I was riding up over Hatcher Pass Saturday and wiped out 3 times on the ice. The ice was hidden under the snow so it was hard to see it. Two of the wrecks were not bad but one really rung my bell. I've been waiting on the studded fat tires until I hear some reports from others as to how they hook up with the ice... after my day Saturday I'm ready to move on this. I know they're expensive but the amount of Irish whiskey I have to drink to cover the pain of ice diving is also rather expensive.
No, mine have not arrived yet, but based on experience with other studded tires, I am confident they will work. I recommend ordering them before:
a) You really get hurt.
b) You get disappointed by backorders.
I suck it up and bought a pair of dillingers from a LBS. Had a little hard time shelling out $450.00 for a pair of bike tires, but they got them I wanted them and there worth it to me. I mounted them tubeless using the split tube method I posted earlier on a different thread. This way I do not use any seal in this method to keep them as lite as possible. Put about 50 mile on them on blue dot, rovers run and the tour trail here in Anchorage there is about 1” snow over a lot of overflow ice in places. The roads and trails have some snow pack on them. I have been running nates and I tried going over the icy part of the trails and had to walk my bike over them with nates. The dillinger worked great on the hard packed snow and the ice but going up hills with semi hard pack snow the nates did better as you would expect. Over all if you commute and ride in all type of snow and ice conditions I think they are worth every penny plus they roll a little better than nates 120.
I believe the studded tires must be great on the ice but I am thinking of getting a pair of Nates for better traction, (than my BFL's), on trails. How would or do studded tires work on regular trails?
P.S. I would get a set of Bud and Lou's but my 9-0-7 170 frame wont take the Lou.
We do not have very much snow, the studded tire do great on the roots and frozen trail that we have here now. I have ran nates a lot on this type of trails, the studded tires are far superior over this type of trail. But I think in the loose snow and mud the nates would be the way to go.
How would or do studded tires work on regular trails?
As in, just snow? No difference between regular rubber and studded in that case. Some will (probably rightly, depending on home brew stud size) claim that they can tear up hardpack, but my DIY studded Larry tires from two seasons back were of similar variety as the Dillinger, and I saw no such thing.
Ice, ice, baby.
I kinda want some Dillingers to reduce some weight off my heavy home brew setup. But that's a lot of cash for "kinda want", as I do have a working solution for now... says the guy who will probably end up with a pair anyway.
I was riding up over Hatcher Pass Saturday and wiped out 3 times on the ice. The ice was hidden under the snow so it was hard to see it. Two of the wrecks were not bad but one really rung my bell. I've been waiting on the studded fat tires until I hear some reports from others as to how they hook up with the ice... after my day Saturday I'm ready to move on this. I know they're expensive but the amount of Irish whiskey I have to drink to cover the pain of ice diving is also rather expensive.
Anyone here tried them?
If the ice is hidden under snow then it is unlikely commercial studs will reach through the thin packed layer under your tires. They will probably work on glare ice but as soon as you put a layer of snow in there that isn't "frozen" to the ice watch out.
Last winter I was commuting on my Trek 4300 mountain bike and didn't see some black ice up ahead. As soon as I rolled over it my back tire slid out and I ended up really tweaking my back. I didn't fall but by back was messed up for about 4 months.
I had a studded tire up front, but not in the back...
Depending on how much snow/ice we get this winter I may end up getting/making some studded fat tires.
I've been riding Home Spun studs for years. Essential around here, unless you only want to ride when the conditions are just right. I've ridden fast and effectively across, up and down stuff I wouldn't have wanted to walk. Lot's of time's I feel safer on the studs than walking.
This is from a couple winters ago with just two rows of small sheet metal screws. I've since added rows outside or these. If I didn't have studs, on some rides anyway, I'd want knee & elbow protection!
Yep, I've put a lot of sheet metal screws in tires. When I owned a shop in the 80's we would put screws in mountain bike tires for people quite often during the winter. They work great.
I believe the studded tires must be great on the ice but I am thinking of getting a pair of Nates for better traction, (than my BFL's), on trails. How would or do studded tires work on regular trails?
P.S. I would get a set of Bud and Lou's but my 9-0-7 170 frame wont take the Lou.
Not a cheap option (are there cheap options?). But why not lightly stud some Nates. Grip studs are easy to use. On trails you will only notice the studs when riding over roots, where they add a lot of grip.
I was very happy with my grip studs and nate's last winter
We got more ice than snow unfortunately
they saved my bacon a couple of times on my commute to work
I think I was running about 36 studs per tire and it was just enough
Sj
Originally Posted by Tone's
mate if theres grass on the wicket its time to play cricket.
Next time chop it for all its worth...
