The incomparable Portuguese Tree Cork Grips are now back in stock at Rivendell!

[Julian Westerhout]

These grips are fantastic, and they've been unavailable for almost a year -- apparently some sort of issue with the small factory in Portugal, but it appears that at least for the moment they are again available from Rivendell, both in the normal  version http://tinyurl.com/yxnhpwfl   and in the version with grooves for bar ends http://tinyurl.com/y3t66kt8  

I've never seen these anywhere else, and IMHO there's no better upright bar grip out there. They beat the glued scrap cork grips by a country mile both in shape/comfort and aesthetics. I treat mine with a coating designed for cork fly rods -- works well in all weather and keeps them looking spiffy. 

I'm going to hoard some, and hereby resolve to not do in the future what I've done on my Clem and our HHH (mount them with too much glue to allow them to ever be removed without destruction). In the future I pledge to always mount them in a way that they're removable without destruction. 

Julian Westerhout

Bloomington, IL 

[Joe Bernard]

The comment in the email about carbon forks was interesting. I hate those stupid things.

[aeroperf]

And...ordered

I have a Sam with the old cork grips, and I love them.

I ordered a Homer frame in July and was told the cork was unavailable.  Now I'm just ready for grips and here they are.

Thanks, Julian, for the post.

[Benz, Sunnyvale, CA]

On Wednesday, September 4, 2019 at 3:05:18 PM UTC-7, Julian Westerhout wrote:

I'm going to hoard some, and hereby resolve to not do in the future what I've done on my Clem and our HHH (mount them with too much glue to allow them to ever be removed without destruction). In the future I pledge to always mount them in a way that they're removable without destruction.

Do they really need to be glued on? I have a pair of non-Misha cork grips that I've installed by cranking them over the handlebars that were pre-treated with scrap pieces of Tressostar bar tape. On one side, the bar tape adhesive holds tight onto the bare aluminum handlebar; one the other side, the bar tape texture holds firmly onto the cork grips well. The grips barely twist with my "death grip" (admittedly not world-class) and never move during normal riding.

[Tom M]

Doesn’t your Seven have a carbon fork?

[Joe Bernard]

It did, I sold it back to the guy I bought it from. He missed his bike and I was too nervous to ride it.

[Hetchins52]

Are they compatible to mounting with hairspray as many mechanics did with mountain bike grips in the past?

The spray acts as a lube to allow sliding them on, then dries and acts as an adhesive. 

It was common to remove them by putting compressed air in through the hole at the end (and putting a finger over the other grip's hole), then floating them off the bar.

Rubbing alcohol could also be used to break the bond but I don't know if that would hurt the rings of cork which I think are glued together.

David Lipsky 

Berkeley

[Joe Bernard]

No, cork doesn't work that way. I don't know any of the technical terms of grip material, so I'll just explain it the way it feels to me.

Rubber grips are ever so slightly too small for the bars, and the hairspray or alcohol let's you shove them on there, then it evaporates and you're left with a pliable material tightly hugging the bar. Cork is hard and has to be the exact diameter or slightly larger to get over the bar, then it just spind away if there's no glue or some sort of make-the-bar-bigger source underneath it. Someone else may be able to better explain the differences, I'm just going on how it feels to work with.