Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - ooooouucchhhh

so what tires do you guys use in the winter?


like a jackass, i have been putting off getting some knobby tires thinking if i'm careful enough i can make do with my 700 x 23 slicks...

but tonight i hit an icy street, lost control, bike slid under me, and together we skated halfway down the block.. mostly on my knee and ankle from the feel of it..

guess i wasn't careful enough.

ice is going to **** you no matter what size tire you have.
i like a narrow cross knobbie on the front and a slick 28ish on the back.
narrow tires cut through the slush to the pavement

True narrow tires will cut through chop to the pavement, but you need studs to get grip on ice.

Wide, low pressure tires with very deep treads and studs will get through anything comfortably. Just pump em up to 60psi on clear days, and if it's snowing significantly or there's freezing rain, dump em down even to 15-20psi. It's actually faster through the city if you're at 20psi on a big snowfall, at least that's my experience.

I can't imagine being safe without studs in the winter on some days, let alone with slicks!

http://i44.tinypic.com/jqj8gi.jpg
http://i43.tinypic.com/358pbv5.jpg

http://www.treefortbikes.com/imgDsp.aspx?fName=TR5263.jpg

http://www.treefortbikes.com/421_333222350534__Studded-Tire-700c-x-35mm-Black-Black-110-Replaceable-Steel-Studs.html

Love em. Gotta gear down a bit due to rolling resistance, but I can ride around on frozen lakes, streams, roads, over small children and animals with ease.

im thinkin bout runnin some 28's on my joint soon.

http://www.treefortbikes.com/imgDsp.aspx?fName=TR5263.jpg

http://www.treefortbikes.com/421_333222350534__Studded-Tire-700c-x-35mm-Black-Black-110-Replaceable-Steel-Studs.html

Love em. Gotta gear down a bit due to rolling resistance, but I can ride around on frozen lakes, streams, roads, over small children and animals with ease.

steel studs that's awesome.. but how do they fare on non-snowy concrete? i'm worried it would be like how soccer cleats work like a charm on the grass, but are like ice skates on concrete

http://www.treefortbikes.com/imgDsp.aspx?fName=TR5263.jpg

http://www.treefortbikes.com/421_333222350534__Studded-Tire-700c-x-35mm-Black-Black-110-Replaceable-Steel-Studs.html

Love em. Gotta gear down a bit due to rolling resistance, but I can ride around on frozen lakes, streams, roads, over small children and animals with ease.

that seems like a really great price for studs

steel studs that's awesome.. but how do they fare on non-snowy concrete? i'm worried it would be like how soccer cleats work like a charm on the grass, but are like ice skates on concrete

They wear down, but can be replaced. I ride about 50% on dry pavement and have a little wear in front and a bit more in back due to having fun going down giant hills :)

They wear down, but can be replaced. I ride about 50% on dry pavement and have a little wear in front and a bit more in back due to having fun going down giant hills :)

nice! so what i was getting at is- do the studs actually feel slippery on normal/ dry ground?

steel studs that's awesome.. but how do they fare on non-snowy concrete? i'm worried it would be like how soccer cleats work like a charm on the grass, but are like ice skates on concrete

I use those exact tires as well. On Concrete the studs push into the rubber and the rubber grips just like a non studded tire would. Since Ice is softer, the stud bites into the ice. Works like a charm, I've put away the fg for winter and am currently running a single speed converted hybrid with the studs and the winter has been real nice ever since.

awesome thanks guys... i'm totally sold on the studded tires.. maybe the innovas.. just need to fins out how much clearance ive got :)

nice! so what i was getting at is- do the studs actually feel slippery on normal/ dry ground?

Only once you get close to 25mph... which I don't do in the winter.

awesome thanks guys... i'm totally sold on the studded tires.. maybe the innovas.. just need to fins out how much clearance ive got :)
do what i did and get a cyclocross front fork and a cantalever brake for big tire clearance. Now on this bike I run 32s up front and 35s in back.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3197/3154159629_9a40291934_m.jpg

If you get a tire like the schwalbe snow stud, when you pump it up to 50-60psi the studs (which are on the sides of the tire, the middle running surface is all knobby rubber) have very little pressure on the asphalt, so on fast dry days you hardly notice the studs, but they still give grip on ice. When you dump the tires down to lower psi, yes you hear the studs, but I have noticed very little wear after 2 years, and you have normal control in my experience. Apparently you should just avoid braking hard for the first 30km of riding while the studs "set in" but I've never had one fall out :)

Carbide studs, which are on tires 45$ and up basically, are 9 on the mohs scale and so are extremely durable. Steel studs wear out much faster, I think they're only like 6 on the mohs scale. In my experience it's well worth it to get the carbide studs.