Mulchie--Keep in mind that all the switching reflects my personality and lifestyle. Most people I know IRL (In Real Life) and most people here just put the snows on once and don't mess with it until spring. Me? I enjoy tinkering and I have the time to do it. Further, I have this obsession with getting faster. So whenever the opportunity comes along to instantly gain 2-3 mph, I take it.

On the other hand, it wasn't until I was changing tires frequently last winter that I got pretty good at it. I ruined a tube or two along the way, but that's tuition in the school of hard knocks.

I don't have any manuals or online references to send you to. I knew the basic principles from working at a garage changing car tires years and years ago. I watched a ride partner fix a flat one day to learn the different execution of the principles as applied to bike tires. Ask up on the Bicycle Mechanics forum. I'm sure someone there knows where you can find online instruction.

As for the gearing, again, that's my personal preferences showing. (I'm also aware of the consequences--both physical and mechanical.) Most riders I know are perfectly happy with standard cassettes having several-tooth jumps between the the gears. (And for MTBers, that's really the only choice out there.) I like being able to fine-tune effort vs. speed, particularly in varying terrain and headwinds. Close-ratio cassettes let me do that.

When I switched to 10-speed this year, I was delighted to find Shimano makes a 16-27 Ultegra cassette. So now I have three for this bike. The original 12-27 which I almost never use, the 12-23 on the three-season wheelset, and the 16-27 on the winter wheelset.

In any event, before becoming concerned with constantly switching tires or messing with cassettes and gear ratios, see if just putting on the snows and riding works for you by itself. It does for the vast majority of riders.