Looking at a lot of the bikes on this forum (especially Terry B's insane collection) I realised just how much trouble people take over colour co-ordination and I realised that my bar tape was all wrong.
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I recently found this rubbery bar tape with a subtle flower motif on it.
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It was a choice of blue, pink or black. Not a difficult decision. I think the manufacturer is called Dixna. They make cheap stems and seatposts for the Asian market. Makes the whole set-up look more business-like I think.

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that rubbery stuff feels nice, but why not carbon-look tape to match the bike?

right front, huh? cable looks a bit long

right front, huh? cable looks a bit long

Right front is fine for me. I was born a lefty so don't have an issue with this. You are right about the cable length. The LBS messed up and it's really annoying considering the amount of money I spent there and the fact that they stock shmick products by Colnago, Pinarello, Time, Look and Ridley.I'm not using them anymore. I'll sort it out if rubbing on the frame becomes a problem. I've just put some vinyl protectors at the top of the fork.
Haven't seen much carbon tape around the Tokyo bike shops plus I think there's enough carbon on this machine already-you can have too much of a good thing.

I was just about to shout !Viva Mexico! for your old tape, but the new stuff looks nice.

i know it's sooo last season, but i'd love to see white tape on your set-up. pull out some of that text on your frame.

Good choice - what's the brand?

Black bikes are tough - plain ole' black tape always works but one might like a little bit of splash. White is sometimes nice if there are other white details. Too much color though and it turns into a pair of handlebars wearing a bike frame. Went through this with my recent Look build. Couldn't decide whether to use red or black. Both worked but the red seemed to scream "attention please." So I used black Fizik.

Generally though, I let my wife tell me what to do.

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/3162/parleeuk4.jpg

http://img509.imageshack.us/img509/6978/img4841yr7.jpg

i know it's sooo last season, but i'd love to see white tape on your set-up. pull out some of that text on your frame.

The text on the frame is OTT for my tastes and is my only beef with an otherwise excellent product. I want to keep things bi-colour and white has never really done it for me. You lose the shape of the bar in the background. If you compare Terry B's Parlee and Look machines I think you'll find the Look front end has more impact.

That's the LOOK I'm after....

Red and black are always great highlight/accent colors for me. Used sparingly, red can really give a monochrome bike a shot in the arm.

The brand is called Dixna but who knows who makes it for them. I got it for the colour, the texture (I like rubber) no snickering and because it was cheap.
Having lived in Japan for a while I've realized that I prefer more nuanced colour combinations-if you visit temples you will see a lot of red, black, white and earth tones. I don't go in too much for those Colnagos that scream ME,ME,ME though I s'pose for some poeple that's the entire point of owning such a bike.
I bought a titanium GT Zaskar MTB a few years ago for very little money and the first thing I did was de-sticker the frame-to show off the beauty of the naked titanium.
Anyways, your Look does it for me but the Parlee I'm indifferent to it just seems somehow dull (mind you if I found one in the garbage I'd keep it. ; )

http://www.devinci.com/anciensite/2006/eng/images/road/cx-105/cx105-small1.jpg

I need to pop on some new bar tape on my bike (pictured above). I've always had black, any ideas?

Hi,
I always try to follow the color of the saddle.
That´s a good starting point when choosing bar tape color. :)

So for your bike I would have pop on a red bar tape...

Iherald, White is ALWAYS a good color for a bar tape...no matter what I just wrote ;)



//P

my bar tape has started moving a lot, im gonna need to learn how to wrap it myself or take it to the bike shop...

for a while i was into red and yellow bikes with matching tape. sold the bikes but still think it looks cool. Even if the frame is black i like color.

my bar tape has started moving a lot, im gonna need to learn how to wrap it myself or take it to the bike shop...

you can do it. piece of cake. just remember to start at the drops, wrap over the top towards the stem. once you try it, you'll wonder why you ever took it to the lbs to do.

here's a good link to start with. http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=71 plenty of other sites out there to see. plenty of examples on here too.

my bar tape has started moving a lot, im gonna need to learn how to wrap it myself or take it to the bike shop...

You should try it yourself. Leave one side on and wrap the other side. Then you can look at how the 'original' side was to help you do it.

I just wrapped mine last night (I had black at home, so I used that) but it was pretty painless.

I need to make a good quality photo of my bike, but until then, you'll have to just picture it.

Black saddle, black seatpost, black stem, black standard sized bars.
Paint, tape, and headset see below.
.
.

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/3162/parleeuk4.jpg




Drool! Is that a Z2?

I like leather on steel frames. I wouldn't use it on carbon

I like leather on steel frames. I wouldn't use it on carbon

What colour saddle do you have on that one? I like the red cable casings.

What colour saddle do you have on that one? I like the red cable casings.

black...

Hey Grumpy, I like the Chris King 'Rasta' look, I'm thinking about that upgrade for my MTB. I had similar bar tape on my old commuter. It went well with the computer:

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I've done the matching bar and saddle thang too:


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but I get bored after a while. It's the 'stealth' look for me at the moment and that gooey rubber feels great under my mits. I have a black Trans Am Flite saddle that I could put back on the Kuota but I like my Gobi as I've just broken it in.

White tape is Good....looks even better with matching saddle.


http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/513/200705120008oc4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

the red tape looks cool............

The white looks out of place on this rig. Totally cancelled out by the riot in the frame and wheels. There's far too much going on there..black would have worked better IMO.

Dave, where do you get your leather wraps. I want to do some brown leather to my '82 Bianchi, like I had when I first put her together... Brown seat, tan sidewall tubulars, brown leather bars....

Dave, where do you get your leather wraps. I want to do some brown leather to my '82 Bianchi, like I had when I first put her together... Brown seat, tan sidewall tubulars, brown leather bars....

Check this site for leather bar wrap. Comes in various colors.

www.velo-orange.com

I wonder if anyone has used gold tape? :idea:

Tecno Spunga

by Stella Azzura

White tape is Good....looks even better with matching saddle.


http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/513/200705120008oc4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

That bike is terrifying to look at. Just my opinion.

Sir Duke,

I think Red valve caps would make a nice addition. Also maybe a touch of red on the handlebar. Stick with the black bar tape but maybe red insulating tape where you wrap it off near the ste,. Bontrager do some red barend caps as well. A couple of small things could really set everything off beautifully. I love the saddle.

here is mine, the best match i think

this is before my bike fit, i now have the seat all the way back, dialed in

I think red or black tape would be better