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Replacing handlebar tape on your road bike can seem like a really daunting task but you'll be surprised with how easy it is once you've watch this video
Watch all How To videos bit.ly/3GYAhRa
Presented by Jim from Jim The Bike Guy, a professional Cytech level 3 qualified bike mechanic specialising in servicing, upgrading and repairing all types of bikes from his bespoke workshop in West Berkshire. He specialises in high-end road, cyclocross and gravel bikes as well as cross-country race bikes. In his spare time he enjoys riding and racing all types of bikes to an enthusiastic standard.
Jim The Bike Guy
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Just watched you video and it was a MASSIVE help! Just replaced my bar tape myself for the first time ever, and it came out (nearly) flawless! I have to admit, I talked to myself in a British accent the whole time as motivation!
Here’s a shop tip: when you get to the end of your wrap and you need three hands, take your spanner tool and push it down over your drop bars to hold the tape. The spanner will hold the tension of the wrap while you cut the end of the tape. 👍
The MOST BRITISH person/bike mechanic I have ever seen/heard. Lovely video, well explained. I actually was wondering how to go about wrapping the shifter part, since my (way too expensive) bar tape, didnt have those short extra strips of bar tape. Problem solved. thanks!
This is perhaps the very best bar tape video anywhere on the web. Thanks for doing this instructional video!
I do agree!
Park Tools one is better.
That was a very well explained, detailed and comprehensive video on taping handlebars. I needed to see the figure eight around the brake/shifter assembly. I also liked the advice on trying a cheap tape first but most importantly don't stress out over tape around your bars.
Every repair/upgrade is so well described - this bar tape and the tubeless tire install are getting saved!!!!
You’ve raised the bar 😉with this tutorial Jim and David! Love Jim’s calm, clear delivery 👍 I’ve not tried yet, but will be coming back to this video when the time comes. Thank you!
The is best vid on wrapping bar tape I've found. I saved it to use as a refresher each time I'm replacing tape. Thanks.
Very impressed, no waffle just clear instructions and tips , really liking your content. 👍
Excellent how to - now feel confident on getting through successfully. Have watched 2 of your videos - top notch presentation on the subjects I have seen!
Hi Jim. Brilliant video. Just for context - bought my first secondhand bike in 40+ years and I know nothing about maintenance. Your clear and concise instructions could not be clearer in any way and your additional comments only add to the expertise you demostrate. Have subscribed and will be using your expertise as the first stop whenever I need to work on my machine. Many, many thanks.😊
Absolutely fantastic - the best bar tape video ever, absolutely brilliant explanation and demonstration for us mere mortals who try to service our own bikes.
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Totally agree, too many videos where the details are not explained and recorded from afar. Slowly explained, so even I understand 😂😂
Best bar tape video I've seen! You're a great teacher.
Great job. Mine turned out very well. Love the British way of describing things. Keep up the good work.
The perfect demonstration of how to do it properly! Well done Jim.👍
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My tip = install the bar end after a few wraps. You'll need to use something to grip the tape in place, I use the Park tool pin spanner. You can then see if the tape needs a slight rewrap to get it sitting flush against the plug. Once happy, keep going with the wrap. If you leave the plug install until the end you could be unhappy with it but probably not bother to rewrap the whole thing again.
I bought the bolt style plug and did the edge wrap. No tuck as shown in park tool video
This is an underrated tip! I have done the full process only to find I can't get the overlap evenly tucked into the bar end, and that sucks
Thanks very much Jim. I have to agree with many of the comments below in that this is the best explanation I've found. The figure of eight was clearly and well shown. I also like the steady and measured way in which you described each part. The best tip for me was the bit at the end gripping the bar before inserting the end plug. thanks again!
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Like the under and out phase. It is now stuck in my mind. Thx.
Watched the video once before I was going to do the tape then a week later when I did the actual taping.. I did it in one go both sides !! You where clear and precise thank you!!
I’ve watched a lot of bar tape videos but this was probably the best. The points were spot on and it is nice to see you actually did the figure of 8 which many seem to avoid. No time for a cup of tea on this one, though!
