[martini]

Nonono, I'm not running a male brothel! Git yer minds outta the gutter....

This is about winter. And Ice. And staying on the bike. I don't really feel like forking out $200 for those rad Nokian Studded tires. They look great...but that price...

So I took a used set of tires with plently of life left in them, in this case Ignitors, a **** pile of sheetmetal screws and went to town. I think there's about 112 screws per tire. Not really a whole lot, but from test rides in the alley, they should suffice.

Ok. This thread is worthless with out pics...so here they are.

Front:

rear:

Both:

These suck on anything other than ice or snow covered ice. On just snow, they won't do you much good. In fact, I may change the rear pattern to be less center specific. We'll see. There's just a sh!t ton of drag there....

To prevent flats from rubbing, I split an old tube and slip it over the aired up one, then slip that into the tire. Pressure is about 20, and may go down from there.

Why did i make these? 'cause conditions here are perfect to tires like this. The first snow was 4", then rain, turning that 4" of snow to 2" of ice. Then its been snowing off and on again for the last few days, putting about 8" of fluffy goodness on top of that. I'll be heading out tomorrow for a full test. I'll be reporting back!

 

[MMcG]

Those kick ass in a Mad Max sorta way! Good work Marty!

 

[BikeGeek]

Nice work! My only concern would be the amount of screw showing. I'd expect the tire knobs would bend or tear before the screw sinks completely into the ice. For comparison, the Nokians I used to have only had about 1/8 of an inch of stud and they were awesome in the winter. Reducing the size of the screws would also help reduce the drag you are experiencing.

That's a great DIY job though. I never would have thought to build my own.

 

[pinkshirtphotos]

i tried doing it last year... how did you manage to line up where you wanted the screws to go?

 

[martini]

bikegeek - You're right, I think they're long too. I got 5/8", probably should have gone 3/8". Nope wasn't 5/8", they are 1/2". Still too long for the rear though...might have to change that.

psp - I used a 3/16 drill bit and drilled through the knob, outside in. This leaves a 'mark' on the inside of the tire where the drill bit broke through the casing. Bingo, simply thread the screw in from there!

 

[Guitar Ted]

marty: I did this once years ago with very similar results. What about taking a heavy duty pair of snips or bolt cutters and nipping about half of what you got sticking out there off? If you were to do it perpendicular to the tires travel, the resulting "ridge" left by the cutting jaws would be placed in a sort of "paddle" posistion. That should bite into the surface of ice really well and lessen the chances for puncture into the ice surface and reduce drag. Shouldn't it?

Maybe I'm crazy, but I've often thought this would work really well.

 

[Guitar Ted]

Oh yeah, one other thing: Since you are riding that Vassago in the snow, wouldn't that make it a Snatchsquatch?

 

[martini]

LOL. Snatchsquatch. thats rich! I think you're right on the snipping thing. It should save time of taking screws out, 'tappin' new holes and re-screwing with shorter ones. Plus I get to buy another tool! Sweet!

 

[HAB]

I've done somthing similar. Pre drilling is a must. And yes, cut the studs down. They work much, much better trimmed.

 

[MTBracer]

hey check out my tires I have these posted in the Tech Talk section if you want to look. These were sheet metal screw that are about 1/4 in long. I haven't tested them yet but they should work really good.

http://ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=192950

it should be on the second page. I put in all my screws with a needle and pliers. I'm not kidding. Only because I don't have access to a drill.

 

[MTBracer]

Hey does anyone have a good idea for a tire liner? My friend just gave me a good idea to use a piece of cardboard to line the tire with. I think it might work but any other ideas would be good. I've heard so far that a slit extra tube can be used, a real Mr. Tuffy tire liner, and someone suggested shoe goo. I'll probably end up using duct tape or the cardboard strip but if there's any other ideas out there that don't involve spending money would be nice to hear about them.

 

[Mike B.]

Thought I'd share this will all of you. Last year a customer sent me his method of homebrew tubeless studded tires. I've not done a set yet since I normally ride packed snowmobile trails where studs are basically useless. 2.3-2.5 tire at 8-10psi does the trick.

From Tim in MN:

Just so you know...I now have a set of Panaracer Cinders studded up
and sealed. Here is the procedure:

1) Confirm that the tire will hold air (w/o sealant and before
drilling). This ensures that the tire bead will seal.

2) With the tire unmounted, drill a 1/16" pilot hole through the knob
you want to stud (it helps to mark them with chalk or liquid paper)
from the outside. The pilot hole provides a point from which to place
the screw from the inside of the casing.

3) Using a cordless drill, screw in self-tapping sheet metal screws
through the pilot holes from the inside out so the point is facing
out. I dipped each screw in Stans sealant prior to screwing it in.

4) I let the screws/sealant dry, then I mounted the tires with 1 3/4
scoops and pumped it up. I usually run a finger with Stans in the
crook between the tire bead and the rim hook. I find that this helps
to seal the tire. Anyway, after one revolution of the shaking, both
tires sealed right up and have held 40 psi for a week!

I had to laugh when a buddy of mine flatted on the trail the other
day. He told me I was crazy for trying Stans on the homebrew studs
when I first contemplated this, but there's only so much tire liners
can do! And three of us have ridden a bunch with Stans w/o problems.

Personally, I think this is the perfect application for Stans. Any
tube solution will necessarily be short term.

Tips: The studs shouldn't extend more than 3/16" for the center
knobs, otherwise they rip off. It's best to run slightly higher
pressure to stabilize the knobs. It is best to use knobbies with a
lot of meat---knobs taller than 5mm work best for 7/16" #6 screws.

 

[MTBracer]

what's stans and how do i get it? i get that it's some sort of sealant but that's all.

 

[mtnbiker7]

what's stans and how do i get it? i get that it's some sort of sealant but that's all.

stans is a way to turn tires to tubless. I think beyondbikes.com has it.

 

[HAB]

what's stans and how do i get it? i get that it's some sort of sealant but that's all.

www.notubes.com

 

[frandin]

Back in the early 90s we used to make studs like this, but with a screw through every single knob on a Fisher Fat Trax or Onza Porcipaw. Then we'd have races on skating rinks. The traction was so good that guys would high-side it into the boards.

For the last 15 years I've been running studs made by replacing about every 4th side knob with a reversed 1/2 inch wood t-nut (preferably the ones with the little gripper spikes for biting into the wood). Inside the tire is the head of the machine screw and washer, and the stud(T-nut) just threads on. If you position them right the studs don't touch as long as you're riding straight on hard surfaces, but bite in as soon as you start to turn or things get soft. Other benefits is that having them angled like this means wear is minimal and actually makes them sharper. And cause of the added thickness of the t-nut and bolt, it takes a long time to wear them down (I still ride one of my originals -- sidewall went on the other last year). And the heads of machine screws are rounded (but I still put a layer of duct tape over them and use an old tube as a liner).

If anyone is interested I can try to post some pictures.