Tecnifibre Lead Tape-do I have a dud??

[Jmon99]

I bought this stuff over my usual Wilson tape as lots of people on this forum and beyond were singing its praise. I just tried putting some on my Dunlop and I'm pretty disappointed...
For starters, it's way too thick for my liking. It's less like tape than strips of rubber, which makes it pretty annoying to work with.
But my biggest gripe is the lack of stickiness. The first strip lost all adhesiveness entirely, just from touching my fingers. The 2nd strip I made sure not to touch on the sticky side, but it still moved around as soon as it went on, and subsequently fell off. I've given up on even trying to make it work, the stuff is useless.
I just can't understand how something that so many people recommend could perform so badly for me. I've previously tried Wilson tape and some non-branded stuff (possibly Tourna) and both are 100x better than this. Is it possible that I just have a bad batch, or do others find the same issues?

 

[Chotobaka]

I haven't had any problems with it. I generally clean the area where I am applying the tape with alcohol, but even on the occasions where I skipped this step the tape adhered to the racquet and other pieces of tape perfectly. TF has created a convenient, high quality product IMO. I guess a bad batch is always possible.

 

[Jmon99]

I haven't had any problems with it. I generally clean the area where I am applying the tape with alcohol, but even on the occasions where I skipped this step the tape adhered to the racquet and other pieces of tape perfectly. TF has created a convenient, high quality product IMO. I guess a bad batch is always possible.

Admittedly I did skip that step, but my frame is almost brand new so there shouldn't be any debris. Plus I've never done the alcohol step when I've customised my other racquets, and that lead tape (Wilson/no-brand stuff) has always stayed on well. I think it must be a bad batch, or a change of "recipe". The tape just doesn't seem sticky at all, more like a tacky overgrip, but even this is lost really quickly.
Tell me, are both sides of your TF strips adhesive? I've heard people say that, but on mine it's definitely just the side under the white sticker.

 

[Chotobaka]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
No, both sides are not sticky. The top (printed) side is smooth and the bottom (with the peel off) is extremely sticky -- quite a substantial amount of transparent adhesive is visible.

 

[Jmon99]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
No, both sides are not sticky. The top (printed) side is smooth and the bottom (with the peel off) is extremely sticky -- quite a substantial amount of transparent adhesive is visible.

Yeah definitely smooth on the printed side, although the other side of mine doesn't seem much stickier! Very strange.
Apart from a bad pack, the only thing I could think of is the particular frame I'm trying to stick it on. Does lead tape possible adhere better to glossy-painted frames than matt ones? I wouldn't have thought so, but I suppose it's possible

 

[Frost5541]

Yeah definitely smooth on the printed side, although the other side of mine doesn't seem much stickier! Very strange.
Apart from a bad pack, the only thing I could think of is the particular frame I'm trying to stick it on. Does lead tape possible adhere better to glossy-painted frames than matt ones? I wouldn't have thought so, but I suppose it's possible

buy it from somewhere else and try it.

 

[Jmon99]

buy it from somewhere else and try it.

It's actually quite hard to find lead tape where I live. I have to buy it online in any case, but even then there's only a few websites that sell it. The site I buy mine from tends to sell stuff like that a good bit cheaper than other places, so if I can't find the Tecnifibre stuff anywhere else for a similar price, I'll probably just keep buying the Wilson or "no-name" tape (which I've discovered wasn't Tourna but rather Gamma). Maybe the Tecnifibre tape just isn't for me!

 

[Dags]

Lead definitely adheres better to some paint than to others.

My go-to solution when lead tape refuses to stick is put down a layer of electrical tape first. Hasn't failed me yet.

 

[Jmon99]

Lead definitely adheres better to some paint than to others.

My go-to solution when lead tape refuses to stick is put down a layer of electrical tape first. Hasn't failed me yet.

I didn't think of that. I still think my TF tape isn't as adhesive as it should be, but I'll give the tape trick a try and see how I get on. Thanks

 

[Dags]

If there's really very little tack, you could try the double bag - electrical tape underneath, lead tape applied, another layer of electrical tape over the top to hold it in place.

 

[stapletonj]

or just some plain old scotch tape over top. (bigger than lead strip all around)

sounds like you got a bad batch.