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Excellent video - helped an amateur like me make the handlebars look good!
Everybody has their favorite tape but mine is Big 40 from Red Monkey Sports (formerly Zevlin brand). The stuff is extra wide and longer than most, very flexible, nice grip in the rain and durable. 40mm wide makes it easier to wrap the 8, avoid gaps and you can vary how much cushion by the spacing between wraps- I like it thick on the tops and thin in the drops. Ritchey also make awesome bar plugs that double as tire levers, you only need 1 so a set is good for 2 bikes. I also stick a $20 bill inside the bar before the plug, emergency cash for the coffee shop.
Thank you for this perfect instruction video, now i'm confident enough to get started!
Jim The Bike Guy is the man! These videos helped me so much.
At 11:10 you wrap the tape over a hole that should not be covered. The hood will not fit correctly after that.
I was hoping the video would address that as well. I sometimes have to compromise at this area on sram hoods by either cutting holes in the wrap after or fiddling with the wrap on the hoods for way too long to avoid gaps while still not covering the hole. I still don't have a good solution tbh
I cut holes in the tape where it covers any recessed areas. But also the figure 8 technique results in fat hoods so I've stopped doing that.
Thanks Jim! Success on my first go with wrapping my bars, cheers!
Fully agree with jmounce50 and the rest. This is the best bar tape video ever. If I understood it then that says a lot. :-) Jim explains with perfect clarify, great pacing and touches on all the issues and things that can go wrong or just that bit off when wrapping. Thanks Jim. Really appreciate it.
Thanks very much for your excellent video! Your pace of talking/explaining is helping a lot. Funny, I of course ended up here because after 9000 km it was time for new bar tape (almost fell apart on the last ride, but was OK a week ago...) It looks as if I bought the same brand and almost the same colour of tape, so I should not be worried about "incompatibilities" for the instructions 🙂
Great video, explains it perfectly. Couple of other things I do (a) put some double sided tape at both ends - makes it easier to start and stop (b) use the spare strip of tape that isn't used but placing a short length on top of the shifters/bars where your hands go - adds to the comfort where your hands are placed 99% of the time.
Thank you so much. I think some parts of the filming could have been a bit clearer with another camera angle from the side when doing the figure-of-eight wrap.( The bits I wanted to view were not visible behind the hoods.) Apart from that... best and most comprehensive bar tape wrapping video available. Thanks again 👍
Outstanding video, just finished wrapping my vintage Centurion LeMans
Thanks Jim for going through the process nice and explaining each stage 👍
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I recently discovered a technique for cleaner result. I make sure not to wrap the electrical tape up to the edge of the bar tape’s end edge. I leave a very little space. This way, the electrical tape will not slip onto the handle bar and unwraps in the process. Then, I finish the wrap using the tape that comes with the bar tape to wrap (with little tension) over covering the space the was left. But make sure to wrap just the handle bar tape, not the handle bar itself. I hope this is clear.. haha
I agree with previous. Best bar taping vid I've seen. Many thanks!
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AWESOME INSTRUCTION and great motivation doesn't have to be perfect. Thank You
Excellent Instructional Video on wrapping handlebar tape. I have been a bike rider for more than 45 Years and have always taken my Campy Bike to my friend who always knew what needed to be done, But sadly he passed away and so now I'm learning how to do these simple things that can be disastrous for people like me who get nervous when trying to copy it like you do it..I just have to tell myself to slow down and breathe breathe breathe, and let it happen. Thanks Jim for an excellent video. i have a few bikes but i love my Italian Mirella Road Bike with all Campagnola parts on it from back to front.. Ill be watching your videos straight away. PLs tell me the name of it..
Best bar tape video explanation I've seen! Thanks very much
Glad it was helpful!
My 87 Bridgestone RB-2 uses white for the bar tape, white hood levers, and white brake cables as well for its original colors. It's difficult to find new white hood levers that are compatible but I still continue using the white bar tape. I love the original look.
