Winter 29er - questions about winter tires

[Number_35]

Hello all - NY Engineer talked a bit offline about winter tires for this bike, but I thought I'd make the subsequent discussion public in case it helps anyone.

The bike is a homemade 29er, put together by my older son for his younger brother a few years ago. My wife and I are so delighted with our studded tires that we decided to get some for our son's bike. I was torn between 45N Nicotines and Schwalbe Ice Spiker Pros. I bought the only 45N tire readily available, and ordered a 2nd. It turns out that the 2nd tire is still weeks and weeks out, so I cancelled that and bought a Schwalbe instead.

First question:

I already had the 45N on the front, figuring that if the snow came early it was more important to have the studded tire up front for a few days. It's 29" x 2.3", with about half the studs of the Schwalbe. Given the delay in the 2nd tire coming in, a couple of days ago I bought the Schwalbe, which is 29" x 2.25", for the back. The fellows at our LBS where I bought both tires gave me contradictory advice; they said that the Schwalbe should go on the front because its additional studs (about twice as many as the 45N) would provide better traction (although shouldn't it go on the drive wheel then?) and would exhibit greater rolling resistance. But they also said that the Schwalbe, being smaller in diameter, should go on the back.

So now I'm truly confused. Perhaps it will make no difference. Thoughts?

Second question

It's recommended that one ride the bike on bare pavement for at least 50 km so as to break in the studs properly; apparently doing so helps minimize stud loss. I've got the tires at 30 psi right now. I went for a short ride and noticed that at 30# only the studs in the middle are making contact with the pavement. (There was a light rain, so it was easy to tell.) Should I reduce the pressure enough to allow all of the studs to make contact?

Thanks much in advance! Here are a few shots of the bike and the tires:

 

[NYEngineer]

I would always run the fatter tire on the front unless the tread was just plain awful for steering. That Nicotine looks good up there.

 

[AZjeff]

The pros advise putting the best tires on the rear of a car to prevent oversteer, understandable. In this case I think I'd want the most traction in the front of a bicycle, do you want the front or back to slip first on icy surfaces? You have a chance of saving a rear tire slide, not so much with the front.

Back in Pa we'd race our mtbs on pond ice, at night, when the ice got crusty and had some traction. No studs. The preferred setup was for the bike to lose the back end first when you went into the turn too fast. Beer was sometimes involved.

 

[buck91]

Back when I used to commute by bike year round (only about 5mi most days but sometimes much more), I experimented with a lot of tires. Best setup I ever ran was Nokian Hakka's in 700x35. Wide enough to soak up bumpy ruts on pavement, enough studs but still narrow enough to cut through the snow efficiently. Certainly not a high speed tire, but better than MTB sized studs on fairly clear roads as well. If I was going to run studs this would be the route I would look towards. Of course, if your route(s) are, perhaps, less passable maybe a MTB sized studded tire would work, although I might look towards fat bike sizing at that point. I was in pretty dang good shape back then, and even that if it was rougher than my 35mm studs could handle it was a SERIOUS workout. Pure ice storm, perhaps, excluded.

 

[Number_35]

Guys, thanks for your responses! I took the bike for a ride yesterday to help break in the studs. They say it's good to run them at least 50 km on pavement, to bed them in. Anyway, I did c. 25 km, running the tires @ 30 PSI. Lots of banking into turns on the winding asphalt trails, which will have helped the side studs to bed in. Good workout - it's been a long time since I've ridden a single-speed. At first I kept looking for a lower gear, but by the end of ride was liking the simplicity of no shifting.

I agree that it's the front wheel that one particularly doesn't want to slide out, but am not sure I need to swap the tires front to back; it might be a case of very good vs. excellent traction. That is, even with more studs on the rear tire, it's likely neither will slide out.

I like the 35 mm argument (sort of like why the old VW Beetles cut through the snow well with their skinny tires) but I've thrown my hat over the fence by buying the > 2" tires. I hope they'll do well for Jr.

My wife and I are both delighted with our studded fat bike tires. This is, of course, the opposite of the cut-through-the-snow philosophy, but works really well here. Our roads are really beaten up with freeze/thaw cycles, and the fat tires are really good dealing with the potholes, cracks, and loose debris. In that sense, the 2.25/2.3" studded tires will be better than 35ers would be.

 

[NYEngineer]

I have not yet needed studded tires. One winter our trails iced up and needed them but since I didn't have them I just rode on the beach until things got back to normal.
I dig those white Vee Snowshoes. I might grab a pair of those with studs just in case.

 

[Number_35]

Originally Posted by NYEngineer
I have not yet needed studded tires. One winter our trails iced up and needed them but since I didn't have them I just rode on the beach until things got back to normal.
I dig those white Vee Snowshoes. I might grab a pair of those with studs just in case.

2015/16 was my first winter with the Pugsley. I didn't feel the need for studs until doing the Polar Bear Crossing on glare ice in March 2016. Went through most of the following winter (2016/17) without, and then bought studded tires before the Polar Bear Crossing in March 2017. I consider them an essential part of my winter gear now.