HoraceLai

Hi guys,

I was just wondering how you guys determine when to put on your studded tires for the winter? Put them on too soon and I will wear them out too quickly, but I feel a bit insecure without them especially in the morning. Today there was some reduced grip as I was braking due to a fallen branch on the bike path. I released enough front brake in time to regain traction. But it's this feeling that I really hate when riding on 2 wheels.

Horace

mulveyr 

It doesn't take more than a few minutes to swap the summer and winter tires, so I just do it when I see a forecast calling for the first significant snow of the season.

Jim from Boston

I usually intend to do it in December, but I put them on this past weekend because we had some wet streets and are getting into freezing temperatures. I put them on my beater bike and leave them on for the entire winter until April; too much trouble to change tires as a routine commuter. I have done this for at least six seasons with the same set, and mostly ride on wet or dry pavement.

Most threads on studded tires emphasize that carbide studs don’t wear out, and on a good tire won’t fall out over several years (I have Marathon Winters). I was especially convinced to always ride studded tires during winter by this voice of wisdom:

bikemig 

I have 2 commuters. I run studded tires on one and continental winter contact II tires on the other. The conti tires work well on mixed conditions that you tend to get early in winter.

tsl

I put mine on last week Monday. I needed them on Tuesday for that same snow that Buffalo got (only turned down to one from 11).

It also takes me some time to get used to how the tires run and how they change the bike's handling. For that I went out to our unplowed MUP for 16 miles on Thursday. I had to get from one side of town to the other, and I had time, so a little winter skills sharpening along the way worked into the plan well.

Now, this is also a very good argument for N+1.

I don't foresee needing the studs again for a few weeks. With a second commuter, I don't have to worry about it. Back when I had only the one, I'd switch tires as needed. Not really that difficult, but just pulling a different bike off a hook is a lot easier.

But as that old quote Jim keeps reposting says, I figure it by the cost of broken bones. Even now that I have Obamacare, I'd still be off work for weeks. So I play it conservatively.

Jim from Boston

I hope you don’t mind that I do so, tsl, but that advice was one of the best things I learned early on from BF when contemplating getting studded tires, as did for example scoatw who recently recently commented:

I figured that Rochester, NY really knows how to handle snow, even more than Boston. BTW, I have personally met and ridden with tsl, so I hope I am not taking liberties with his advice.

corrado33

Buy a good pair of nokians of scwalabes and put them on now. The carbide studs don't wear out on asphalt or any other road surface. Those tires actually tell you to ride 30 miles on clean asphalt before you try them on ice to make sure the studs are seated correctly. Put them on now, take them off in the spring after everything has melted. As an added benefit they add drag to your ride since they are so heavy, in the spring your legs will be massively strong! (Bit of sarcasm there. )

There are stories floating around here on BF of good studded tires going into 10-20 seasons (years.)

For the last few days I've been riding around on heavily frozen footprinted/bike tire rutted trails. The back tire skips around a bit (due to the bumpyness), but I haven't slid anywhere. It's been great. I tried homemade studded tires last year. There's no comparison. Store made ones are the way to go.

rumrunn6

when you need them, you'll know. I bought mine after I had my first roll over black ice in traffic. scared the cr*p out of me. turned around after 1/4 mile and went home and drove my car and ordered that day. on my dismount back home I almost fell just getting off the bike and stepping onto black ice.

chaadster

The smart thing to do is to have the studded tires mounted up on a second pair of wheels. It's much easier to swap them in and out that way, and you won't have to ride those damnable things when they're not needed.

tsl

No, not at all. It shifts the focus of the matter to the consequences of inaction. It's not a matter of "how do I go", or "how do I keep from falling", but a reminder of WHY I need to keep from falling.

Myself, I find when I drift away from personal consequences into abstractions that I begin to stop doing the right thing. So for me, "keeping it real" means not "how do I", but "what if I don't".

That's the crux of that quote you use.