Jim these vids are great man 👍
Cool video. I like to reverse wrap myself. No tape required or at least showing. Cheers. 👍🏻🇨🇦
Best wrap advice I've seen.
Luv this! 🙌🏽 Appreciate your ‘you can do it approach’ 😁👍🏽
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Just rewrapped by bars a few weeks ago using Supacaz Super Sticky Kush tape. They come packaged with locking plugs and they work a treat. Something I found helpful was using a heat gun, on low to prevent destroying the tape, to soften it a bit before tucking it into the bar end.
Hey safer bet is a hair dryer for softening the ends 👍
Perfect timing as I’ll be attempting this for the very first time 👍
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Same here but after i see the video i will not change my handlebar tape. i will wait little more until my current bar get old :D
Great how-to. Worked a treat on my son’s Frog Bike handlebars.
That is awesome!
I cant believe I just watched this entire video. Good stuff from this mechanic
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Great video. Only thing I'll caution people is, using this method under the hoods/shifters can feel really bulky if you're using a thicker tape. And it also makes adjusting the hood position near impossible. If you may want to tweak your hood position without unwrapping bars, it may be worth leaving a small gap or covering it with a cut-off piece and not using that over-and-back method.
Really enjoyed this video, only other thing I would like to see is the figure 8 done with you standing at the front of the bars so we can see what is going on behind the shifter.
Top quality video and instructions. Thanks so much!!
What a guy so helpful.. amazing job!!
Thanks for sharing this information Brother 😎✌️. Tucson Arizona Desert 🏜️🙏
Very informative yet entertaining 💯👏🏼
Great and informative videos. Can you do a video on indexing gears please 👍🏻
Found this really helpful, thanks.
Thanks for the video. Very instructive.
Thanks for another great demo.
Incredibly useful video. Thank you very much!!!
Really helpful Jim, thanks.
I'm looking at handlebar tape videos because I intend the wrap my basic Honda bullhorns on my motorcycle. I'm crazy like that.
Might have to find out what tape Giant used. I’ve removed and refitted the original tape at least a dozen times, and it has 10,000kms on it. Still looks and feels like new!
Outstanding video. Very helpful.
At first the white bar tape was blending into the wall color and looked like stright bars, I was like he's going to put bar tape on a MTB 😂 Putting on bar tape gives me anxiety that I'm going to mess it up, I needed a refreasher course I'm do for a rewrap its been awhile 🤣
Use thin tapes 1 mm thick and on the top areas place 7 cm (3 inches) of inner tube on each side before taping.
Nothing better than watching an informative video without obnoxious attention seeking people. Thank you
Just bought all the bits to convert my flat bars to drops, probably need to re watch this 700 times haha
just changed my bike from 8 to 10 speed cassette so this is my last job, great video,....
Hello, I came across with this video thank you very insightful, is there a chance that you can make a video where you wrap a road bike aerobar and better yet, a Reverse Wrap? thanks.
Some more close up of the wrapping would have been nice
Indeed thats the unique low point of this video more close up shots would be perfect
Well the white bar tape did go with the colour of the bike. Probably why you used it Jim. We all make those mistakes, something looks nice and we forget white gets dirty really easily. I did it on a badminton racquet. My old road bike had the triangle hole on one side. But it was done at a shop and it wasn't up to me to retape it. I'm watching because someone had us help him do the bar tape and I'm wondering if we did it correctly. I just did it the way I'd to a badminton racquet just with that figure of 8 which is probably why I knew to cut 45°. I was only asked to help because of my scissors actually. Thanks for the video, it was really informative.
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That figure-or-eight layout solves the problem of the tops being wrapped in one direction so that the rider's hands tighten the tape, but the hooks and drops needing to be wrapped in the other direction. Since riders spend more time on the tops than the drops, I did the figure-or-eight to make the wrap on top correct... but my method did not run the tape up the inside of the shifter like that (instead, I crossed the underside of the bar at the shifter twice). I'm definitely using that method on the next wrap. (This method also allows for a smidge more tape at the end, which is not a bad thing...)
