They say that "failure is the mother of success," but I'd rather not fail if I can help it.
That applies to both life and bicycles.
Today, I'd like to share something I learned from a mistake I made back when I was a novice mechanic.
And I wonder: is this a rite of passage for every bicycle mechanic, or was it just me?
Bar tape is a key component for cyclists—especially roadies and cyclo-crossers who spend a lot of time in the drops—as it significantly affects handling and braking.
It also acts as one of the "faces" of the bike, influencing its aesthetic and overall color balance. (No matter how well-built a frame and parts setup might be, one poor tape choice can ruin the whole look...)
Since bar tape needs to be selected with both functionality and fashion in mind—with various materials, widths, and thicknesses available—many of our style-conscious customers at Circles choose leather. It's durable, conforms perfectly to the hands the more you use it, and develops its own unique character over time.
Furthermore, with the Grease Monkey Mechanic School at our sister shop, Culture Club, now offering regular classes on how to wrap bar tape, the number of DIYers doing it themselves is on the rise.
Which brings me to my mistake: I call it "Be careful when wrapping leather bar tape! It can easily snap in two!!"
Yes, that's exactly what happens—it snaps. Clean in half.
The moment it happened, I just thought, "Wait! No way!" and my face went pale. And when it happened right in front of a customer who had just bought it... well...
Yes, this is a true story of something I actually did.
I don't want anyone trying to wrap their own leather bar tape to make the same mistake I did, so I'm going to share the one key point you need to know to ensure you never fail!
First, why does leather, of all things, tear so easily? Well, the trick to wrapping bar tape is to apply a bit of tension as you wrap it around the bar. With polyurethane, EVA, or cork materials, you have to be careful, as they can tear quite easily—you can feel it just by touching them.
Leather, however, feels like it won't tear or stretch no matter how hard you pull. That’s why, when wrapping the drops or around the brake hoods, you have to pull quite hard to avoid wrinkles and get a clean look.
Wait, that contradicts what I said earlier, right?
Yes. Even with leather bar tape, if you apply firm tension (within a reasonable range), it’s highly unlikely to tear. But there is a specific spot where it *will* snap easily.
It’s right here.
It’s a bit hard to see, but can you see that horizontal line near my fingertip?
It's easier to see from the back. The color is slightly different on either side of that line, right?
This is BROOKS leather bar tape. It's clearer here.
To minimize waste during manufacturing, they join pieces of leather together when a single strip isn't long enough. These seams appear randomly—on rare occasions there might not be one—but in most cases, you'll find them somewhere.
If you pull too hard on this spot, it will snap right off!
Always check for these seams when wrapping leather bar tape!
If you do that, you can prevent it from snapping at the join!
I believe we grow from our own mistakes, but there's no harm in learning from the mistakes of others, right?
Aim to become a bar-tape-wrapping master!
This was JUS.
[TIPS] For those of you wrapping leather bar tape. ~Our mistakes~
