Re: [CR]Handlebar covering timeline

(Example: Books)

In-Reply-To: <NEBBKECHNBFINILGOADOCEGLDDAA.dbilenkey@sympatico.ca>
References:
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2001 10:45:01 -0400
To: <dbilenkey@sympatico.ca>, "Classicrendezvous" <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
From: "Sheldon Brown" <CaptBike@sheldonbrown.com>
Subject: Re: [CR]Handlebar covering timeline


David Bilenkey wrote:
>Could the members create a basic timeline that identified what handlebar
>coverings were used for road racing bicycles and when. I'm sorting of
>thinking something along the lines of this: (I'm just making up dates to
>give you the idea).
>
>Cloth tape: '40-'80 ?
>Cello tape: '78-'85 ?
>Vinyl padded bar wrap (on the lower end bikes): '84-'95 ?
>Cork bar wrap: '82-present ?
>
>Anyone care to try and create a more complete and correct timeline (covering
>a great range of years and types of bar wrap)?
>
>The main reason I'm asking, is to determine what I should put on this '76
>Marinoni I'm slowly working on. It had Grab-On tape (what was that stuff
>made of ?) when I got it, but I'd like to have a greater knowledge of what's
>appropriate for what years.

This is a bit more complicated than it might appear, because there are nationality issues involved. Cloth tape is particularly associated with French bikes. The best known brands of cloth tape are French, (though the actual _best_ is Japanese, CatEye.)

When I was first becoming aware of drop bar bikes, it was the late '50s and the bikes were British. These bikes came with waffle-textured plastic tape similar to Hunt-Wilde, the actual British brand name evades me at the moment.

An Italian bike of the late '70s, I believe, would be most appropriately garbed in Benotto plastic tape. See: http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/head.html#tape

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