Handlebar tape, Under or Over?

Bobbinogs

Folks, my project bike is coming along and I need to sort out some new handlebar tape. Ideally, I would like some perforated white leather but can't seem to find any despite Bike Rumour suggesting that Brooks make some. Anyway, my dumb question is tape over or under the hood base? Every pic I find (and my Spesh) has tape under hoods, my project bike currently has tape over the base of the hoods. Does it make any difference or is it just convention/personal preference??

Thanks in advance.

2alexcoo

It's not leather, but the Fizik Microtex bar tape is good stuff:

sheffsimon

Bobbinogs wrote:

Folks, my project bike is coming along and I need to sort out some new handlebar tape. Ideally, I would like some perforated white leather but can't seem to find any despite Bike Rumour suggesting that Brooks make some. Anyway, my dumb question is tape over or under the hood base? Every pic I find (and my Spesh) has tape under hoods, my project bike currently has tape over the base of the hoods. Does it make any difference or is it just convention/personal preference??

Thanks in advance.

Under, always under.

neeb

When you say under or over, do you mean under or over the bases of the rubber covers on the levers? Definitely, always, under! You need to peel the covers back before wrapping the tape. Getting the tape wrapped around the levers so that there are no uncovered bits on the bars afterwards is a bit of an art, and there are other "under or over" issues there too...

+1 for the Fizk microtex, especially if you are planning on using white tape - it's the only one that's practical to keep white!

Monty Dog

From my experience of wrapping hundreds of bars, tape always goes around the lever bodies and under the hoods . Wrapping the bars in electrical tape first means it's a lot easier to remove and re-wrap the tape, particularly as it may take you a few times to get the number of turns right in order to cover the bars properly i.e. no gaps. Fizik Microtex is a great tape, durable but cleans up well too. If you want white leather bar wrap try a US ebay seller called rjcarneval - you have to sew it on but it looks fantastic - £40 a set though

Velonutter

Done 3000 miles with the white tape on my main bike and it is still as good as new. The stuff is just so durable. that I have it on all my bikes now.

Mr Dog

Alex that is monster stem dude. It would scare me if I were incarcerated and you're bike crept up behind me in the showers

Bobbinogs

Thanks for the tips chaps. Under it is then.
I managed to find the Brooks leather tape in white on Total cycles for 33 quid. Bit steep,could buy a half a cow for that or may be one Rapha cycle clip.