Insufficient tension probably caused the issue as you wrapped up above lever hoods.
Zima-Blue on
It’s been two years mate.
teakettle87 on
2 years?! They aren’t meant to last forever.
Puzzled_Variety_8487 on
Curious, what direction is the tape going on the top heading towards the stem?
RichardofGalveston on
To wrap bars well you need practice. You need practice. But if it lasted two years you did a decent job.
I rewrap my bars each January, bar wrap of any kind stretches over time, fibers wear out. Fresh bar tape makes the bike look good, feels good and gives you the opportunity to ensure your bars are not developing cracks.
yurahbom on
It just means you used your bike a lot.
BOOO9 on
I’m curious, how much do you ride? I also wrap the handlebar myself and after around 1.5 years I usually have to replace it, with around ~350 h a year. But when I remember correctly I mostly have to replace it due to wear and not because it gets loose. So as somebody has pointed out maybe you have to put more tension when wrapping it. But yeah after two years I think its pretty ok!
aloha-from-bradley on
Considering both sides of the bar are unraveling/ worn the most in the same spots, your reach is likely too long. You seem to be resting your hands behind the hoods and on the bends of the bars. You might want to look at your fit if you never have.
As far as the tape goes – wrapping quite literally is an art. Lizard skins states on the packaging not to stretch the tape. I’ve found that you have to wrap each turn a little closer than with other tape because of this. I don’t particularly like LS bar tape. You may also just like to squeeze and rotate your hands more than others during intense rides.
Consider trying a different tape next time.
Ceska-Zbrojovka on
Not enough overlap on the bend.
ashkanahmadi on
The tape needs to cover around 50% of itself. You didn’t do that here so that’s why it’s coming off
Ill_Initiative8574 on
One year and about 3,000 miles on this tape (got new bars early last year around this time). I’ve used this tape before and I like it a lot.
Agree on overlap comments. How many miles in those two years? Benchmark: 9500 miles on my drop bar bike, not quite 2 years old, and the factory wrap is wearing through.
BeefStu907 on
Just do a rewrap. After two years the tape loses some tension.
HerrFerret on
If you ride a lot, congrats! You get to change your tape colour.
I used to ride a lot, and I would wrap my bars a bit different. I wrapped reverse using longer than normal bar tape, I would put a LOT of tension as I wrapped.
My tape lasted longer, but not over two years.
I just noticed my handlebar grips are wearing out now, after 6 months. They are all consumable parts. Go get em’ champ.
kurtplatinum on
Did you have a lot of bar tape leftover? It seems like the spacing on each wrap could be tighter, I try to use all or nearly all of the bar tape.
zachotule on
The tape looks in good condition for 2 years of use. Unwrap it, scrub it a bit, dry it off, and you can probably re-wrap with the same tape.
The areas that’re slipping apart did so because your hands’ pressure pulled them apart. When you re-wrap make sure the tape is properly gripping those particular areas on the bar all the way around d, and it’s tighter there. Then the job will probably last a little longer.
You should be proud of the job you did for your first time, mine was nowhere near this good and it came apart very quickly, in these same spots.
Level-Long-9726 on
It looks like you wrapped it well. Now you know to overlap the tape a little more on the outside corners. Still, though, that looks pretty good for being two years old.
ohokimnotsorry on
I started wrapping from the top to the bottom. No need to have tape which makes it look so much cleaner. Been doing this for about 5 years and no it doesn’t unravel doing it from top to bottom
D33Z_Naughts on
Tbh on my bike I’ve just been using pickle ball grip for years swap it every 6 months or so
CuteTouch7653 on
Aside from the tape being two years old and well used, looks to my eye like you wrapped out to in instead of in to out. This will allow the tape to loosen in spots, as the slack will work back along the wrap.
20 Comments
Insufficient tension probably caused the issue as you wrapped up above lever hoods.
It’s been two years mate.
2 years?! They aren’t meant to last forever.
Curious, what direction is the tape going on the top heading towards the stem?
To wrap bars well you need practice. You need practice. But if it lasted two years you did a decent job.
I rewrap my bars each January, bar wrap of any kind stretches over time, fibers wear out. Fresh bar tape makes the bike look good, feels good and gives you the opportunity to ensure your bars are not developing cracks.
It just means you used your bike a lot.
I’m curious, how much do you ride? I also wrap the handlebar myself and after around 1.5 years I usually have to replace it, with around ~350 h a year. But when I remember correctly I mostly have to replace it due to wear and not because it gets loose. So as somebody has pointed out maybe you have to put more tension when wrapping it. But yeah after two years I think its pretty ok!
Considering both sides of the bar are unraveling/ worn the most in the same spots, your reach is likely too long. You seem to be resting your hands behind the hoods and on the bends of the bars. You might want to look at your fit if you never have.
As far as the tape goes – wrapping quite literally is an art. Lizard skins states on the packaging not to stretch the tape. I’ve found that you have to wrap each turn a little closer than with other tape because of this. I don’t particularly like LS bar tape. You may also just like to squeeze and rotate your hands more than others during intense rides.
Consider trying a different tape next time.
Not enough overlap on the bend.
The tape needs to cover around 50% of itself. You didn’t do that here so that’s why it’s coming off
One year and about 3,000 miles on this tape (got new bars early last year around this time). I’ve used this tape before and I like it a lot.
https://preview.redd.it/dtmgyho2m8xe1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b6381d00e8bc849d22de215bde3c733e72055032
Agree on overlap comments. How many miles in those two years? Benchmark: 9500 miles on my drop bar bike, not quite 2 years old, and the factory wrap is wearing through.
Just do a rewrap. After two years the tape loses some tension.
If you ride a lot, congrats! You get to change your tape colour.
I used to ride a lot, and I would wrap my bars a bit different. I wrapped reverse using longer than normal bar tape, I would put a LOT of tension as I wrapped.
My tape lasted longer, but not over two years.
I just noticed my handlebar grips are wearing out now, after 6 months. They are all consumable parts. Go get em’ champ.
Did you have a lot of bar tape leftover? It seems like the spacing on each wrap could be tighter, I try to use all or nearly all of the bar tape.
The tape looks in good condition for 2 years of use. Unwrap it, scrub it a bit, dry it off, and you can probably re-wrap with the same tape.
The areas that’re slipping apart did so because your hands’ pressure pulled them apart. When you re-wrap make sure the tape is properly gripping those particular areas on the bar all the way around d, and it’s tighter there. Then the job will probably last a little longer.
You should be proud of the job you did for your first time, mine was nowhere near this good and it came apart very quickly, in these same spots.
It looks like you wrapped it well. Now you know to overlap the tape a little more on the outside corners. Still, though, that looks pretty good for being two years old.
I started wrapping from the top to the bottom. No need to have tape which makes it look so much cleaner. Been doing this for about 5 years and no it doesn’t unravel doing it from top to bottom
Tbh on my bike I’ve just been using pickle ball grip for years swap it every 6 months or so
Aside from the tape being two years old and well used, looks to my eye like you wrapped out to in instead of in to out. This will allow the tape to loosen in spots, as the slack will work back along the wrap.