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Submitted by
jeff
a Cross Country Rider
from calgary Date Reviewed: April 6, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$35.00 | | Purchased At: | the bike shop | | Strengths: | Great snow/ice performance. | | Weaknesses: | Mine are very difficult to seat the bead | | Bike Setup: | element 30 | | Bottom Line: | Rode all winter in Calgary. Saved my butt on sneaky icy patchs. Would not cummute without them.
Lost one stud on rear wheel during 60 km/h downhill.
| Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Will Keogh
a Weekend Warrior
from Nyack, NY, USA Date Reviewed: June 6, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$55.00 | | Purchased At: | Peter White Cycles (mail order) | | Strengths: | Fantastic grip on ice. Total confidence riding in winter. | | Weaknesses: | Slooow. Well, at least compared to the 100psi slicks I ride in summer. Adds 5-10min to my 45min commute. | | Similar Products Used: | none | | Bottom Line: | As an Australian who's recently moved to New York, ice on the roads last winter was a bit of a novelty. But I was determined to keep doing my bike commute (4mi of ploughed road + 4mi of forest trail) so I bought a pair of Nokian Mount and Ground W160's, and I love them.
Traction is great - I can ride with total confidence up ice slicks that I couldn't walk up. And I feel vastly safer in traffic. Not one fall in a whole winter of commuting. Traction is weaker than rubber-on-dirt but its predictable so it feels safe. Actually the weak traction is kind of fun - uphill on big ice slicks I can do burnouts in granny gear, and it makes a cool ripping noise as the studs carve through the ice. On hardpack the tires work fine. In slush they're a bit squirmy - OK for offroad where you can contemplate a fall, but scary in traffic. In fresh unconsolidated snow they feel really unstable and its exceedingly hard work. Not having tried any other tire in the snow I can't say if its a limitation of this tire or if riding in fresh snow is just plain difficult. I suspect the latter.
After one winter commuting (~500mi) there's no sign of wear on the studs whatsoever.
| Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Peter Spiro
a Weekend Warrior
from Toronto, Canada Date Reviewed: January 18, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$30.00 | | Purchased At: | Europe Bound | | Strengths: | Fantastic cornering. I use it for winter commuting, only on the front wheel, and my control on slippery roads is fantastic. Pretty smooth rolling and not too noisy considering all those studs. Really grips well on black ice. | | Weaknesses: | Slithers around in deep snow. The studs don't help there. | | Similar Products Used: | I made my own studded tires previously using screws, but those were much noisier with more rolling resistance and less grip. | | Bike Setup: | Raleigh MTB with softride stem. | | Bottom Line: | These give a vast increase in safety for winter road riding. The benefits far outweigh the slight increase in rolling resistance and noise. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Harri Manni
a Cross-Country Rider
from Sweden Date Reviewed: December 28, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: | Buchwhacking.. | | Duration Product Used: | less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Grip on ice price (atleast in Sweden) | | Weaknesses: | Haven't found any... Yet. | | Similar Products Used: | None | | Bike Setup: | Solid. | | Bottom Line: | Last winter I fell pretty bad whit my bike, this because of a blank spot under some powder snow. I was about to buy a couple of studded tires right then but I was a bit skeptic if the would make any difference. Now I can only say that all the misgivings I had about studded tires for bikes is wiped away! I feel more safe biking on ice than walking on it with these babys on my rims!As a previous reviewer said, they make a funny sound when riding bare roads, but hey, I think it sound cool... :)If you think about buying studded tires I think these are a good low-cost entry-level studded tires. | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Lee Crowell
a Cross-Country Rider
from Bartonsville PA Date Reviewed: December 12, 1999 | | Favorite Trail: | camelback | | Duration Product Used: | less than 1 month | | Strengths: | unknown | | Weaknesses: | unknown | | Similar Products Used: | home made studded tires | | Bike Setup: | 97 stumpjumper hardtail | | Bottom Line: | You can very easily make your own studded tires, see my review of the other model Nokian studded tire and you'll get all the info. It's definitely worth the trouble and you'll save money big time. | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mark Hinman
a Weekend Warrior
from Columbia, MD Date Reviewed: March 16, 1999 | | Duration Product Used: | less than 1 month | | Strengths: | Unbelievable on ice | | Weaknesses: | Heavy gum wall constuction. Noisy on pavement | | Similar Products Used: | None | | Bike Setup: | 98 Trek 8500 with the Nokian Hakkapelita W106 | | Bottom Line: | We got about 6 inches of snow by yesterday morning. Yesterday was in 40s. There was a lot of melting yesterday, and no where for it to drain to. It was in the 20s last night, resulting in an incredible amount of black ice. These tires are unbelievable on ice. The traction is probably about 30% of what you would get on dry pavement. But 30% is a lot more than 0%. I was cruising over polished sheets at 15 MPH, like they weren't even their. I run the tires at 50lbs without snow on the ground, and about 25lbs with snow. I have tried them in a powder snow, and they performed flawlessly. In a wet snow with freezing rain, and lots of underlying compacted areas from foot prints. The tire was a little skitish. But I don't think there is a tire that wouldn't be. These tire wear very well, I have about 100 miles on them, alot on it on dry pavement. I commute so I have ice in the morning, and clear road in the evening. The studs show little wear to spite the dry milage.
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Submitted by
pedro
a cross-country rider
from canada Date Reviewed: February 12, 1999 | | Bottom Line: |
i got these tires for my beater bike in the winter, and the rule! they make ia funny buzzing sound but they give traction when needed. and at $35 can. each at mountain equipment co-op they are one of the best things for a commuter, who does not need to pollute. | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
John Lockwood
a cross-country rider
from CT Date Reviewed: January 17, 1999 | | Bottom Line: |
While I agree with the previous comments about these being a good commuter tire, they aren't that bad on the trails. In fact, I've done some pretty icy trails and hills this winter and haven't had any problems. Certainly get the 256's if you're riding the glaciers or icy cliffs. For most other winter riding, the 160's will work well for less money (and weight). | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Don Billgren
a cross-country rider
from Malmo, Sweden Date Reviewed: February 19, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
This must be the one otherwise called Hakepelitta (approximately!). Just got it and have only used it commuting. For that purpose it's just the ticket - doesn't slip on ice, and rolls nicely on paved roads. Slight rust on the studs after a short time. Hesitate to go off road into the slush and mud with them - tame treads. | Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
HOSman
a weekend warrior
from Kalamazoo, MI USA Date Reviewed: January 23, 1998 | | Bottom Line: |
This is not your meaty XC winter bomber, but if you do the icy daily winter commute to and from work like I do, I highly recommend these tires. They clear snow extremely well, grab on the icy patches like the ice isn't even there, and handle just fine on dry clean roads due to very mild stud protrusion. In other words, a great set of commuting tires to put on when the winter gets bad and take off when the snow and ice leave. I would not commute this winter without these tires with the lunatic drivers we have around Michigan. | Overall Rating: |
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