Bars finally taped...wahey!!!!

[JWestland]

Well...I only needed to get the right bar and replace the bracket covers but...

A new handlebar (4 cm too wide) 38s rare as hens teeth, first GRRRRRRRRRRR moment
New cables and housing
New bracket covers
Getting wrong cables twice and having to replace brake cables again to get to bracket covers GRRRRRRRRR
Not being able to tune front derailleur without help after changing cable (was needed, rusty housing) more GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Copious cursing and "if you weren't such a nice bike, I would have put you on gumtree weeks ago!!!"
Finally all done!

(Tubus rack not mine, the manfriend (boyfriend? needs his tourer to be fixed, well gives him an excuse to give me the bags

I have a newfound respect for people with perfectly taped bars...I had to start about 10 times (if you don't do it perfect bar plugs won't go in) and it doesn't look perfect, ah well first try and they are comfy!

[Relayer]

Good job Jawine, and 10/10 for perseverance!

Now you can go out and enjoy it   

[Danneaux]

My!

What a nice-looking job on the handlebar tape, Jawine -- well done, indeed!

Isn't is amazing how such a small change can make such an enormous difference in "everything" looking so fresh and new? I always look in wonder after I've done mine again.

...Copious cursing...

Good old-fashioned cursing beats modern cussing (obscenities and profanities). Soliloquies on the hoped-for misfortunes, evil, and doom to befall careless manufacturers and designers beats "naughty words" any day for creativity alone. Amazing how words come to mind you didn't know you knew! And the combinations, too!   Fortunately few if any of mine are ever verbalized. Deep breaths help. A lot. To the untrained observer, it looks like hyperventilation.

And...now you're an experienced bar-taper, it'll never be this hard again!  Yay!

Congratulations again on a job well-done, and thanks for sharing the pics (and a very nice collage, too)!

Best,

Dan.

[JWestland]

I wasn't too original I have to admit go .... yourselves, that kind of thing
Shimano really got the worst of it, with their non standard parts and need to cut brake cable (grrrr)

Changed the finish tape to plain black, a little too much logo