Mountain Biking - Bring on the ice & snow. Anyone use these tires!

I've been riding on WTB 2.4 MotoRaptors on the icy single track trails this winter. They are great in every condition except for ice. I almost "bit it big" a few times the last couple rides.

I just bought these Nokian Extreme 294. Anyone with experience with riding with studded tires? I've read that they make a huge difference on ice.

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c76/TequilaJoe888/Junk/1132141328422_TR1103.jpg

T.J.

I got the Schwalbe 304's from MEC. They are slow as hell on pavement, but perform nicely on the black ice. I even did some out of the saddle climbing with no traction loss. Those Nokians look very much like my Schwalbes, but I think I have more space between knobs.

I've been riding on WTB 2.4 MotoRaptors on the icy single track trails this winter. They are great in every condition except for ice. I almost "bit it big" a few times the last couple rides.

I just bought these Nokian Extreme 294. Anyone with experience with riding with studded tires? I've read that they make a huge difference on ice.

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c76/TequilaJoe888/Junk/1132141328422_TR1103.jpg

T.J.

i do. about 10 yrs ago i made my own studded tires for my schwinn. they came out really well...but the time it took :rolleyes:

i had to drill a hole from the inside of the tire though each knob where i wanted the stud. (drill into a block of wood) then i had to push the stud through the hole. the tight fit combined with the tube pressure keeps them from pushing back into the tire. the studs are cheap. i think i could do it faster if i did it again. i went overkill and put one in like every knob :D they are just automobile studs.

anyway. it worked sweet. you still have to be cautious, but when you brake on ice the studs just etch right into the surface

I don't use studded tires, they are ok for ice, but the studs just get in the way when it comes to snow.

I got the Schwalbe 304's from MEC. They are slow as hell on pavement, but perform nicely on the black ice. I even did some out of the saddle climbing with no traction loss. Those Nokians look very much like my Schwalbes, but I think I have more space between knobs.

Through my research, it came down to the Schwalbe Ice Spikers or the Nokian 294's. I was in MEC 2 weeks ago looking at the Schwalbe's. I almost bought them but I went with the Nokians because I found a greeat deal on eBay. I'm sure they are both very good on ice and snow.

http://www.pinkbike.com/modules/news/?op=articleview&id=2340

I can't wait to mount these and hit some nice icy trails in K-Country :)

T.J.

Those Nokians will make ice so easy you won't believe it. If the ice is hard and smooth it's about like pavement. I love mine.

How many kms/miles would you expect to get from these tires?

No idea. I've read that some commuters have used thier tires for 5+ years. The spikes are carbide tipped and do not wear very fast. Typically, the tire wears out before the spikes.

I have 296 front and rear, increadible! Don't ride trails with them, just urban commuting, for which they work superb.

How many kms/miles would you expect to get from these tires?


It depends on how much you use them on the pavement. The carbide studs on the Nokians do last longer than the steel studs on some other brands. This will be year five for me. I am careful about not riding on the pavement unless I have too. You can wear out the studs faster than the tires if you ride on the pavement a lot. The studs are replaceable anyway. I don't have a computer on my snow bike, but I don't have a lot of pavement mileage on these tires. Studs don't get in the way on snow. On loose snow they don't help, unless there is something hard underneath. If the snow is hard packed like on a road with traffic they give superb traction.

This comes up every year. If you search the forums there is a lot of studded tire information.

http://www.bikeforums.net/search.php?searchid=1815405

I've been riding on WTB 2.4 MotoRaptors on the icy single track trails this winter. They are great in every condition except for ice. I almost "bit it big" a few times the last couple rides.

I just bought these Nokian Extreme 294. Anyone with experience with riding with studded tires? I've read that they make a huge difference on ice.

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c76/TequilaJoe888/Junk/1132141328422_TR1103.jpg

T.J.

