Barrettscv 

What makes a better winter commuter, a 26” wheeled MTB or a 700c Hybrid?

That makes for the safest, most dependable, winter bike for snow & ice travel? Is it a 26 inch wheeled front suspension MTB with studded tires or is it a 700c front suspension Hybrid with studded tires. The Hybrid can take up to 38x700 tires and still fit fenders. I live in the Great Lakes and will travel on a combination of paved and salted city streets and unplowed MUP. The MUP is usually firm enough to travel across but can be icy from freeze/thaw cycles.

gunner65

They do make aggressive tread 700c tires I just posted elsewhere that I bought a set of conti cyclocross speeds in 35 that are the trick for on and off roading.

Barrettscv 

I'm going with studded tires. If the roads are warm enough or 100% dry, I'll take my CX bike out.

alan s 

I went with 26" Marathon Winters over 700c tires for a couple reasons. First, the tire is a little wider for better traction. Second, the center of gravity of a 26" bike is typically lower than a 700c, but not by much. Both of these factors give the 26" a slight advantage. The 26" slightly outweighs the 700c, but it is not significant.

bent-not-broken

I Commuted 5 winters in WI and had both a 90's GT mt bike and a late 90's GT hybrid. I started on the mt bike and liked the bar clearance when riding got sketchy but boy were those tires 26" studded tires heavy! I switched to the hybryd with 700x37 studs and what a difference. I found they cut though snow better as well, as the mt tires tended to 'float'. The mt bike had more studds for ice, but I found myself riding the hybryd 90% of the time.

chipcom 

I've used lots of different bikes for wintry crap weather riding over the years, I'd vote for the MTB, but my favorite by far was an old Schwinn cruiser with balloon tires. I'd love to try a Pugsly tho.

HardyWeinberg

Any time it's snowy enough to commute on the pug, the schools are closed and I have to stay home w/ the kids. But then I use it to pull them on a toboggan instead, sled-dog style.

Steely Dan

i'll let you know in 6 months. last winter i commuted on a 26" rigid fork mountain bike with 2" studded knobbies. that bike got too intimate with a CTA bus and is now in bicycle heaven, but i learned some things from that experience that informed the decision of its replacement. i ended up getting a 700c hybrid. it's got an IGH and disc brakes (the mountian bike had 7x3 derailleur & cantis), so i'm hoping that drivetrain and braking performance will be better in the wet gloppy winter slop. i also learned that for my urban winter commutes, knobby studs were a bit overkill. chicago is pretty damn good about plowing streets, so ice is really the main concern. i plan to put some marathon winters on as they have a smoother tread but still maintain good grip on ice, from what i've read.

tjspiel

After trying a few different studded tires in both the 26 and 700c variety, my favorite overall is the 40mm W240 from Nokian.

Having said that, winter presents a variety of road conditions, - even on the same ride, so what's best for me one day may not be the next and may never be particularly good for you. I actually had both 35 mm and 40 mm studded tires mounted on different wheelsets last year.

The 40 mm tires could get me through more stuff than the 35s but you pay a heavier price in rolling resistance.

As far as bikes go, the tire clearance on the hybrid is going to limit it to the couple of 35mm studded tires that are out there. They're not bad tires by any stretch and I know many people that use one or the other and are quite happy with them. The only place I think you may end up wanting more is on the unplowed mup. If you're trying to get through more than a couple of inches of fresh snow, you could have problems. If it's hard-pack, then you're OK. If it's loose snow on top of ice, then it's not going to be a lot of fun.

The MTB is going to give you a lot more tire choices but I don't know if they have any thinner studded tires available in a 26" size. If you're riding on plowed streets most of the time, they can be preferable. The only other thing I'll add as far as bikes go is that sometimes a more aggressive geometry can work against you under slipperier conditions. You don't want your front wheel to skid and having less weight on it can help.

Steely Dan

that may be true generally, but it does depend on the specific hybrid. my Scott SUB 10 has very generous frame clearances that could probably take tire sizes up to 700x50, though perhaps a little less with fenders. it's currently rolling with 700x37 sport contacts with PLENTY of room to spare.

tjspiel

Of course. The OP said his hybrid could clear 38s so I was talking about his particular bike. Other hybrids will be different.

Steely Dan

Doh!

didn't read carefully enough, my apologies.

ThermionicScott 

This isn't directly related to the OP, but I've read that a lower BB is helpful when you skid and have to put a foot down. I've never done much serious winter riding, but it makes sense to me, so I might consider that when selecting a bike.

