Studded tyres?

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EdinburghFixed
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Studded tyres?

Post by EdinburghFixed »

This morning's ride to work was very dicy, with quite a lot of frost on the ground (making it slippy even to walk - which we did as we pushed the bikes to the main road).

So I have a question for those with studded tyres (aka Marathon Winter, etc) - do they have a beneficial effect on this sort of stuff, or do you actually need hit standing "ice" for them to kick in? Secondly, do you find them to be insanely sluggish compared with slick tyres?

If they work on generalised "slippyness" then I think I feel an order coming on. I'm just nervous that they might be so slow that I wouldn't fit them, or that I'd still be sliding around on the thin frosts.

PS. Any tips on where to source them in 20" (406) as well as 26" would be gratefully received!

cheers,

D.
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Si
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by Si »

I've only tried mine on frosts once, it' been full on ice'n'snow other times. TBH I'm not normally bothered by the sort of frosts we get around here, but the studs worked well enough when I did try them.

As for speed - well, if I'm out in the ice then I don't really expect to go fast - upright is my aim! They are similar to using MTB knobblies on the road, but pumped up harder than you'd normally have them. Certainly not fast, but nothing that starting out 5mins earlier won't cure; plus when the time or scraping yourself off the floor and trying to kick everything straight on the bike is factored in they probably win over race tyres :wink:

It should be noted that these tyres do not mean that you have perfect grip - you still have to be careful and avoid throwing the bike around, but when the bike does start to slide they give you the opportunity to correct it rather than instantly dumping you on your face.
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EdinburghFixed
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by EdinburghFixed »

The problem is more that when it's not icy, will I want to swap back to ordinary tyres (and therefore not bother fitting the studded ones at all), not so much that I want to go street racing on ice :shock:

TBH it sounds like I will. But, urgh, as you say it's not great to be on your side.
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Kevin K
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by Kevin K »

EdinburghFixed wrote:So I have a question for those with studded tyres (aka Marathon Winter, etc) - do they have a beneficial effect on this sort of stuff, or do you actually need hit standing "ice" for them to kick in? Secondly, do you find them to be insanely sluggish compared with slick tyres?

If they work on generalised "slippyness" then I think I feel an order coming on. I'm just nervous that they might be so slow that I wouldn't fit them, or that I'd still be sliding around on the thin frosts.
Yes, they work well in frosty conditions (we had similar weather over here in East Kilbride this morning). They are a little slower and noisier, but the difference in journey time is not great (certainly at the speeds I cycle - 12-15Mph average). I had one on the front only this morning, on the basis that if the front goes, I go down, but if the back skids I can probably put my foot down and stay upright. This also helped keep up the average speed.
I bought mine from Bike24 in Germany. Excellent service and fast delivery.
Kevin K. Glasgow
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Si
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by Si »

will I want to swap back to ordinary tyres


Possibly - I use them on my tourer that, during the winter, only comes out when it's icy and thus 'dry' ('cos I don't want to be washing it all the time). On none icy days I use one of the other bikes.
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EdinburghFixed
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by EdinburghFixed »

So far the best I've managed for a 406 is £60 delivered from Germany. At that rate, I actually would be cheaper falling off a few times, and having to replace the mech! :(
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Kevin K
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by Kevin K »

EdinburghFixed wrote:Will I want to swap back to ordinary tyres
Very probably. I have two sets of wheels to make switching easier.
Kevin K. Glasgow
rualexander
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by rualexander »

Yes studs certainly help with frost as well as real ice and snow.
Besides the Marathon Winter (seems to be an availability problem in this country, Dotbike
out of stock), there is also the Schwalbe Snow Stud from Wiggle
or the Nokian Hakkapeliitta from Starbike in Germany. Nokian do a few different models but that is the cheapest, more studs costs more.
They are slightly slower but not a big issue, they also make quite a nice noise!
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Kevin K
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by Kevin K »

I found this part of Peter White's website very useful when researching this topic last year.
Kevin K. Glasgow
ChrisButch
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by ChrisButch »

In Arctic Finland I'm always impressed by the ease with which local riders belt around on roads which are hard, polished ice, presumably by virtue of these tyres.
resus1uk
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by resus1uk »

Every year there are supply problems with studded tyre as soon as the weather turns frosty.

However, once you have them, there are easy to swap if kept ready on a pair of wheels.

I also use a trike most of the time, theya re great on ice
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EdinburghFixed
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by EdinburghFixed »

I now have it on good authority that the 20" size are "not distributed" in the UK. Quite why Schwalbe want to deny me the opportunity to give them money is another question!
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ersakus
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by ersakus »

Hi,
I've put my brand new schw. winters on yesterday. I had ordered them from bike24 (germany) and they have arrived in 3 days!
First thing I noticed was how comfy (@ 60psi) but sluggish/heavy they are. I mean I have used marthon plusses before which are similar in weight but these beasts have quite a bit of drag due to exreme ruggedness and metal bits on them.
I have to say that these are 35C and largest tyres I have used so far. They are so noisy that every one turns and looks at you! A good thing as I don't have a bell on my tourer!
There is constant vibration due to metal bits and you always feel it. The nois goes away as soon as you hit softish surfaces (like paint on the road etc.).

How they will perform? we will see next thursday when the ice hits the ground here in berkshire.

I'd fallen 3 times in the last 3 years. I have 2 broken bones so far due to slippery surface, I'm intending to put an end to my mysery this winter and am ready to put up with the tyre drag!
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Kevin K
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by Kevin K »

ersakus wrote:First thing I noticed was how comfy (@ 60psi) but sluggish/heavy they are. I mean I have used marthon plusses before which are similar in weight but these beasts have quite a bit of drag due to exreme ruggedness and metal bits on them.
I have to say that these are 35C and largest tyres I have used so far. They are so noisy that every one turns and looks at you! A good thing as I don't have a bell on my tourer!
There is constant vibration due to metal bits and you always feel it. The nois goes away as soon as you hit softish surfaces (like paint on the road etc.).
Pump them up really hard and you'll end up riding on the middle section of the tyre with much less noise and sluggishness.
This is also a good way of protecting the studs when it isn't icy.
Kevin K. Glasgow
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philg
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Re: Studded tyres?

Post by philg »

I used Schwalbe Ice Studs on my MTB for the icy days last winter and they are very effective on packed ice and snow.

I don't use them unless it is icy because, as mentioned upthread, they are very slow even when pumped up to max.

More importantly, the studs fall out with use and the tyres aren't cheap, so best kept on a spare/old/cheap set of wheels for when they are really needed.
The weekend comes, my cycle hums
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