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Can a 18" inner tube fit a 20"x4.0 wheel if you put a pool noodle in the tire. What other size inner tubes can fit a 20"x4.0 bike wheel or fat tire wheel ?
Super instructions. Thanks a lot
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11:00 - Dude just taped over the hole in the shifter body in which hood's rubber pin suppose to hook up.
Yeah this video sucks
I get so impatient with this and would regret it fully in the end!
Great vid as per Jim. How much overhang of tape should I leave at the beginning to the tuck in with the bar eng plug? Cheers
Agree, this is missing from the video
Good technique, only thing I disagree with is inserting the plug as the FINAL STEP. I always do my own taping, and Calvin Jones from Park Tool is who I learned from. He does the plug fitment at the beginning, because if u fuck that particular step up, u can fix it immediately. However, if u do it LAST, as this video shows, u will have to unwrap as all of ur bar tape AND the finishing tape to fix up the plug mistake. This guy obviously is very confident in his technique, knowing he has executed it all correctly. Nobody is perfect however, and Calvin Jones technique is foolproof IMHO.
Great video dude 😁👍
Hey, thank you so much! Now tell me, do I really need those over expensive weird looking bib shorts?😁😉
Great video, thanks!
a great video, would have been nice to see the start as the handle bars were hiding what you were doing
Great video - what are your reasonings behind choosing to wrap the bar tape toward the bike once you get to the top section of the bar? In other tutorials the wrapping ‘away’ from the bike is kept constant from start to finish which is said to help against unravelling of the tape by the riders grip. Would be great to hear your reasoning 🙏🏻
Because the direction your wrist rotates around the bar when riding changes in each position. Go grab your bars and test: when you're in the drops riding hard your wrists will rotate outward from the bike, and when you're on top your wrists will be rotating down. If you don't change the wrap direction between the drops and the tops you'll end up possibly unraveling (or loosening) the wraps when you ride hard. If you have the direction alternate as shown, your wrist action will simply help tighten the wraps as you ride hard.
@@Antioch18x Interesting, thats the exact reason other tutorials say they wrap away from the bike lol I guess trial and error is the best way to find out! Thanks for the mature reply (Hard to get nowadays online)
@@dariogiordano4218 Away on the drops, but switch as you cross the levers. Watch the Park Tools video on this topic, they go in to a lot of good detail.
Great closing
nice job, only thing that i have an issue with is that you covered the holes where the hood "nibs" go into. Sorry i don't know the technical name but they are used to hold the shifter hoods in place. Any comment as to why you covered them?
Awesome video....thank you
i use an old inner tube that I cut to the length of SuperCaz tape, so I strip off the old and practice with this a few times to make sure I'm good. Also much prefer the reverse wrap than the traditional method used here... great vid though some really cleaver tips n tricks 👍
It looks really nice but I don´t like to cover the "lock" holes in the brake body. There are small nobs on the hob that are suppose to go into these holes to keep the hood in place. Is it your experence that the hood stays in place over time?
What do you do to allow the "nibs" in the hood cover to set into the holes on the hoods? I find that if I cover the holes in the hoods, the covers don't sit down nice and tight on the hoods and roll around as I ride and shift.
For that starting point, I suppose the tape isn't flush with bar end? How of an overhang is recommended?
Brilliant.
Hi I keep watching this to get ready for the task. The tape that's coming off has been put on the opposite way from top to bottom and these bikes are 20 - 30 years old. Is it right to do it that way?
What a way to explain CAREFULLY and also with so much information, even extra information. I'm suscribed since now, considering that this helped me more than I was expecting
Camera angle is King.
This is an awesome video. The angle of the figure of eight made it difficult to see. Perhaps you could do a two minute video just on the figure of eight itself and have the camera set up from the side and/or behind to get a better perspective.
Nice
Put a taper cut on both the ends of the tape to eliminate that unsightly lump.
Well.. Happy Day !
thank you
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Evo brke koji voli mrke!!
i dont get the mid way stopping point, either go all the way or make it a little shorter, its like you removed the tops of the bars all together
Great