nilloc

so, today was the 7th or 8th day i've gotten to ride with my Innova studded tires. so, here's the skinny on them.
they have 104 steel studs in two alternating rows. that's more than most studded tires, but fewer than nokian's extreme120. But they have bigger tread than the extreme120 and i've found the tread to be useful. they're really heavy, but if you're riding your bike in a snowstorm, you're not concerned about weight.
they are great in:
- ice. they kick a55 on ice. when cars are sliding all over, i'm riding along at 15mph or so without feeling nervous about anything other than cars losing control and sliding into me.
- plowed/packed snow. on roads that have been plowed and driven on, they dig in pretty well and hold their line.
- fresh powder as long as it's not too deep. but that's just the nature of riding a bike. bikes can't really go in more than 8 or 12 inches of snow.

these tires don't really seem to have any weaknesses other than those inherent in cycling in the snow, regardless of the tire used. the tires aren't magic and there have been some really scary parts of my rides, like having a bus coming toward me while my back end slides out from under me. luckily, i haven't fallen yet, but any time there's slush over packed snow or ice i slide around a lot. that's because there's nothing solid for the steel studs to grab onto. they grab the top stuff, but it's loose, so that layer just slides around on the one underneath it. so, cornering is kind of scary where the snow plows haven't cleared things (sometimes plows make the corners worse by building up a big pile of snow at intersections that you have to ride through).
video taken when i arrived at my studio
here are some pics of what i rode through this morning and did pretty well:

StokerPoker

what size are you using? I've got the 700x35c Innovas and I'm almost positive mine have 110 studs. I haven't had any problems with mine, but I got them when I bought my 2007 Marin Kentfield a few weeks ago so I'm still being nice to the bike. I'd like to add another surface that tires make little difference on. Hard packed snow on top of ice. Just about any treaded tire will grip the snow ok, but when the hard snow is loose on the ice, the tire grips the snow but the snow slides on the ice

al-wagner

MY nokian Extremes have 296 studs and I am on my 3rd winter with them. I am running 26x2.1 tires. I have found the same thing with these as nilloc has with his tires.
I love going past some cars that are spinning on the ice and I go by on my bike an see the look on the driver face.... All I say is "STUDS"

rajman

I had the innova 26" tire as my front last winter. After a month and a half of use the studs were worn down to almost nothing. I have a Nokian Hakka in the front and Schwalbe snow stud in the rear - it's been several months on each and the studs look like they're almost brand new (though I did pop out one of the Nokian's studs).

2manybikes

Real studs, ride studs !

Zekat

I have the 4 row, 26x2.1", Innova studded tires. They're great. I got them used, prior mileage unknown, but I've put 300+ miles on them this winter, so at just $40 for the pair I'll be happy even if I only get one season's use out of them.

They're a little slow and noisy on clean pavement, and they aren't quite enough on fresh 4"+ deep powdery snow, but they're absolutely wonderful on everything in between including random icy junk I didn't see in time to avoid.

I had gotten so overconfident a month ago when a MUP I frequent nearly melted clean that the first time I took them off I slipped on a little patch of ice I didn't respect, went down hard and busted my helmet.

nilloc

to answer StrokerPoker's question, i have 700 x 35 also. maybe there are 110 studs. i got the 104 number from an online retailer. and to rajman, thanks for the heads up. i have only put 150 miles or so on them, so i don't know about wear. i only ride them when the roads are bad, and i keep them on an extra set of wheels so i don't have to take the time to change tires. i'd love to buy the nokain extreme 294 tires or something like that, but i could afford the innovas (and i worked at a shop at the time, so they only cost me $15 each) and i'm not sure what ones are available in 700c sizes. but yeah, i'm sure the expensive ones are probably better. and the tires with 4 rows of studs rather than 2 must be nice for cornering.

rajman

My experience with stud wear is likely due to the fact that I am doing my winter riding in Calgary, which does not get much snow, but can be very cold. They don't really clear the streets here so you could be riding on dry pavement 90% of your ride, sheer ice 10% and packed/loose snow the other 10% (Right now it's 100% packed or loose snow - by tomorrow many roads will be clear). So I wore the innovas down on the pavement part of the ride (they did save my butt on the ice though).

aznfurie

Doesn't look like I'll be needing those tires anytime soon out here in Santa Cruz, but what an awesome picture that second one is!

ItsJustMe

They look good, but I won't buy anything but carbide studs. I'm on my 3rd winter with my Nokians and the studs have barely worn. They're on pavement (mostly bare) about 12 out of 21 miles a day, gravel or ice the rest.

