# Removing bar tape



## BadWolf (Feb 23, 2010)

Neighbor’s dog got accidently knocked my bike over. No real damage except torn bar tape. Yesterday, I attempted to retape my handlebar but had a hell of time taking the old tape off. It’s amazing how strong they make the adhesive on these tapes. I had to scrap off the tape in chunks. It took almost 20 min to get the tape off of one side. 

Now I still have alot of adhesive residue and small chunk of cork stuck to the handlebar. What the best way to clean the handle bar? Before I tackle the other side, is there an easier way of remove bar tape?


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## shockfinder (Apr 21, 2009)

I just rip it off and don't worry about the leftover adhesive. The new tape covers it and you can't feel it under the new.


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## bismo37 (Mar 22, 2002)

I just finished re-taping my wife's bars.

Personally, I wouldn't worry or bother to remove the leftover adhesive. You're going to be covering it up again anyway. Maybe just remove any significant pieces of cork/tape that remain and might be felt under the new tape.

My wife wanted the cheapest bar tape at the shop... $9 for Profile brand synthetic black cork. I thought I was going to hate applying it as some of the cheap tapes tear easily under tension, but this stuff actually went on really nicely and has great padding. I've been using Deda and Fizik tapes in the past.


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## MarshallH1987 (Jun 17, 2009)

i just use a plastic scraper to take off the big chunks and just leave the thin stuff. If you really want to take it off, then pretty much any solvent will work.


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## Amfoto1 (Feb 16, 2010)

If you really, really want to get off all the old adhesive, try WD-40. It softens the glue to allow you to fingernail the remaining goop off.

There are also commercial products made specifically to remove the glue... Goo-Gone is one that comes to mind. I have a small bottle of it in my bike repair toolbox. 

A lot of solvents will work... Just be a little careful what you use around plastic, rubber and carbon fiber parts.

OTOH, there is something to be said for leaving some of the old adhesives on there to help keep the new tape in place. In fact, one school of thought is to add a lot of double-sided tape to the lower drop area, where the tape is most likely to get damaged due to bumps and scrapes. The tape might still get torn, but is more likely to stay in place if there is extra adhesive in that area. 

The Park Tool website has a good DIY article about tape installation (as well as lots of articles about many other repairs).


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## Dinosaur (Jan 29, 2004)

You can leave the old adhesive on. The problem is sooner or later it will accumulate. After a period of time it can cause problems. You can use mineral spirits and scape the old adhesive off with anything. You might consider going with tape that does not have an adhesive backing, such as any gel tape or Fizik. It's a little harder to wrap. I've used Fizik and ran the stuff through the washing machine and used it over and over for a couple of years, until I got tired of looking at the stuff...cork tape does have a nice feel to it though..


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## tom_h (May 6, 2008)

Odorless Mineral Spirits or WD40 will remove most adhesive gunk and is harmless to carbon fiber (and certainly to aluminum).

3M Adhesive Remover (contains xylene) is more aggressive, and may soften other plastic or rubber parts ... use cautiously.


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## jmlapoint (Sep 4, 2008)

I like to start with clean bars when I re-tape.
I use Gumout or Brake Parts Cleaner.
Spray on the bar and a rag will remove the adhesive. May require several coast to get completely clean.

john


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## tihsepa (Nov 27, 2008)

After you get them clean I wrap with electrical tape before the bar tape. It makes removal real easy. The bar tape sticks to the electrical tape and that is much easier to take off.


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

*Hmmm*



A from Il said:


> After you get them clean I wrap with electrical tape before the bar tape. It makes removal real easy. The bar tape sticks to the electrical tape and that is much easier to take off.


Wouldn't it be a whole lot easier to just use tape that doesn't have the sticky stuff on it in the first place?


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## Mr. Versatile (Nov 24, 2005)

Kerry Irons said:


> Wouldn't it be a whole lot easier to just use tape that doesn't have the sticky stuff on it in the first place?


Maybe. For some reason my tape tends to slip just around the curve of the bar just above the hoods. Since I prefer tape without adhesive, I wrap my bars with friction tape, then install the bar tape over that. Problem solved.


