How to Make Honey
Question: How do you match the Brooks honey color in a cloth bar tape?
Answer: Apply 3 coats of Bulls Eye amber shellac over yellow Newbaum’s.
Speaking of, Newbaum’s is lovely cotton bar tape, made in the U.S.A. using eco-friendly dyes. Available in 14 colors. Rolls are 10′ x 3/4″. Good stuff.
13 Responses to “How to Make Honey”
Or buy Honey leather tape from Brooks: http://www.brooksengland.com/en/Shop_ProductPage.aspx?cat=bags+-+other+brooks+products&prod=Leather+Bar+Tape
I never much liked the feel of leather tape (hence the effort to match the color in cloth).
Alan
I prefer the leather and I like the cork tapes too! I use old oil pastels and shoe polish to make cork nice and honey like. I use Zinnzer amber and then a clear coat of Zinnzer to finnish. The cork tape absorbs road vibes far better than cloth (my opinion). : )
can anyone tell me where to get cheap bar tape? i’m open to cotton, cork, vinyl, whatever, but i basically can’t find it for under $10 shipped anywhere. even on ebay, you’re lucky if you can find something heinous for $8 shipped. i’d be happy enough to buy in bulk too.
CTP, if you find it under $10.00 bucks, tell the rest of us ok?
@Doug
I’ve always preferred skinny, hard grips. Back in my motocross days I always rode the skinny Oury grips, on my commuters I run shellaced cork, and on my drop bar bikes I’ve always run cloth. For some reason, foam grips and padded tape just don’t feel right to me. It’s all very subjective and personal, of course…
Alan
@CTP
At the various stores around Seattle, cloth always seems to be the cheapest option. $10 -$11 for the Velox, $15 – $20 for your standard cork/synthetic.
In contrast to Alan, I’ve always preferred the semi-retro Grab-Ons on my drop-bar commuter/touring bike. It’s a big feel, but it really dampens out the vibrations, which I appreciate on longer trips. Real, brand-name Grab-Ons last a long time; the imitators, not so long.
Mark (no affiliation with Grab-Ons – just like ‘em)
Here’s a pic of the amber shellac going on yellow Newbaum’s tape:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fiddlefishtrent/4598669005/
The pic shows one layer of shellac on the left.
you don’t have to use newbaum’s cotton tape. you can use tressostar cotton tape, as well.
if you prefer cork tape, i found that 6 coats of amber shellac over white cork results in an excellent match to brooks honey. cork tape will require more coats than cotton, since it doesn’t absorb the stain as well. you might also want to go over the finished tape with some steel wool to take the shine down. the resultant honey-colored cork resembles leather.
here is my white cork tape treated this way:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7516215@N03/4692923529/in/set-72157622923303901/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7516215@N03/4693556552/in/set-72157622923303901/
Anyone have a cloth & shellac recipe for Brooks Antique Brown?
I’m assuming start with Newbaum’s brown, but would you put clear or amber shellac over it?
pete, you could start with newbaum’s or tressostar brown tape, and apply 2-3 coats of clear shellac to get to brooks antique brown.
here are some pictures of my brown tressostar tape with 4 coats of clear shellac:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7516215@N03/4446238478/in/set-72157622917767904/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7516215@N03/4445472691/in/set-72157622917767904/
Thanks. That looks pretty nice.