Winter Tire Suggestions?
 

Anyone is love with their tires for winter/wet weather riding? Hoping to gain some traction and durability. Looking for a tire with nice grip that doesn't ride like a rock. Anyone love what they roll on?

Looking to replace some Conti 3000's that are trashed. Did a search of the forums, a lot of people not so happy with the Continental Grand Prix 4-Season. That was one of my front runners....

Oh, 23C, maybe 25's

If your frame can handle bigger than a 25, I would do it.

It is wet today in NY and my rear tire should have been changed months ago. I slipped so much I'd almost be willing to rock a tractor tire at this point. Sometimes bigger is better!

$ for winter tires is giving into winter.

Or it's just being cheap and stubborn. I'm sticking with the former for now.

I hear cyclocross tires are great for winter use. People around here will have recommendations about which model to get, search for threads with 'winter' in the title and you'll find more than enough information. Haven't tried this myself, I just ride the MTB on particularly crappy days.

I'm fine with my GP 4 Season up front. I got it out of a dumpster.

For serious winter riding, I'd say cross tires over road slicks.

You know I thought of this too but I don't have a huge amount of frame clearance and am afraid if I get too big or knobby I'll have to gear my drive train down as well. With winter wind and foul weather I'm already riding steep with my 23C road tires. Feeing too cheap to get a new cog too!

use a cross tire if you can fit it on your frame. Also some touring tires in a 700/28 work well, last year I used an Urban-Max from panaracer.

Well, for me the Hakkapelitta W240 is the bare minimum. I am going for the Extreme 294 for the front tyre, so I can survive this winter.

Wow, you must have a wide frame and fork to fit those bad boys! They look like they're designed for downhill mountain biking! The next step up is the tractor tire I posted above...

Yeah the W106 are not working so well on the REAL slick ice, but i avoid doing anything extreme with my commuting bike anyway. If you need more traction (with any tire) just lower the pressure, I have done this with the W106's cause it was just too icy.

Aren't the W240 and 294 new (came out this year?!?) Also for the roads I ride i think the 240 and 294 would be too much resistance for not-needed traction.

The W240 are not new, in neither 26" nor 700C. The Extreme 294 are new in the 29er (really just a fat 700C) format.

I have the 26" Extreme 294 and am very satisfied with it.

To be honest, I'd really like to try the Schwalbe Ice Spiker and/or Ice Spiker Pro. Lots of studs and kevlar protection - I love finnish stuff, but when something is good, it's good.

Finally: yes, of course, more knobs and more studs = more resistance to overcome. Don't think for a moment I don't feel the difference between my slick tyres and these monstruosities. But, when the ice is bumby and there's some snow on the top, and/or the ice has melted a little bit on the surface, the more you can grab the better. I have to go up and down on hills here to get to the uni, and I need more traction. I hate it when my tyre is being pushed around by the solidified grooves left by previous fellow cyclists or by those fsckers on mopeds.

EDIT: by the way, if you are not thrilled with the W106, avoid even trying the Schwalbe Snow Studs. They are nearly useless for almost any kind of ice. Studs are too shallow (noticeably shallower than on any Nokian studded tyre) and they are in the fsking wrong place to be of any use!

I have the W240s on a Redline Monocog, a sweet, sweet frame. Love it to bits.

the W240s are quite skinny by my standsrds, only 40mm wide. The Extreme 294 will be... much more to my liking. I like 'em fat and comfy.

That Monocog sounds like lots of fun. I want a 29er so badly...

Man, I promise you 1 thing: you're NOT going to regret it! They (the Monocogs) were going for a pittance on jensonusa.com, the complete frameset was $176 or something, but they are out now.

I'm going to use this bike in all seasons, it's the most fun I've ever had on two wheels - the others are now in serious danger of being sold.

I can't fit more than about a 23 in my frame. I ride Michelin Pro2 Grips and they're great. Super supple, but a little less durable than I'd like. Can't have it all I guess. Even on ice they handle great for slicks.

You mentioned being cheap though. 34.77 plus shipping is the best I've seen.

Im using the Nokian Hakkapelitta (700x35 studded tires) and I have to say, they are overkill even for Maine. At first I was inlove with them because I could ride on slick ice up hill, but now the weight and decreased handling (on normal asphalt) have started to get to me. Unless Maine has another ice storm like we did in '98, I'll be switching to some 700x30 cross tires sans studs.

Hutchinson Acrobat. I am in love with this tire. It feels like a road tire when you are going straight, its super sticky rubber provides unbelievable grip, the tread on the sides gives you security around corners, and it is available in a range of sizes from 28-42c. I commute and ride cross on these.

for whatever its worth, I am using 23c 4-seasons and I like them alot, but the only reason I bought them was because they were $25 for a pair

28mm Gatorskin Conti's on Mavics and 23 mm Conti sprinter tubulars Gatorskin on Volos by CraneCreek....

The 28mm is a slick but I managed to climb up inspite of slush and fresh snow on top of black ice. The conti tubulars have same sort of thread in them and that helps!

I just stuck a Vittoria 32c Cross Pro on the front of my Trek T1. It barely fits and looks goofy as hell with a 23c in the back but riding through snow and ice has been a lot easier and fun. I can't fit bigger than a 28c in the back so I just left it alone.

Nokian has at least a dozen Hakkapelitta studded models. Which one do you have?

I wanted to say thanks for all the suggestions. Will look into some of these ideas.

I used conti 3000s last year. I fell on the ice a couple of times, so this year I bought some Inova studded tires and haven't looked back.

I really don't understand the argument for wider tires in the snow. In my experience, thinner is always better because it allows you to cut through slush and have more contact with the road. (The exception of course is cross tires, but even then I would stay on the narrow side of things.) The only thing I do differently in the winter is I ride with slightly lower pressure (~90 instead of ~120)