Stealthammer

My choice is determined by whether I am going to be riding in snow or ice. 700x35-38 studded tires work great at craving through deeper snow as long as you aren't dealing with too much ice underneath and they definately require less effort at comparable speeds. Nokian Extreme 294 26 x 2.1 inch tires however have more "wrap" and I find that they provide better control even if they cost you in overall speed, especially when you can't see the road conditions under the top layer of snow.

BTW: A good pair of MTB SPD shoes with 6-8 #7 slotted hex head screws will give your feet the same traction as the Extremes....

dynaryder

Wider is better.

My snow bike is my Safari with 26x2" studs. Was running Nashbars(Kendas),will be running Nokians this year.

wolfchild

I use both. For snowy commutes on the roads in urban areas I prefer 700cc/29'er with some 38mm studded tires. But when I ride on frozen, bumpy, rutted offroad trails and singlestrack trails I use 26x2.00 studded tires. I really think that 29'er/700cc are faster and roll better on the road. I only use my 26 inch wheeled bike occassionally, I prefer 29'er for most of my riding.

noisy.ant

Not a ton of experience, but for the most part, my commuter/cross bike with 32c gravel tires goes through snow better than my mountain bike with 2.1" knobbies. The skinnier tires cut through the snow and find the street better.

-T.

Tundra_Man 

If you already own both bikes and are just trying to decide which one to equip for winter riding, then I would say: whichever one you consider to be the most expendable.

I rode my mountain bike the first year I decided to commute all winter. Come spring after I saw what the salt, ice and several crashes had done to it, I decided that this was now my dedicated winter bike. I bought another commuter to replace it during the warmer months, and it during those times my mountain bike hangs in the garage to wait for the abuse of the coming winters.

mikeinroch

^^^ Very true. Northern winters are hell on bikes. On a somewhat related note, the OP is choosing between a susp. fork MTB and a susp. fork hybrid. How do suspension forks hold up to winter salt and slush? I've got a "rescued" bike with a susp fork that I care less about than my full-rigid Nishiki, but I'm afraid one winter and the fork would be dead. Any experience out there?

Tundra_Man 

My mountain bike has a suspended fork. I've had no issues with the salt and slush causing it any problems. I kind of like having the suspension when plowing over hard snow ruts.

Actually my suspended fork had developed an annoying squeak, but once I started using it for winter commuting and the temps dropped, the squeak disappeared. It only squeaks during temps above 40 degrees. So I guess in my case the winter conditions are better for my suspended fork.

tjspiel

It's the old argument, - "cut through" or "float over". Even with a really phat tire bike like the Surly Pugsly, the snow has to be at least moderately packed for it to float according to a couple people I know that ride them.

So I don't there's a whole lot of floating going on with 2.1 or 2.3 inch tires. However, they would be smoother riding over frozen footprints on the MUP or frozen tire tracks on the street.

Someone needs to invent tires that get skinnier or fatter as conditions warrant.

Rob_E

I have a 700c bike and one with 20 inch tires. When the roads get slick (not that often around here), I go with the idea that it's better to have a lower center of gravity. I have recovered from a slide or two that I might have had more trouble with on my larger bike, but you never can tell for certain. I've also failed to recover from a slide and found that smaller wheels mean don't have as far to fall. Although maybe it just seems that way given that seat and bottom bracket height will affect that more than wheel size.
I've wondered if, with disc brakes, you could actually add car-style snow chains. I've seen the idea replicated with zip ties, but I don't know how successful that was.

irclean

We get some nasty lake-effect weather here in SW Ontario, and for my winter commutes I use 700x35 Schwalbe Marathon Winter tires. I considered the Nokian W240s, but didn't figure I had the clearance for them, so I chose the Schwalbes. They have proven to be effective for 95% of my commutes. I wish I had a fatbike for the other 5%.

Ira B

I commute on a 27in vintage road bike in good weather and daylight and a 26in tire bike when the weather is bad or it will be dark.

On several occasions I have hit/run over things on the 26in tire bike in the dark and been very glad I was not riding my road bike.

devianb

I used to ride through winter on both a 700c hybrid and a 26" mountain bike. The hybrid was fine until the snow got too deep or there was a lot ice. The mountain bike was slower, but felt more confident going quicker through snow and ice.

Right now I have a unorthodox setup. My winter bike is a mountain bike with 700c wheel with 700 x 35mm tire up front and a 26" wheel with 26 x 2.1 mud tire in the back. It works well for me on snow and ice. Skinny front tire cuts easily through thick snow and the fat knobby rear tire gives me enough traction. If I could have afforded it at the time I would have gone with a 29er.