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## skyliner1004 (May 9, 2010)

if u have OCD and must get it off (like i would) use Goo Gone. Spray it in, let it sit for a minute, scrape off with something like a credit card.


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

*Stretchy tape*



Mr. Versatile said:


> Maybe. For some reason my tape tends to slip just around the curve of the bar just above the hoods. Since I prefer tape without adhesive, I wrap my bars with friction tape, then install the bar tape over that. Problem solved.


I use things like Profile cork filled foam tape that is plenty stretchy. When I wrap it tight, it doesn't slip. The only tape I use is to anchor the start of the wrap at the bar end, and at the finish of the wrap to hold it at the stem.


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## Mr. Versatile (Nov 24, 2005)

Kerry Irons said:


> I use things like Profile cork filled foam tape that is plenty stretchy. When I wrap it tight, it doesn't slip. The only tape I use is to anchor the start of the wrap at the bar end, and at the finish of the wrap to hold it at the stem.


Mine does slip unless I use friction tape. I do have another problem though. I use black electricians tape to finish the bar tape off at the bar. I've had trouble recently with the electricians tape slipping a little & exposing the adhesive. I almost never ride on the tops, but on rare occasions when I do it gets my hands sticky. Not only that, it looks bad. Got any suggestion(s) for that?


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## dysfunction (Apr 2, 2010)

You can heat the tape with a soldering iron etc and it does help prevent slippage.


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## wim (Feb 28, 2005)

Mr. Versatile said:


> I've had trouble recently with the electricians tape slipping a little & exposing the adhesive. I almost never ride on the tops, but on rare occasions when I do it gets my hands sticky. Not only that, it looks bad. Got any suggestion(s) for that?


Yes, I do: don't let the electrician's tape touch the handlebar. I'm constantly amazed by the crappy taping jobs I see on $5,000+ bikes, with the electrician's tape going beyond the handlebar tape, necking down and getting wrapped around the metal of the handlebar, arrgh! There's absolutely no need for that.

The pro job is to leave 1/16" or so of handlebar tape showing past the edge of the electrician's tape. Pull the electrician's tape tight until you get to the last inch. Let go of the electrician's tape for a few seconds so that last inch can shrink back to the "no-tension" state. Then stick that last inch down. See photo of my taping job—not perfect, but good enough to get my point across. (The red accent is red tape sliced to be slightly narrower than the black tape with a ruler and an x-acto knife).


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## PlatyPius (Feb 1, 2009)

wim said:


> Yes, I do: don't let the electrician's tape touch the handlebar. I'm constantly amazed by the crappy taping jobs I see on $5,000+ bikes, with the electrician's tape going beyond the handlebar tape, necking down and getting wrapped around the metal of the handlebar, arrgh! There's absolutely no need for that.
> 
> The pro job is to leave 1/16" or so of handlebar tape showing past the edge of the electrician's tape. Pull the electrician's tape tight until you get to the last inch. Let go of the electrician's tape for a few seconds so that last inch can shrink back to the "no-tension" state. Then stick that last inch down. See photo of my taping job—not perfect, but good enough to get my point across. (The red accent is red tape sliced to be slightly narrower than the black tape with a ruler and an x-acto knife).


That is a recent thing, and IMO looks like ass on a stick. It looks unfinished and shoddy. Having the tape extend past the bar tape makes a smooth transition to the bar tape from the handlebar. I use only high quality electrical tape, and don't have any problem with the adhesive being exposed over time. If it did, however, it's very easy to replace the electrical tape.


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## Touch0Gray (May 29, 2003)

hemp on the end.......looks and feels great


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## wim (Feb 28, 2005)

*Electrician's tape on bar = amateur job.*



PlatyPius said:


> That is a recent thing, and IMO looks like ass on a stick. It looks unfinished and shoddy. Having the tape extend past the bar tape makes a smooth transition to the bar tape from the handlebar.


Disagree. The "smooth transition to the bar tape from the handlebar" is ugly as a mud fence and shows that the person taping doesn't really understand how bar tape is held in place and/or never looked closely at pro mechanic taping jobs ever since handlebar tape has been put on racing bikes.

Edit: Touch: that looks good indeed!