I put them on in November and take them off generally in late March or April. It is kind of irritating to ride on them on days when it's sunny and the roads are bare, but there's no way I'm going to change tires very often when it's below freezing out, and I don't want to be tempted to ride without them when I really should have them on. Once we start getting snow, I need them daily or I'd be driving.

chipcom 

+1 the only Innovas I ever used had the studs wore down after just one season.

2manybikes

The carbide studs on the Nokians don't get any shorter. The casing of the tire collapses behind then and they sink into the tire more. I never tried it because it's so much work, but shim stock behind them may give you new studs again. The sharp cylinder end gets rounded, but it does not seem to change the traction much. Save old Nokians for repalcement studs. It's easy to replace just a couple.

StokerPoker

I bought the Innovas cause they were what I could find on short notice. I also bought mine late in the season.

Carusoswi

Could have used some studs the last couple of days around here. During the week, I commute in the Lehigh Valley, PA area. We had around 8" of precipitation that varied between snow and a granular ice, and, for some reason, the plowing/salting efforts seemed to be less effective than normal for this area.

There was a sort of crust on the surface of the snow yesterday morning. I ride road tires - 23c - and this stuff would support you a for a bit, then, break through that surface into what was then 4 or 5 inches of soft powder over a glazed roadway. This cycle would repeat itself over and over during the ride.

For me, the key was to ride very slowly - I figured if I was going to fall, I might as well do it at walking speed - besides, keeping control in this stuff was easier at slower speeds. I also had to be very careful not to input too much power to keep my rear wheel from spinning - a sure recipe for not only losing traction, but losing your balance by the sudden downward thrust of one foot or the other.

I also kept my cleats disengaged so that my feet would be free to brake a fall or to step down to maintain control when necessary (today, I left my cycling shoes at home an pedaled on some thick-soled hiking shoes).

I made it in (was the only one in my office) yesterday - rode home yesterday evening - conditions were even worse.

This morning, most roads had been plowed, but the hard pack would crack under the weight of my narrow tires - the ride was a constant exercise in correcting, correcting, then correcting again.

I am certain that fatter tires with more tread (and even studs) would have been most useful. I kept vacillating on whether maintaining my line and a smoother ride on pure ice was preferable to much better traction on the bumpier hard pack. Ultimately, I decided to follow the hard pack.

I made it in again this morning without taking a tumble, but I was tense all the way. My fingers also felt like they were going to freeze, but that's a topic for another thread.

Today, all the AWD and 4WD SUV's managed to make it in, too, LOL.

My bike will accommodate a beefier wheel/tire setup - I just like the faster ride on skinny tires and am reluctant to make the investment in a second set of wheels/tires. If I ever do, however, I'm guessing I'd put them on at the end of the summer and leave them on for the entire winter season.

I sometimes wonder how much difference I would actually notice from different wheels - whether wide slicks would make sense as a compromise to give me relatively smooth/fast riding on dry pavement (which is what we have around here most of the winter) and yet a little more contact area with which to negotiate the occasional snowy days we get.

Your thoughts welcome.

Caruso

sekaijin

If I shouldn't buy Innova ... too late, I just did! They were going super cheap on ebay (item # 200083809731), so I figured I'd give em a try for my first experiment with studded tires. Hope I don't regret it. It's to get me back on a bike before spring, for my 6 mile commute which is a mix of unpaved trail and city streets. We'll see.

jeff-o

It's too late for studs this season, but I think I'll spring for a Nokian for my rear wheel next winter.

DogBoy

When I switched my winter steed to a 26" tire, I decided to save some cash and try the Nashbar branded studded tires. After 400 miles of mostly dry pavement, they still have quite a bit of stud-wear left, and I think they will serve me well at least through next season also. My nokian 106s (700c) from the prior 2 winters look about the same as my nashbar looks after 1 season. So in my unscientific examination, I've determined that the two tires are equivalent...$Nokian = 2* $Nashbar. Life Nokian = 2 * Life Nashbar. So if Value = Life / $, the two are approximately the same. Traction wise I notice no difference.

gsk3

Have just gone down on a sheet of wet ice because I slammed on my front brake accidentally (oops!), I'd say you should put studs on your front, not your rear. That's the general recommendation anyway.

AEBike.com has the Extreme 120's for $35 apiece, btw. Just got mine from there and it came pretty quickly.

Ari

sekaijin

If you mean studded in back and not-studded in front, you're supposed to do it the other way around - if at all. See www.peterwhitecycles.com/studdedtires.asp, "One Tire in Front?"

Here in Wisconsin it's still studs season. (Not in Ontario?) We just got a foot of snow on top of a 6 inch base, and now the temp keeps swinging above and below freezing. The snowmelt gets the roads wet, then freezes overnight into black ice. Hard to believe we "spring forward" our clocks in a week and a half.