And I don't see you as taking liberties with repeating the quote. I'm just amused by the echo chamber effect I get from reading it.

tsl

I tried that too. The problem for me was disc brakes.

Although I had identical hubs between the two wheelsets, the bearings were adjusted differently. This threw off the rotor alignment, which meant I had to re-adjust the brakes with every wheel change. Even after replacing all the races and balls, there was still a difference in the way the hubs needed to be adjusted.

This is something that's a concern for the pro peloton too, BTW. Mechanics don't really care one way or the other about disc brakes, until it comes to wheel change time.

Jim from Boston

My worst black ice experience before studded tires was leaving home around 5AM for my 14 mile commute. The roads were nearly entirely shiny, thin black ice. My first slide occurred about mile 1 on a quiet residential street, and for the next six miles I gingerly rode at about 5 mph until the sun rose about 7 AM and melted the ice.

rumrunn6

clearly braver than me

Jim from Boston

I was on my mountain bike with wide (but non-studded) tires.

jwarner

As someone mentioned above, I don't think it hurts a good pair of quality studded tires with carbide tips (Nokian, Schwalbe, 45Nrth) to run on bare pavement. Even if it did, roughly figure $120-$140 for a pair of good studded tires, $1,700-$10,000 for a broken leg, not to mention downtime, and lack of exercise in the winter, more driving, etc...

To specifically answer your question, I typically put them on when I expect there to be ice on my route. This year, I seem to be a bit behind in everything. A 15' or so full sideways slide on my loaded bike (kept it upright though) in the lane next to a garbage truck led to studs being mounted as soon as I got home that evening.

FBinNY 

You've answered your own question. The time to go with studs is when you feel they're needed, even if it's only for added peace of mind. Of could you could wait until you slide out and bruise your hip or shoulder.

ThermionicScott 

For me, it's simple. Any chance of temperatures below freezing => studs.

sing

Two bikes:

My road bike is for commuting most days. My other commuter is a vintage mtn bike with studded Nokian tires (put on a couple weeks ago with the first snow) that is ready to go whenever the forecast dictates.

chaadster

I have two completely different hub/rim wheelsets that I swap without any issues, and given that there are design standards parameters, don't believe this is generally a point of difficulty. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, just that it's not the default condition. Trouble-free fitment should be the default.

FBinNY 

Black ice conditions are my sign to leave the bike, especially because my ride home is in the dark, where black ice is even more invisible. If I could do the ride off road, I'd feel differently but I've done my share of winter riding over the years and know black ice well. IME black ice is the 2nd fastest to meet pavement up close and personal, and I'm not fond of the possibility of doing that on open roads with traffic behind.

I'm sure that studs would improve traction on black ice, but not sure that it would be enough if I caught some at speed, or had to make a hard maneuver. Of course I could ride slower, but my commute includes some steep roller coaster hills, and I simply don't trust studs that much.

79pmooney

FB, here in Portland it is freezing rain. Several times I've gotten to the street and realized that the only reason I was still standing was that my bike and me make a pretty good tripod. Ride? Nah!

Ben

Daniel4

After the snow last week in Toronto, I purchased studded tires this past weekend. They arrived at the store today so I will be installing them this coming weekend.

Jim from Boston

That's some good advice, and I don't think I consciously consider downhill speeds, though I don't recall seeing ice on a downhill run in my experience over the past several years, although,

One particular piece of advice I heed is that riding studded tires is like walking on sanded ice. Good, but not perfect traction so I do avoid extreme maneuvers. My commute has few turns and has pretty light traffic (reverse commute in the early AM, much through residential streets), and I monitor rearward traffic with my two rearview mirrors, not only for my skids, but for the cars behind me.

FBinNY 

You get it at the bottom, where your speed is highest on roller coasters. We also get black ice for daytime snowment that freezes in the evening. The small hill here combined with limited road camber can sheet the melt across the right lanes.

Dream Cyclery

Can't agree more.