Fizik Terra Microtex Bondcush Tacky Tape

Fizik's Terra Microtex Bondcush Tacky Tape is excellent: really comfortable, grippy and good looking. It's also really expensive. Still, you pays your money and all that.

• Pros: Good grip levels, comfortable
• Cons: Expensive, picks up dirt more easily than some

The Terra tape – I haven't got time to write out the full name every time, there are things to do – consists of a cushioned polymer foam grip layer on top of a Microtex base, with a tacky surface finish applied. The base looks to be the same as the Selle Italia tape I tested recently and its main properties are that it's extremely strong, and not especially flexible. That means it requires a firm hand to get a nice tight finish.

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There's a Fizik logo on on edge of the tape; depending on which way you wrap it you can either expose that or cover it up. There's a sticky gel strip on the rear of the tape that both acts as an adhesive and offers a bit more damping. It's tacky rather than sticky so it's easy to remove.

The tape is available in six colours, it's 3mm thick and does a really good job of soaking up road chatter. This is one of the better single-layer tapes that I've used in that regard, and in terms of shock absorption it's comparable with the Selle Italia tape I mentioned above – and that comes with gel inserts.

The surface is very grippy, almost sticky in fact, and in all conditions. It does pick up dust and grime, though, so if you're picking a light colour then it's not going to stay pristine for long. My green tape buffed up okay with a wet wipe, but some dirt does get ingrained. It doesn't stop being grippy, though, or at least hasn't yet.

Fizik says 'Terra bar tapes are designed for those who go off-road on drop bars' and certainly this is a good choice for gravel bikes and the like, giving good damping and excellent control. It's also worth looking at for general road riding, especially if you're spending a lot of time on smaller roads with questionable surfaces.

If you need more padding than the tape provides on its own, stick a few sections of the bar tape you're removing underneath the relevant bits of bar when you fit the Terra tape, or look at some gel inserts.

No doubt about it: this is expensive bar tape. (A quick look here shows plenty of examples of cheaper tape, some lots cheaper, though not all recommended.) It is really nice though, so if you're after good comfort and grip and you have a few quid to throw at the problem, you're not going to be disappointed.

Verdict

High quality bar tape that's grippy and comfortable