m7ickey

UPDATE on winter tires. Well, I did my first tire change. Pulled the Giant tire of the Giant rim in the front, cleaned everything and mounted the Nokian winter tire on the Giant rim. Also mounted the Giant tire on my new velocity rim that arrived today. I was able to do everything using only one tire removal tool. In fact, the Giant tires popped off almost to easily, same with mounting them on the new wheels, just used my hands and popped them right on. Again, it was actually too easy and has me a little concerned. . Mounting the Nokians took a little effort but again, I was able to do it with my hands. So the front switchaaroo is done. On to the rear tomorrow.

Regarding clearance issues on the bike. It was NOT an issue at all. The Nokians fit fine on the front, plenty of fender clearance. I did adjust the brakes but in a pinch, I could have rode without adjusting. I took a ride up the street and the noise they make on the pavement is impossible to describe but its not overly loud. Won't use them on pavement much anyway. I did not get a chance to weigh the Giant stock wheels other than on a bathroom scale with showed 2lbs for the front wheel but that's not much help other than I do know they are similar in weight to my new wheels, maybe slightly heavier.
Mickey

m7ickey

Here's the hub locks I got: https://www.niagaracycle.com/categor...CABEgLeKvD_BwE

ShaneC80

I actually told my LBS "convince me to buy a 2 over the 3" and they couldn't give me a remotely good reason. Guess it saved me a few bucks.

I'm not too upset by it either, cuz I'm a newbie and literally don't know what I'm missing with the cheaper components.

rumrunn6

I can relate. if only all tires were so easy to mount. if "they" can make some mount easy why can't "they" make them all so easy? nice that you had no fender issue! take any pics? some ppl have described winter studs on dry pavement like "sizzling bacon"

rumrunn6

how do you like the 1/2 clip aka mini clip? shoes fit OK? you plan to use a bigger winter shoe or boot? do they fit as well? I use something similar but had to ditch the narrow/shallow plastics for some larger metal units that I customized for my clown feet

m7ickey

I'll get some pic's up tomorrow. Sizzling bacon, maybe. I'd describe it more like riding through some really dry leaves, that crunchy sound.

m7ickey

Sneakers fit fine in the toe clips, I wear 10 1/2 or 11 and have narrow feet, someone size 12 or above with wide feet, they may not work. I got the "large" size. No way boots would fit which is why I'll probably take them off for bad winter weather if I want to wear boots

m7ickey

UPDATE: I got the rear winter tire mounted today. I learned you need 3 hands (or maybe a bike stand) to mount the rear tire back on the bike, i.e., Pull chain back with one hand, hold bike with other hand and maneuver wheel with my third hand
Had to get help.
Also, I went to local hardware store and bought some spacers in a couple sizes to replace the spacers on the fender in hopes of getting more clearance. It worked. I did learn the fender is a little more adjustable than I thought and I may have managed with original spacers but didn't want to risk it. It did take 2 tries to get the clearance the way I wanted. I did need to adjust the brake pads by about 1/8" (maybe less) to have them centered again. My body is sore from bending in so many odd positions, I'm not getting any younger. I'm also a perfectionist so I took my time on everything and cleaned everything as I went along and spent a bunch of time adjusting my brakes beyond the initial adjustment. Been learning a lot as I work on the bike though.

Sooooo, I was going to take it for a ride a few miles but after feeling how much more effort it took with 2 studded winter tires mounted (went about a half a block, its a BIG difference, I didn't notice the difference nearly as much when I only had the front one mounted), I decided to wait a day and let my aching body recover. Its definitely going to be a workout riding with these tires but thats better than a broken arm from crashing. The other thing I immediately noticed is taking a sharp corner is a whole new experience. I almost wiped out. These tires are not made for cornering on pavement. I was going slow just doing a u-turn in the street, so it was a REAL sharp turn. Just gonna take some getting used to. I'm glad my first sharp turn wasn't at speed.

Bottom line is as far as a Giant Escape is concerned, Its not that hard to fit winter studded tires even if you have fenders mounted. It took me a long time but it was my first try, things will get faster and easier with experience. I'll post some pic's soon.

I've heard of people only using a studded tire upfront, can anyone who has tried that chime in? I may be inclined to go that route after feeling how much harder it was to move with 2 mounted. Anyway, we haven't had any snow, so they will come off this weekend after I get a few rides in to "seat" the studs. Lastly, I have the tires inflated to 65 PSI, the max recommended, in hopes of reducing rolling resistance on pavement, so what I experienced in the best its gonna get.
Mickey

m7ickey

BTW, you can add a couple things to my list of accessories:
-handlebar tape to wrap my bar ends ($9.40): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
-dual tire pressure gauge ($11): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
2 reflectors for new wheels ($1 from China)

rumrunn6

I'll come back here & show you the big ones I use, in case they an interest for you

I take this big wide / deep units & break off the top part, then file the rough edge. they're big enough for winter boots & work fine w summer footwear as well. got them on all 3 of my bikes

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

rumrunn6

ah yes, good one

Craptacular8

My experience with the 72 stud version of the same tire is similar. It is a very noticeable drag compared to my normal commuting tires. Then again, in addition to the studs and tread adding rolling resistance, one tire alone weighs 800+ grams, so a weight gain of 426 grams per each. That said, I will be putting my studded tires on in the next day or so. We already have snow showers. So far, they don't stay around for more than a day, but they seem to be melting/freezing on at least one of the pedestrian overpasses I take.