Commuted on them today in Anchorage, they are very confidence inspiring! I didn't once think to slow down or grab brake when ice or hills approached. They roll slower than a Husker Du but also have much more traction. The tread lugs are taller, for room to carry a stud. A fair trade? Waiting for deeper snow at this point for further testing. (its falling right now!!!) LET IT SNOW!!!
They are using a sandman hoggar with studded nates as a green commuter around the belgian the queen elisabeth southpole base, maybe caminoloco has an udate how the first arctic summer passed?
Yep, I've put a lot of sheet metal screws in tires. When I owned a shop in the 80's we would put screws in mountain bike tires for people quite often during the winter. They work great.
Whats the process for studding your own tire and what size/lenght screw do you use?
Also can you stud a BFL?
Whats the process for studding your own tire and what size/lenght screw do you use?
Also can you stud a BFL?
You can stud just about any tire, just a matter of testing to get the right length & size of screw. I don't like them to stick out too far. Just right is just right and too much is too much. With endo's I'm using 3/8" #6 screws- and they vary in shape and length a little from brand to brand so try to stick with the same brand if you can. First I drill them as accurately with a drill press (I use a section of 2x4 to inside the tire to drill in to) them just screw them in. I cover them with Gorrilla tape but no more than 2 at a time because I want the tire to still be able to expand and contract with pressure. They may not last vary long riding paved roads, but they handle dirt & rock fine and if you keep pavement to a minimum, they'll last quite a while. And they're cheaply replaceable. I take these out after winter every year and use these Endo's for sand tires, then re-stud them for winter again. This will be the third "studding" for this pair.
You can stud just about any tire, just a matter of testing to get the right length & size of screw. I don't like them to stick out too far. Just right is just right and too much is too much. With endo's I'm using 3/8" #6 screws- and they vary in shape and length a little from brand to brand so try to stick with the same brand if you can. First I drill them as accurately with a drill press (I use a section of 2x4 to inside the tire to drill in to) them just screw them in. I cover them with Gorrilla tape but no more than 2 at a time because I want the tire to still be able to expand and contract with pressure. They may not last vary long riding paved roads, but they handle dirt & rock fine and if you keep pavement to a minimum, they'll last quite a while. And they're cheaply replaceable. I take these out after winter every year and use these Endo's for sand tires, then re-stud them for winter again. This will be the third "studding" for this pair.
Wow, thanks ward. Very helpful. I will probably do this instead of buying a set of Nates. My BFL's are not cutting it on the wet, muddy trails.
gcappy, with screws, you decide the length that you want. A drill press is fine but not needed at all. Decide on the pattern you want for the screws and start drilling with just a very small drill bit. Drilling is only a guide to know where the screws need to be put through from the inside of the tire and to give the screw a path.
After deciding on the length of screw you want, just go to Ace or True Value and buy a box of 100 screws and get riding. Personally, the gorilla tape on the inside should be left in longer strips. It won't stick very well to the tire anyways and it can be anything that protects the tube from the sharp edges of the screw.
By the way, I always liked the screws that had a shorter profile head on them in the phillip variety.
gcappy, with screws, you decide the length that you want. A drill press is fine but not needed at all. Decide on the pattern you want for the screws and start drilling with just a very small drill bit. Drilling is only a guide to know where the screws need to be put through from the inside of the tire and to give the screw a path.
After deciding on the length of screw you want, just go to Ace or True Value and buy a box of 100 screws and get riding. Personally, the gorilla tape on the inside should be left in longer strips. It won't stick very well to the tire anyways and it can be anything that protects the tube from the sharp edges of the screw.
By the way, I always liked the screws that had a shorter profile head on them in the phillip variety.
Wow, thanks ward. Very helpful. I will probably do this instead of buying a set of Nates. My BFL's are not cutting it on the wet, muddy trails.
I don't think studs will help that much in mud. The sharp points are intended to dig into the hard surface of ice. They might help with a thin layer of mud over frozen ground or on wet/muddy roots, but in thick regular mud there's nothing for them to bite into. Big, widely spaced knobs (like Nates) are the ticket for mud.
I don't think studs will help that much in mud. The sharp points are intended to dig into the hard surface of ice. They might help with a thin layer of mud over frozen ground or on wet/muddy roots, but in thick regular mud there's nothing for them to bite into. Big, widely spaced knobs (like Nates) are the ticket for mud.
Just looking for the best temporary solution until 9-0-7 gets me the new 186 frame and I can run a set of Bud and Lou's.
You can stud just about any tire, just a matter of testing to get the right length & size of screw. I don't like them to stick out too far. Juswinter again. This will be the third "studding" for this pair.
^^I still like this method.^^
But i remember that in another thread someone used grubscrews to stud a tire.
He drilled a hole from the inside out screwed in the grubscrews until it completely disappeares in the rubber and i also think he glued in a really thin innertube as a tire liner.
LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by gcappy
Originally Posted by Tone's
