Widget Components Premium Silicone Wrap

Widget Components' Premium Silicone Wrap, with a diamond texture and screw-in bar end plugs, is an innovative covering that promises remarkable comfort and control in all conditions. So far it's living up to the hype and proving fairly easy to live with.

Two generous rolls are ample for dressing the widest, deepest drops (even with shock absorbing underlay) and shun adhesive backing. There's no need, since the rubberised material hugs the bars, so doesn't unravel at the crucial moment, is easily corrected and can be re-used following cable replacements or bar swaps.

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Achieving a crisp effect is remarkably easy so long as gentle, consistent pressure is applied, and the generous length ensures easy customisation at key points. Not that you'd rip it, but the sort of pressure tolerated by corks will result in tell-tale fading and faint stretch marks.

Expandable wedge plugs secured with 3mm Allen bolts are another definite plus, although the finishing strips weren't much cop, so make sure you have some decent electrical tape handy.

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Available in black, white, orange, yellow and, of course, green, it has a dimpled diamond patina reminiscent of some space age polymer tapes. The slightly gummy texture is something of an acquired taste, but fans of polymer types will feel immediately at home. The green seems to change according to the light – grassy on clear days and fluoro when it's murky, a boon for winter. However, that dimpled patina harbours ingrained dirt; two weeks of greasy roads with the odd puncture for good measure left ours looking quite jaded in places.

Mercifully, this lifts pretty convincingly when given a blanket of bike wash and tickled with a soft to medium bristle brush. I've even subjected ours to a 30-degree machine cycle, restoring the original lustre without shrinkage or similar side-effect.

Speaking of wet, grotty stuff... water tends to bead up and roll away, and the texture becomes all the more leach-like, leaving you to concentrate on the ride, whether screaming along at 35mph plus, honking up long, tortuous climbs, or powering through the concrete jungle at rush hour.

Damping is similarly impressive, absorbing that low-level buzz that can be very intrusive over longer distances, although double-wrapping at key, personalised points certainly helps. I'd recommend it for cyclo-cross/adventure bikes (but probably in black).

Comfort in dual-purpose cool weather/liner type gloves is excellent too – no numbness or tingling even after 50 road miles. Riding bare handed for any distance is always asking for trouble in my book, but 20-mile blasts were passable, although by the end I was beginning to feel some tingling and soreness around my palms.

It's debatable whether nigh-on £30 is outlandish for bar wrap, but compared with other silicone/polymer coverings it's extremely competitive, and save for a major spill, should last a good while.

Verdict

Impressive bar tape that's proving durable and easy to live with, albeit quite pricey