[Closed] Anyone else not like helicopter tape?

ooh get you!

I know what you mean!
I've bought some matte tape for my frame and you hardly notice it.

[quote=IHN ]
I know people want to protect their paintwork, but some bikes have so much tape on that they look like they've been wrapped in sellotape...
Handy if you only want to keep it a few days before selling it.

I don't use it but I don't hate it or anything 😯

Frames been completely covered bar the rear dropouts, but by a professional and with top quality tape, the issue is cheap tape badly applied, you can't even see it on the my bike 😉

Nope never used it, some people seem to use and have lots of spare too.

[i]ooh get you![/i]

Sorry, I'm bored and a bit grumpy...

It reminds me of those plastic carpet protectors that my gran used to have. yeah, they protected the carpet and kept it nice, but you couldn't see the carpet as their was an ugly protector over the top of it...

A little bit is ok; too much reminds me of this:
[img] [/img]

Edit - found another pic, not me or my photo...
[img] [/img]

A comment i recently heard regarding excessive use of heli tape on a bike went along the lines of "Christ, you see less plastic in a pikey caravan".

I tend to agree wi loco, the issue is generally cheap tape badly applied - we use freakin expensive stuff in the shop and it can take 2-3 hrs to fully tape up a new bare full suss bike to a decent standard, if it's done right wi quality tape it should be almost unnoticeable.

It's a bloody mountain bike you shouldn't be able to see the tape for mud! 🙂

Sheep shit is even better as it doesn't wash off in the rain.

I need to put some on mine. So which matt tape to use? I've no idea which is best. Thanks

Try Paragon Tapes on ebay. really good stuff, good choice of widths, matt or gloss finishes.

Think tape poorly applied does look pants, so I use Lizard Skins leather patches on head tube and other key cable rub areas. Not so fussed about stone chips and the like - ain't that what mountain biking's all about?

(knockabout steel frame though, if that makes any difference).

I have good results with Paragon tapes.Large sections are often less visible than patches.

I think bumps and grazes on a bike add character and remind me of previous rides (and offs). Don;t use it personally but can see that those who can't keep a bike long enough to get used to it before selling it on might want to use it.

The paint IS the protective layer on my bikes, well that and the last 12 months of accumulated mud and sh1t...

If applied correctly, it looks better than cable rub IMO. As for other dings and nicks from being thrashed around a bit, I prefer those to the tape, so I won't go covering the whole bike with it.

Try Paragon Tapes on ebay. really good stuff, good choice of widths, matt or gloss finishes.

used him a few times (going back before he changed his ebay name), the last lot was non- 3M and it has yellowed badly in less than a year, now that [i]does[/i] look naff on a white frame. So I'd stick with the branded 3M stuff.

Thanks all for advice on paragon. I had seen them on eBay so your comments are appreciated..
I don't like tape either but generally keep my bikes a long time and like to give the, some protection against rub. My old Marin has groves in places. Should have taken more care.

If applied correctly, it looks better than cable rub IMO

+1. A mate has a frame without any protection and one of the cables has worn into the headtube/toptube junction to almost half the width of the cable 😯 😯 borderline structural not just cosmetic. I'd prefer yellowed tape to a junked frame.

Absolutely, I was just about to add that it does provide some peace of mind as well.

I had a Matt Invisiframe kit fitted to my bike after I saw one on a v10 carbon in a local shop. [url= http://www.invisiframe.co.uk ]Clicky[/url] really pleased with the result.

Double post.

No one helitapes their car and that's got a whole lot more shit flying at it.

A lot of people have the front bumper/bonnet heli taped to stop stone chips

No one helitapes their car and that's got a whole lot more shit flying at it.

1) cars are utilitarian dullness
2) youv'e never driven in the US then if you think people dont go to lengths to avoid stone chips...

[img] [/img]

[img] [/img]

[img] [/img]

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[img] [/img]

etc etc

Jeeeezus those are some fugly cars!!!!

Back on topic, if manufacturers put the cable stops in the correct places (on the flipping headline you fools! I SAID THE HEADTUBE!!!!! Sheesh...) then capable rub would cease to exist.

Alternatively:

[url= http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2739/4270548301_d022438915_b.jp g" target="_blank">http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2739/4270548301_d022438915_b.jp g"/> [/img][/url]
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/peter_atkin/4270548301/ ]Yeti_575_038[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/peter_atkin/ ]PeterPoddy[/url], on Flickr

My mate flogs the 3M stuff dirt cheap on eBay.

I bet it's not as cheap as the electrical tape I use. 😉

Think it's £2.99 a meter

I imagine this should work pretty well.

[img] [/img]

+1 for zippies and loops round the headtube, been doing that for years - and paying attention to cable routing.

There is no reason a cable should rub a groove in your frame if routed correctly, the only frame I've had that on was from the previous owner, but I'll admit it's got worse since I owned it, I've been meaning to do something about it since i bought the bike... in 2009 😳

There is no reason a cable should rub a groove in your frame if routed correctly

Correct, but this

I imagine this should work pretty well.

is the answer.

Why manufacturers don't do it to every frame in the world is frankly beyond me.....

My mate has covered, & I mean covered, his bike in helicopter tape. He also got one of those carbon guards to protect the downtube near the BB which a rock managed to avoid, putting a big dent in his otherwise well protected frame!
Me, white leccy tape & a Crudguard.

The crown on my brother in law's foxes had cable outer deep grooves in it due to excessively long cables! 😯

[s]The crown in my brother in law's foxes had cable outer deep grooves in it due to excessively long outers! 80[/s]
Ooh my first new page glitch!