/w


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## Touch0Gray (May 29, 2003)

wim said:


> Edit: Touch: that looks good indeed!
> 
> /w


thanks.....I use hemp on stretchy tape too...It comes in many colors and is available at craft stores for beading.


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## jmlapoint (Sep 4, 2008)

Kerry Irons said:


> I use things like Profile cork filled foam tape that is plenty stretchy. When I wrap it tight, it doesn't slip. The only tape I use is to anchor the start of the wrap at the bar end, and at the finish of the wrap to hold it at the stem.


I totally agree.
I use tape w/o adhesive, and if you wrap it tight and start at the bar end so the overlap is correct, I seldom have any problems with tape slippage.

john


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## PlatyPius (Feb 1, 2009)

wim said:


> Disagree. The "smooth transition to the bar tape from the handlebar" is ugly as a mud fence and shows that the person taping *doesn't really understand how bar tape is held in place *and/or *never looked closely at pro mechanic taping jobs ever since handlebar tape has been put on racing bikes.*
> 
> Edit: Touch: that looks good indeed!
> 
> /w


It's cosmetic. It has nothing to do with "how tape is held in place". I like the look of the smooth progression from tape to handlebar.

Second one is obviously bullsh!+, since "ever since bartape was put on racing bikes" involved ribbon and wrapping backwards from the top of the bar to the ends; and no tape at all was required then.

I was taught how to wrap bars on Alexi Grewal's bike at The Hub in Aspen. That probably doesn't count, though, since he's an ex-pro...


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## aengbretson (Sep 17, 2009)

I'll throw in my $0.02 - I prefer the electrical tape to go on to the bars a little bit. It helps smooth out the transition instead of it being a tape/no tape with a pronounced ridge. Also, I sweat a LOT and use my tops quite a bit too (I like to rest my forearms there when taking a longer pull, plus climbing) and I have NEVER peeled the tape back. I make sure to put the seam on the bottom of the bars. Maybe that has something besides and aesthetic touch to it? FWIW, most of the pro bikes I see have the electrical tape hiding the transition.


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## GirchyGirchy (Feb 12, 2004)

wim said:


> Disagree. The "smooth transition to the bar tape from the handlebar" is ugly as a mud fence and shows that the person taping doesn't really understand how bar tape is held in place and/or never looked closely at pro mechanic taping jobs ever since handlebar tape has been put on racing bikes.


LOL! Really - who cares? It's bar tape. As long as it looks halfway decent I'm ok with my own non-pro job.


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## skizzle86 (Apr 15, 2010)

IMHO Gasoline works best for removing sticky residue leftover by tape or stickers. The bar tape I use doesn't have any adhesive so I can rewrap as often as I like and it never slips.


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## tom_h (May 6, 2008)

Mr. Versatile said:


> Mine does slip unless I use friction tape. I do have another problem though. I use black electricians tape to finish the bar tape off at the bar. I've had trouble recently with the electricians tape slipping a little & exposing the adhesive. I almost never ride on the tops, but on rare occasions when I do it gets my hands sticky. Not only that, it looks bad. Got any suggestion(s) for that?


Use the premium quality 3M brand tapes, not generic hardware store products. Scotch Super 33+ (black only) or Scotch 35 (many colors). Usually available from Amazon.com, if not available locally.


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## Mr. Versatile (Nov 24, 2005)

tom_h said:


> Use the premium quality 3M brand tapes, not generic hardware store products. Scotch Super 33+ (black only) or Scotch 35 (many colors). Usually available from Amazon.com, if not available locally.


Thanks Tom. I'll give that a try. I don't know what I'm using now, but I'm sure it's brand X.

BTW Touch. Hemp is illegal here in Ohio. I'm surprised the lay allows its use in Wisc, unless, of course, it's for medical reasons.


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## Touch0Gray (May 29, 2003)

oh this is definitely medical.....wrapping bars like that is a treatment for ocd.....LOL


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## asad137 (Jul 29, 2009)

I use self-amalgamating tape with good results on handlebars. Once it sticks, it's permanent. It's not the prettiest looking stuff, though (it stretches a lot, so it's tough to get a nice consistent-width tape line). Luckily I don't care.

Asad


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