new snow question
 

got some snow in burlington, vt
what are my options for tires this winter? the roads here tend to be pretty nice, but they can be sloppy (theyve been slushy all day) I really enjoy riding my bicycle in the snow, and I'd hate to have to start using my p.o.s. mtb for the winter (generic trek bike 6+ years old (swapped out a lot of parts on it though) I rode this thing all last winter no problems)).

I've heard things about zip ties, this would be really nice on my pockets (broke college student etc etc)
Knobby tires would help a lot
I definitely dont have money to buy a decent set of studded tires, but the roads here tend to get salted enough that I'm not super worried about ice.

ps: fixed gear '67 raleigh grand prix bicycle (sorry for not clarifying)

I've never used the zip tie thing, but I imagine that it would feel crappy at higher speed and be unstable at lower speed. the only bike I've ridden that has ever felt really at home in deep snow had really fat tires at 40psi with big knobs to go OVER snow.

I would pick up some cyclocross tires if you have the clearance for it as well as fenders, at least on the rear tire. My snow bike collects most of the slush on the rear wheel.

I used cyclocross tires last winter and they were great. Highly recommended if your frame has the clearance for them.

I wouldn't trust the zip-tie method. I imagine it would work on hardpack but the second you start riding (and cornering) on asphalt it's got to be sketchy as hell.

I feel like every thread lately has brought up this zip tie crap. Who actually has ridden with them? Sound dumb as hell to me and as Yoshi said would only really work on hardpack. Even then I would still question how effective it would be. Prove it with pics or else I believe this to be just an urban cycling legend in the making.

wait, don't they make njs zipties for keirin racers to do winter training? I can't find the link... anybody?

The first time I ever heard of the ziptie method was from some guy in Portland. No offense to Portland, but what do they know about snow anyway?

If I end up going to the grocery store later I will try this out and report back. We got like 30cm over the last 24 hrs

haha, for real

Well, I know a little about snow, and we just got some this weekend here in Wisco. Last couple of years I've just continued riding all winter on my skinny road tires (<25's). You may not think it, but they work really well for cutting through the snow on the road rather than floating around on top of it (aka on fatties). They're even pretty good on hardpack if your pressure is tolerably high.

This year I'm on some cheapo Kenda Kwick cyclocross tires, and I'm really liking them so far. Still pretty narrow (28, I think), but with tread. I like to imagine them as the best of both worlds, and I hope they turn out that way. Did I mention they were cheap? Yeah, I think I got mine for $12/tire.

Ice, like melted-then-refrozen snow ice, really sucks. I got to deal with a lot of that on my way to and from work, today. Ugh.

http://bikeportland.org/2007/01/16/n...-covered-city/

Okay so maybe others are using this method, but I still stand by my thinking that it is dumb. We don't get buckets of snow here so I have always been just fine riding in the snow with my unaltered 28's.

looks like i'll be going for cyclocross tires

To be fair, that was hella icy, and on a hill... but damn. That's not how you deal with such things.

I've heard people talk about skinny tires cutting through snow, but my experience has been that they are absolutely the worst thing you could possibly use in snow (for reference I like in NYC). I don't doubt your experience but I slide around on anything other than light, fresh snow and I keep my tires at 120psi.

When it comes to ice I don't think there is any non-studded tire that will work.

Hahaha yeah. That situation would have been a lot better if that first driver just accepted that his car was going to slide no matter what.

You are right, we get very little snow. And when we do it is usually for about half a week. This is why the zip tie method is known here. Because people here would be dumb to invest in a set of good snow tires. Zip ties are better than nothin and will get you through the short spurt of snow and ice. So if you are in a city that gets regular snow consider something else.

If I was poor and in a really snowy area I would look into making my own studded tires. But then again what does a Portlander know about snow?

True, it wouldn't make sense to own cyclocross tires. I still kind of wonder how the zip ties handle, but as I have cross tires I doubt I'll be trying that method anytime soon.

Yeah, akaio said it right. No reason to buy snow tires for Portland, we get snow a few days of the year if we're lucky. Zip ties FTW for areas that are similar to this.

If I took an old 27" front wheel and put a studded tire on it and put it up front and just left the 700x23 on the back, do you think that would get me by alright for a short 3 mile c'mute? Its a heck of a lot more convenient than swapping out tubes n' tires every time the weather gets ugly... would it work or make for a really bad ride?

EDIT: Forget it - found this page: http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/studdedtires.asp

http://www.rideagainstthemachine.com...l/P1010035.jpg

Only the biggest and best will do. The SURLY PUGSLEY~

Much <3 for the pugsley.

So do you put zip ties on both the front and rear or just the rear tires? Seems like putting them on the front would cause some sticky situations when cornering in low traction situations, though maybe I'm wrong. Granted you probably won't be cornering quickly anyways, but I can't see the little ridges on the zip tie offering much lateral traction.

I went for my first few rides on studded tires over the weekend. I don't think I can ever ride in snow/ice on anything else. These tires seriously killed it. Ruts, ice, powder, slush, crust and even dry pavement were a breeze. Even if you lived in an area with very little snow, they would so be worth it cause they'd last 10 years. What is that, like $7 a year?

Sorry for the derailer/shifter, but it is a single speed with this wheelset:

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y64...r/P1020474.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y64...r/P1020476.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y64...r/P1020477.jpg

^^ That go

I agree. Skinny tires are ok for slicing through virgin snow on a smooth surface, but once the cars mush it all up, skinny tires slide all over, and its worse if the road has lots of cracks, seams, potholes, etc. I've tried everything from skinny road tires to big fat mtb tires, and in my experience, the fatter the better. I'd love to try studs, but they salt the roads up so much around here its not worth the trouble.