Heli taping a frame

[Hard-Drive]

I have a new bike arriving on Monday, a titanium gravel bike. What are people’s thoughts and experiences on heli taping?

The bike will get used for bike packing (next year realistically) and I’m worried about where the Velcro for frame packs etc goes around the frame, and grit ending up stuck behind that and damaging the frame. Is it best to heli tape as much as I can of the whole thing, or just specific areas?

Thanks!

[sociopath]

Just accept its a real bike and may get marks, or add heli tape which doesnt stick very well and looks horrible, then the corners start to come unstuck and grit gets underneath it, then it starts to get dirty, then the grit under the corners scratches the bike anyway.

Horrible stuff, get the battle scars and let your bike wear them with pride

[BrundanBianchi]

I’ve used the good quality 3M stuff on my best bike, but only on the top of the chain stay to prevent any chunks getting taken out if there’s ever any chain suck issues. If I had external cabling I’d put some around the head tube to prevent any rubbing there as well, other than that, there’s little point really.

[13aines]

Is it unpainted titanium? If so, what will you gain?

[Hard-Drive]

13aines said:

Is it unpainted titanium? If so, what will you gain?

It is indeed. If I was just riding "as is" I'd probably just leave it alone. But when there's a load of bikepacking kit on it, I'm worried about grit getting in between the bags and the frame and being ground in, and it looking like someone's attacked it with emery cloth here and there...

[Paul Drawmer]

The resulting patina will be proof of use. Wear them with pride.

[Bill]

sociopath said:

Just accept its a real bike and may get marks, or add heli tape which doesnt stick very well and looks horrible, then the corners start to come unstuck and grit gets underneath it, then it starts to get dirty, then the grit under the corners scratches the bike anyway.

Horrible stuff, get the battle scars and let your bike wear them with pride

And the corner that's lifted will catch on your calf and you'll wonder why the hell your bike is red.

[Sway]

Hard-Drive said:

13aines said:

Is it unpainted titanium? If so, what will you gain?

It is indeed. If I was just riding "as is" I'd probably just leave it alone. But when there's a load of bikepacking kit on it, I'm worried about grit getting in between the bags and the frame and being ground in, and it looking like someone's attacked it with emery cloth here and there...

Is it brushed titanium?

If so, it can be entirely refinished back to new using nothing more than a scotchbrite pad...

Depending on how the logos are done, they might be different - and so potentially a bit of duct tape to protect them is worthwhile just where the bags rub.

[Dnlm]

A pal has spent lots of time bike packing on Ti bikes, one a Dolan actually. They came out of untaped trips looking fine.

Think that grit style situation is significantly less likely to impact an unpainted frame. Carbon seatpost etc a bit more risk of scratching.

I've done it for non-scratch reasons before though. Keeps some straps a little more secure and stops wobbling.

[Dog Star]

My eMTB is helitaped basically all over, it's a lovely deep metallic blue and I ride in a lot - a real lot - of mud. This gets rubbed like grinding paste all over the main frame tubes, especially the crossbar and just leaves a dulled mess. It's have been ruined. First thing I did was buff them back and then helitape it. I've used proper HS8671 3M stuff and haven't had the "lifting" issues etc mentioned by the second or third poster, it looks fine. The stuff does cost a bloody fortune though.

I've a load of 100mm wide stuff arriving today for my enduro motorbike - this might sound daft, but I've spent a load doing the bike like new and the graphics are specially done and cost a fortune - they get dulled very very quickly in the mud, so I'm helitaping where my knees rub.

[Dannbodge]

When I got my S-works I stumped up a fair bit for a kit from Invisiframe.

It's really easy to apply and you can't actually see it on the frame at all (the paint is chameleon colour change stuff)

[BlueComet]

Doesn't work. Dirt finds it way underneath.

[Dog Star]

BlueComet said:

Doesn't work. Dirt finds it way underneath.

I live in the Pennines - almost every ride I do is muddy, really muddy, the sort of mud southerners wouldn't even believe could exist outside the Somme. After over a year my tape is fine.And I use a jetwash.