Sewn-on handlebar leather...touch of play...help?

[illdthedj]

hi guys...

so id like to think im pretty good at wrapping handlebars. its an area my inherent anal-retentiveness lets me shine! :)

HOWEVER recently i have made the foray into SEW-ON leather handlebar covers...er wrap....whatever they're called.

so i painstakingly sewn the leather onto the handlebars and i must say they look great. however...i notice while riding on them, just a touch of play...meaning, they dont seem to be super TIGHT on the bars, and that i can rotate them a few millimeters back and forth.

mind you it isn't an incredible amount, and i usually dont notice it when riding...much. but sometimes i do notice it, and the anal retentive side of me cant help but fixate on it, no matter how minute it is.

so i ask you, sewn-on handlebar leather experts out there...am i doomed to painstakingly un-sew the leather, remove the leather, wrap the bars in some cloth tape or something, and start all over again?

or is there something else i can do?
do you think i could somehow shrink the leather a touch to get a tight fit?

i have tried getting the leather a touch wet and letting it dry, but nothing has happened. perhaps theres some specific technique to doing this that i am unaware of.

anywho, thanks for any help!

[AngryScientist]

the best way to do it is to soak the leather, wrap it and let it shrink to fit. too late for that, but just wet to the touch wont help. soak the leather, soak. then let it dry, that'll solve your problem.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Sorry to say that, yeah, you should have put some hockey tape or the like on the bar prior to sewing on the leather.

[Ahneida Ride]

With just a little time and effort.

you can wrap Handlebra and obtain a nearly flat surface ...
with out the feel of the stitching

[Ahneida Ride]

Sorry to say that, yeah, you should have put some hockey tape or the like on the bar prior to sewing on the leather.

This a very good suggestion !

[RedRider]

I'm done both, sewn and wrapped HandleBra, and can say that for riding the wrapped is far better. The sewn on looks great for a show bike but not very practical for regular use.

[illdthedj]

haha i guess i cant just really soak them while they are already sewn on? and maybe leave outside in the 90+ degree weather here?

im guessing no and im going to have to start over...but ill give it a try to find out :)

[illdthedj]

I'm done both, sewn and wrapped HandleBra, and can say that for riding the wrapped is far better. The sewn on looks great for a show bike but not very practical for regular use.

i will say this is on a bike that....i wouldn't consider a show bike, but sort of a "used once in a while but not my main bike" sort of show-ish bike....

well its this guy:
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3700/9092830173_2bdb865d94_c.jpg

and of course the thread is yellow, sourced at my local Hobby Lobby!

[Steve in SLO]

You might try soaking (sopping wet) a towel or washcloth and wrapping it tightly around the handlebars. Leave it there for an hour to allow the leather to soak up the water, then put the bike out of the hot central California sun. That should do it. If not, you can soak the handlebars and then use a blow dryer on hot to dry the bars. That will shrink the letter.

[ColonelJLloyd]

It's worth noting that soaking and drying the leather will make it softer and likely even more pliable. This could be desirable in some cases, but maybe not yours since without anything under it, the leather may twist on you with use.

[dave thompson]

I ran sew-on bar wrap for about a year on one bike and had no slippage issues. I used hockey tape as an under wrap to smooth out the bar/cabling transition on the tops and to provide grip for the leather wrap. Worked perfectly. So well in fact that I now do the same regardless of which bar tape I use. A side benefit is that it helps when rewrapping bars with tape that has an adhesive strip, it nullifies the problem of tape residue.

[4Rings6Stars]

I ran sew-on bar wrap for about a year on one bike and had no slippage issues. I used hockey tape as an under wrap to smooth out the bar/cabling transition on the tops and to provide grip for the leather wrap. Worked perfectly. So well in fact that I now do the same regardless of which bar tape I use. A side benefit is that it helps when rewrapping bars with tape that has an adhesive strip, it nullifies the problem of tape residue.

Except after being left on for a long time, the hockey tape will potentially leave a lot more residue than the adhesive strip on bar tape...

(from somebody having taped and untaped hockey and lacrosse sticks literally thousands of times)