Antti Salonen wrote:
> Mark Janeba <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>>If you have time, and aren't looking for smooth rolling, you can also
>>make your own. Professionally made studded tires are more pleasant to
>>use than homemades (at least Nokians have far less drag than *my*
>>homebrews), and last longer, but factory-studded tires cost a bunch.
>>You can get however much traction you want by choosing your stud (screw)
>>placement.
>
>
> How well do your homebrews last, mileage wise? I paid about 40 euros
> each for my 700x40 Nokians which have 240 tungsten carbide studs. From
> what I've heard, they should last several winters even in active use.
> After the first 1000 km my tyres are in every way as good as new. The
> studs don't really wear, because they are so hard, as opposed to
> homemade alternatives or many cheaper studded tyres.
>
> In short, I'm willing to bet that high-quality studded tyres like Nokian
> or Continental are the cheapest way to go in the long run. Of course
> this doesn't help much if you're looking for some unusual size.
I got two commuting winters out of my home-made studded tires, and the
studs were pretty worn down toward the end. I was using sheet metal
screws, which may or may not be harder metal than other screws. One
nice thing about homemades, though, is that you can put in new screws
very cheaply.
No question that if you've putting in thousands of kilometers, the
Nokians are the way to go. I *now* have a pair of Hakkapeliittas mounted
on spare wheels so I can swap them in on icy mornings for my commute,
and I like them just fine.
I made the homebrews back in the 80's when 1) I had never heard of
properly manufactured studded tire, and 2) I had more time than money.
As I said to the OP, if he has the time and isn't looking for high
performance, he might want to consider studding/screwing his own tires.
I might add, though, that in packed snow or on dirt, the disadvantages
of homemade might be less. On hard surfaces such as pavement or ice,
they drag a lot. Screw location has a big effect, again the icebike
site has good advice on this; I made most of the mistakes they warn
against and got it right only after several iterations.
Mark
