Questions before I wrap bars for the first time

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identiti66
Posts: 64
Joined: Sat Feb 28, 2015 12:10 pm
Location: Suffolk, UK

by identiti66

Don't know why but I'm dreading this.

Anyway, I need a couple of things cleared up if someone would be so kind.

Do I wrap towards the frame or away from it (e.g. for the right hand side, do I wrap clockwise or anti clockwise)?
My bars have no groove for cables, is it best to run them along the back edge?
Do I set up my cables (mostly thinking about the gear cables, indexing and the like) before wrapping or after?

I have Prologo Double Touch tape, anything specific about this tape that it'd help to know?

Thanks in advance chaps.. E. 8)

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bikerjulio
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by bikerjulio

multiple videos on Youtube showing this

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=how+to+wrap+bicycle+handlebars

Personally, and like every pro bike I've ever seen, I route the cables at the front. Use electrical tape to hold the cables in place first, then wrap.
There's sometimes a buggy.
How many drivers does a buggy have?

One.

So let's just say I'm drivin' this buggy...
and if you fix your attitude you can ride along with me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GekiIMh4ZkM

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identiti66
Posts: 64
Joined: Sat Feb 28, 2015 12:10 pm
Location: Suffolk, UK

by identiti66

Thanks.. I've watched a few dozen videos and it seems there's many differences between how this is done, hence my mildly confused state.
Some wrap towards the frame, others away, some do a figure 8, some don't, seen cables run along the back, bottom and front and one thing I didn't pick up from any of them is whether it's better to set the cables up (indexing, mostly) before or after.

Fiery
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Joined: Sat Mar 16, 2013 9:21 am

by Fiery

There tends to be a lot of talk about wrapping in a certain direction so that the natural movement of the hands tightens the tape instead of loosening it. There are two big issues with this: first, a properly wrapped tape really doesn't loosen that easily; second, there seems no consensus on what the proper direction actually is. Regarding cable setting, you mean setting up the brakes and gear indexing? You want the bike to be fully functional before wrapping so that you can confirm bar and hood position on a test ride while it is still possible to adjust everything easily. You will confirm that everything is still OK after wrapping, of course.

Personally, I wrap counter-clockwise on the right and clockwise on the left because that's what my OCD prefers. I use the cheater strip because I think it looks better than the figure of eight wrap. I route the cables in front and then under the bar because that's where they seem to lay most naturally on my particular handlebar with my particular shifters and their particular positon on the bar. I fix the cables to the bar before wrapping because it really makes no sense not to. I wrap the finishing tape so that it covers the cut edge but doesn't touch the bar. All of this is personal preference, no hard rules.
Last edited by Fiery on Mon Mar 09, 2015 2:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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bikerjulio
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Location: Welland, Ontario

by bikerjulio

Do the cabling completely, and make sure everything is working right, before wrapping the bars.
There's sometimes a buggy.
How many drivers does a buggy have?

One.

So let's just say I'm drivin' this buggy...
and if you fix your attitude you can ride along with me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GekiIMh4ZkM

identiti66
Posts: 64
Joined: Sat Feb 28, 2015 12:10 pm
Location: Suffolk, UK

by identiti66

Thanks chaps.. 8)

kode54
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by kode54

...and just to add...if you're using Di2 (from the sound of it...not), you need to add slack or a little slop in the cable so that it won't pull out of the sockets. happens if its too tight and you hit bumps on the road.
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User Name
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by User Name

The only 'important' point is to start at the bottom.
I also like to wrap it toward the frame (going over the top of the bars), so that the tape resembles a tennis racquet grip on the drops (with the direction matching my finger direction). :D

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Calnago
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by Calnago

Wrapping tape... ugh! I always leave it till the very last thing. And it doesn't seem to matter how many times I do it, each combination of bars, levers, position, tape choice, cable routing, etc tends to make every tape job like the first, and I'm never quite sure how it's going to go until I'm doing it. And then I make adjustments accordingly. Advice above is good, but don't get discouraged if it doesn't look like it's coming out perfect the first time. Just unwrap and continue, maybe with a little more overlap, or a little less, so that you get the best wrap around the curves of your particular setup.
And if you mess up, it's not the end of the world. Just try again, but not right away... too frustrating at that point. :beerchug:
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r3awak3n
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Joined: Wed Feb 11, 2015 11:44 pm

by r3awak3n

I always wrap towards the frame and do one cable in front and one behind. Just the way I always done it and having the cable in front and behind creates a nice shape to grab into.

fitty4
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Joined: Mon Jul 13, 2009 9:19 pm
Location: Denmark

by fitty4

Towards frame, electrical tape to keep cables in place. Leave more than a 1 cm on the bar end, that will keep the bar plugs in place, you can try to put a plug in after a few rounds to see if you left enough tape outside the bar. Try to keep the same distance on the overlaps from start to finish and on both sides.

identiti66
Posts: 64
Joined: Sat Feb 28, 2015 12:10 pm
Location: Suffolk, UK

by identiti66

Really liked this video, just seemed 'better' than others for some reason.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psmxYxmE3T8

What I did notice though (in this and part2) was that he seems to wrap with more overlap than others. The end result looked amazing but I'm wondering at what point you run the risk of running out of tape?

RJKflyer
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Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2012 7:53 pm

by RJKflyer

A couple of minor points

1. If you use tape with writing/logos along one edge (like de Rosa tape), note that if you 'figure of 8' it around the levers, the orientation of the logos will REVERSE as you come out towards the stem. The issue being that if the writing/logos are along one edge, they will disappear under the overlap as you exit the levers. For such tape, you need to use the cheat strips.
2. If you have particularly wide bars, worth a dry run as many tapes seem pretty short!

Fiery
Posts: 420
Joined: Sat Mar 16, 2013 9:21 am

by Fiery

Standard figure of eight will not flip the direction of the tape. It only flips if you run it along the hood once instead of around the bar.

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sawyer
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by sawyer

"Clockwise" and "counter or anti-clockwise" is a singularly unhelpful way to describe technique here, without further information

For that matter "towards frame" is similarly unhelpful ... away on top, towards below; towards below, away on top ...

One needs to describe two things:

1. Whether you start near the stem or at the bar ends

2. Whether as you look at it with chin on stem/bar interface, the tape is being wrapped clockwise or anti-clockwise
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