Cork Grips - Shellac or No?

[Peter Pesce]

Any opinions on whether or not it's preferable to shellac your cork grips? I'm trying them for the first time and they are currently naked, but I was wondering if anyone had pros and cons for leaving them that way vs shellacking them?
If it matters, these are the plain version without the groove for bar end cables and the associated twine.
Thanks in advance.

Pete

[Seth Vidal]

Pro: they don't discolor with use and the look nice -in either clear
or amber shellac

Con: shellac on cork grips can be slick as all get out when wet. also
if you're wearing a non-grippy wool glove - good luck holding on
tightly.

I shellac them with clear for a few coats then rough up the surface a
bit with some sand paper.

-sv

[Smitty-A-Go-Go]

Both bikes in my garage with real cork grips are clear shellacked. The longer lived one is about 18 months old and still looks fine after near daily use. I recently put "cork" tape on a different bike... no shellac... and it's starting to look grubby after only a few weeks of intermittent use. I realize the tape and grips are different materials but I would guess that cork grips get gross pretty quick if left bare.  But I think you should leave your grips bare and report back :-) 

[Bill Gibson]

The finish wears off, is easy to sand off, is easy to restore. Cork grips are easy to repair, reshape, and they evolve with the bike and your use. Hmmm. Wonder how they would age with oiling instead of shellac?

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Bill Gibson
Tempe, Arizona, USA

[Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery]

I suggest riding them raw for awhile, until they start to look grubby. Then it's time to shellac (I prefer amber color). The grubbiness plus shellac gives a nice beausage effect. Works for cloth tape, too.