Tasis Fat Wrap Bar Tape
Fat wrap bar tape claims to be the thickest cork-EVA tape on the market. We’ve been holding hands with it to see what that feels like.
Words and Images - James Raison
THE TAPE
Tasis bikes developed Fat Wrap bar tape to increase comfort for the mile eaters and anyone who likes to double-wrap their bars. It’s really, really, really thick. My previous tape was some already plush Lizard Skins DSP 2.5 mm but that did not prepare me for how thick the Fat Wrap would be.
This stuff feels like shaking hands with a pillow. It’s like carrying two handfulls of marshmallows. It’s halfway to pool noodle. I love it.
MASSIVE
I measured the circumference at a 10.5 cm around the Syntace bars I wrapped them around. For reference, the glorified electrical tape on my Giant measures 9.7 cm. That’s a substantial difference.
It has an effect on ride comfort too. There’s a major reduction in vibration transferred to your hands. My large-ish hands found it nice to have something substantial to hold on to. The longer the ride, the more I noticed the difference in comfort.
There’s not really much else to say, is there? It's super duper thick bar tape. I recommend this stuff to everyone looking to improve ride comfort. You don't need endurance aspirations either. This stuff is just great to have on your bike.
The only people who won't be pleased are those weirdos who insist they like to "feel the road" by riding without gloves and tyres at 4000 psi. Weirdos...
Fat Wrap is available from the Tasis Bikes website.
As we are well into winter everyone is asking me about lights, however, I think you should be riding with front and rear lights all year round, no matter what time of day or night, terrain, country or city, bike paths or roads.