I rode my first Turkey Burner using these tires for the first time. My impression was that they were slow rolling, though I was riding at pretty low pressure (for me). I also wasn't in very good shape.

The day was cold and dry and I really would have been better of with my Cinders. Se la vie. When the ice and snow is down on the trail, I think the 294s will be necessary to avoid nasty crashes.

For those reading, if you have the money, go for the Hakkas (http://aebike.com/site/page.cfm?PageID=30&SKU=TR1104) which are kevlar and have aluminum anchors underneath the carbide studs. They're about $20 more (each) than the 294s.

I need to get a set of XT/Rynolite XL to mount these too so I can keep the Cinders on my XT/Rynolites.

BTW, if you have wide rims, you will need some metal tire levers to mount the Nokians. The bead is SUPER tight and the wire doesn't yield very well. I used a metal lever to finish mounting mine and need to by a set of Soma steel core levers before I'll even be able to get the tires off.

My friend Justin has studded tires for the winter. Here's a comparison of his kenetics against the studded tires. (I have no clue what studded tires he uses)

I rode my first Turkey Burner using these tires for the first time. My impression was that they were slow rolling, though I was riding at pretty low pressure (for me). I also wasn't in very good shape.

The day was cold and dry and I really would have been better of with my Cinders. Se la vie. When the ice and snow is down on the trail, I think the 294s will be necessary to avoid nasty crashes.

For those reading, if you have the money, go for the Hakkas (http://aebike.com/site/page.cfm?PageID=30&SKU=TR1104) which are kevlar and have aluminum anchors underneath the carbide studs. They're about $20 more (each) than the 294s.

I need to get a set of XT/Rynolite XL to mount these too so I can keep the Cinders on my XT/Rynolites.

BTW, if you have wide rims, you will need some metal tire levers to mount the Nokians. The bead is SUPER tight and the wire doesn't yield very well. I used a metal lever to finish mounting mine and need to by a set of Soma steel core levers before I'll even be able to get the tires off.


The tough mount might be due to the Rynolites. Their notorious for being tough to get any tire on or off. I broke a lever removing a generic tire on them, and needed a lever's help to mount a Hakka 106 and a Mount and Ground 160. But the XT/Rynolite's are about the best wheelset value you can get. I got a pair for $125 shipped via ebay.

I just mounted the Extreme 294’s last weekend onto some Mavic 312’s and was able to do so by hand without levers. This puzzled me a bit because of reading about the difficulty experienced by other folks.

T.J.

Nokian 296/294s are great ice tires. They're permanently mounted on one of my winter bikes. You still need to take it easy, read - can't rail off camber corners on an icy trail, but they'll keep you upright 9 out of 10 times.

A+ for trail and frozen lake riding
B for commuting as they're a little slow on pavement and are total overkill

If the snow is deep they won't help at all. Then you need Pugsley with 3.7s.

i do. about 10 yrs ago i made my own studded tires for my schwinn. they came out really well...but the time it took :rolleyes:

i had to drill a hole from the inside of the tire though each knob where i wanted the stud. (drill into a block of wood) then i had to push the stud through the hole. the tight fit combined with the tube pressure keeps them from pushing back into the tire. the studs are cheap. i think i could do it faster if i did it again. i went overkill and put one in like every knob :D they are just automobile studs.

anyway. it worked sweet. you still have to be cautious, but when you brake on ice the studs just etch right into the surface

Around the same time i made my own by using running sheet mettle screws from the back and using an old innertube as a liner.

Worked well in the Missouri ice season.

Chip

How are Nokian tires normally, I was thinking of getting some but I wasn't sure. I haven't really seen them or heard about them before.

Around the same time i made my own by using running sheet mettle screws from the back and using an old innertube as a liner.

Worked well in the Missouri ice season.

Chip

I've done that same thing with my junky winter commuter. It works pretty good, but on concrete it sucks, just to slow rolling and bumpy, and lord knows how many times I've just about fallen because I rode into the garage and tried to turn.