With everything in the right places on the 51 porter conversion it was time to put the cherry on top. There is something just right about the feel of cotton tape with just a few coats of shellac. I have found that the orange tape, particularly Newbams, when paired with garnet shellac is not only a near perfect match for brooks leather saddles, but has a warm tone that you can not replicate any other way. It is just one of those things that takes time, patience, and is a process you can not cheat on. This project has a layer of Soma thick and zesty under the orange cotton, finished off with cotton twine and then three coats of garnet shellac, the pictures tell the rest of the story.
The amazing thing is the feel, grippy, but soft, with just a touch of cush. It will soften with time, last for years with an occasional re-coat, and only look and feel better with usage.
And for the color, most would not know it isn’t leather unless you told them, a perfect match for a worn in Brooks.
It’s really tough to beat cotton wrap for that one-two combination of comfort and longevity. Personally, I love the stuff myself. It’s a really great choice for your porteur build, by the way, and add pure functionality to that list. Very nice.
Thanks Mark, I like he synth. cork tape for the first few months in most cases, particularly soma’s thick and zesty. I have found it holds up well to wrapping, unwrapping and rewraping a few times, which may happen while the cockpit is getting dialed in. Cloth tape is not tolerant of such abuses. My Rambler is next in line for the re-tape. I have a few adjustments and a cable re-route I have been putting off, but once I get that done there is some red cloth and more garnet shellac waiting in the wings.