In search of comfort: Focus Paralane

[Frankie - B]

Wow! you did a great job on the paralane! I have to agree with JeanJaques though. please make an angled cut to the bar tape before finishing.

[iamraymond]

I'm not the best at wrapping bar tape, but I did make an angled cut before the electrical tap. I think what you're seeing is the finishing tape which I did a terrible job on.

Here's a picture with the finishing tape removed.

[jeanjacques]

I don't know what you call finishing tape but is way better without it ! And normally, the electrician's tape have to be thinner and half/half or something like 2/3 on the tape and 1/3 on the bar.

[MrCurrieinahurry]

Please you can't leave the bar tape like that......

Sent from my MAR-LX1B using Tapatalk

[iamraymond]

Hmmm... Previously I would do as jeanjacques said and wrap half the electrical tape on the bar and half on the bar tape, but I read that the correct way was to wrap only on the bar tape so that's what I started doing. I usually avoid using finishing tape that comes with the bar tape because they always end up peeling over time.

What do you guys recommend?

Edit:
Here is a video I learned to wrap the tape this way https://youtu.be/CEIvFk3HSvY?t=401

[robbosmans]

You just need to stretch the electrical tape over the end of the bar tape

[iamraymond]

Is this any better?

[robbosmans]

Yup

[DHG01]

I like to start taping from the top, so there is no need to use tape to strap the bar tape at all. I think it looks cleaner, but most start from the bottom.

[iamraymond]

I had been previously using a modified SRAM Red XG1190 12-32t cassette (11-28t with the 11t removed and a Miche 32t on the low end) which was perfectly fine for most of my rides. Then this past summer I signed up for the Tour des Stations which had 4700m over 145km and I wanted a bit of extra insurance on the climbs. I bought a cheap Shimano 105 11-34t cassette and I was very pleased with the shifting and loved the 1:1 gearing. The 34t out back kept my legs fresh and it was especially useful during the gravel sections of the race where I needed to remain seated and hold a steady cadence.

The only thing I didn’t like was that the 105 cassette was around 360g and the Ultegra version isn’t much better. I stumbled on the JGbike SROAD cassettes and I’m experimenting with their 11-34t on my new bike. Its milled out of a single block of steel just like the XG1190 cassettes and it weighs in at 249g (50g heavier than the modified XG1190 12-32t).

I’ve done a few hundred kms on it now and I’m happy to report that the shifting is just as good as any Shimano or SRAM cassette I’ve used.

Only thing I didn't like was the super tight machining of the lock ring which means you have to make sure the lock ring tool is perfectly straight to fit in properly. Any bit of an angle and the tool won’t fit into the cassette. I swapped the original SROAD lock ring with an Ultegra one and this is no longer an issue. The Ultegra lock ring is also lighter.

The other thing I discovered, which isn't any fault of the SROAD cassette, is with the Carbon Ti hubs I'm running. I had an issue where the shift up from the 11t cog was fine at first, then it would not always work, then finally it stopped shifting altogether. On the road, it didn’t really bother much much cause I am very rarely on the 11t anyway, but I couldn’t help but investigate further. I realized that the cogs on the cassette can be positioned in various orientations on the Carbon Ti free hub; unlike the other free hub bodies (i.e. DT Swiss) where the cogs can only fit in one way. It’s important to make sure that the small spline on the separate 11t cog matches up with the small spline on the cassette. If the two are mismatched it will lead to poor shifting. I must have not installed the 11t properly when I removed/reinstalled the cassette onto the hub. Pretty dumb mistake on my part!

Anyway here is a pic from warmer days:


and one with a friend's bike