, I can try it then.

That's the way I was taught.

daviddavieboy

This is great! I posted results about my results mixing white shellac for a Moser in 2018 I have but it was NO tutorial. I wish I was better with explaining my method.as my posts basically are 'Yay, I did a thing !' Beautiful work as always, now get back to your milling stuff. I miss that !

Robvolz 

Quote: Hard pass. I wouldn't do this in a shop, because you can't guarantee that a lever's clamp will stay in place, and it also locks the adjustment in place (typically, you can 'wiggle' a brake lever up/down ~5mm from where it was taped around). I would only consider doing this with cloth or hard leather (Brooks), and only if someone agreed that it might screw up the fit. With cloth, I typically tape from the bottom, ending at the right side of the brake, and then start another piece from the other side to go up/around the brake.[/QUOTE]

I leave the lever bands in place, and lock their location using double sided tape ensuring they don’t drift.

come to think about it, I just bought some padded 3M double sided tape. I might run two strips parallel along the bar tops and tape over that.

joesch

I have used all of these on woods but not sure about bar cloth. Any others tried these other "weather coats"?

Shellac vs Polyurethane vs Varnish vs Lacquer as Wood Finish

https://thediyhammer.com/shellac-vs-...sh-vs-lacquer/

ehcoplex 

I've done this with Brooks 'microfiber' padded tape on a couple of my bikes, after I've taken some rides with no tape and sorted out lever positioning and taped the bands in place. I've had no problems with the levers not remaining secure. YMMV.