m7ickey

Where are you located? We had flurry's for a minute yesterday. It's been cold enough for snow last few days but none so far. Encountered some piles of leaves this morning covered in frost, tires cut through them like a knife.

m7ickey

One more point about mounting winter tires in the rear, when I changed the spacer at the bottom of the fender (the one in the pic earlier in the thread), the result was the bolt was now too long. I could not tighten the spacer without the bolt hitting another bolt. Luckily I had a shorter bolt in the same size handy so if anyone follows my lead, make sure you have extra bolts along with the spacers

On another note, took a ride today, the rolling resistance is most noticeable getting going and isn't as bad once your up to speed. I noticed my speed was about 2 mph less than my other tires. So it wasn't as bad as I first thought but definitely a noticeable difference. The other thing I noticed is the tires grab road debree (twigs, pebbles, etc) easily and throw it against the inside of my fender which was making more noise than the tires

rumrunn6

hopefully when the precip starts it will wash away the debris & the snow plows will take care of the rest. pure snow & ice is much better

Craptacular8

@m7ickey I live in MN, work/commute around town in Fargo, ND. It is actively snow showering again right now. It won't amount to anything accumulation-wise, but will be enough to make the streets slick again. A year ago, it was 73 degrees, and I had no difficulty talking a friend into joining me on a beautiful fall ride. I'll have to do some fast talking to get myself out there riding the next couple of days, lol!

m7ickey

Hey, thanks. I may look into them

m7ickey

As promised, here are some pic's with Nokian w106 studded tires mounted on my 2016 Giant Escape City (same as the "2" with fenders, a rack and a bell added). First, the rear tire where I changed some spacers on the fender for more clearance, probably went from 8mm spacer to 4mm at the bottom fender mount and from 8mm to 6mm at the top fender mount
1st pic is the front of the rear fender
2nd and 3rd are the rear of the rear fender
4th pic it the center/top of the rear fender
As you can see, I got good clearance. The tightest spot being in the front which is why I cut the spacer in half. Even after doing that, I had to slide the fender on the bolts to get the clearance I wanted, you'd have to see the fender mount to understand what I mean but there is a channel not a round hole where the bolt goes through the fender allowing for some adjustment that way

m7ickey

Here's the front fender, no clearance issues at all. Keep in mind I went from 32c tires to studded 35c tires, so they are wider and taller. Also a nice view of the tire in these shots

m7ickey

Well, kinda, I'll check in and post once in a while but yes, what I wanted to accomplish with this thread is done. So the next time someone new to biking googles "new wheels" hopefully the see this thread (I wish I had!). Thanks everyone who chimed in and thanks in general to this whole forum, I've read a lot of posts over the last seven months that have been helpful, now as a wise poster said on this thread, "You've done a great job, now get out and ride" or something like that. I'll leave you with some shots of the bike in better lighting than my other ones (nice day here so I washed it and cleaned and lubed my chain, these were prior to that)
Mickey

rumrunn6

m7ickey

A bit of news, first snow of the year this morning, just a dusting but there were what appeared to be some slick spots. Studded tires handled it easily. I did not "test" them, just rode straight and corner extremely slowly. Anyway, good so far.
It was also 25 degrees. and the thermal base layer bottoms I bought from Patagonia were not as warm as anticipated. Definitely designed for comfort and activity, but not for standing in cold weather. I got the medium weight ones. I was wearing jeans though, something windproof would have been helpful.
2 things I'm still waiting for are my Balaclava & gloves, both would have been helpful today. Looks like gloves are out for delivery today though. Ordered them from overseas so it took a while, the balaclava has been a nightmare, I've received it twice from 2 different ebay stores and both times they shipped the wrong size and I had to return the item. Hopefully third time is a charm, should be here Tuesday maybe.
Here's the gloves I ordered, cost twice as much to buy in US.
https://www.bikeinn.com/bike/sportfu...E&gclsrc=aw.ds

Lastly, I installed handlebar tape last night on my bar ends. I have the longer origin8 bar ends and for anyone who may be curious one roll of the below bar tape wrapped both bar ends with just a very little left over. It installed nicely, just the right amount of stretch, with the thickness and grip I was looking for. Highly recommend.
https://www.amazon.com/Easton-Pinlin.../dp/B00PUFVDOC
Mickey

m7ickey

The Easton Tape on my bar end:

m7ickey

UPDATE: for anyone using my list of accessories to consider what you may want to buy. Here's the "extra" things I bought not on the original list (may have posted some of these already, just aggregating, think I'm done now) Also, check out my "Bike Stand Hack" post in General Discussion, that was FREE!
-bottle cage: $8.53
-spoke reflectors $1
-insulating glove liners $12.52
-dual pressure gauge $10.99 (double checked accuracy at bike shop, runs about 3lbs under assuming bike shop is accurate, close enough for my purposes especially since you probably lose that much pressure disengaging the gauge so gauge says 75 actual pressure is 78 until I unhook it, now I'm where I want to be)
-bar tape for bar ends $9.40

davidallenxyz

Seems like you've ended up spending quite a lot on your bike to get it ready for commuting, considering it comes set up for commuting already. I'm sure you've enjoyed all those preparations but I don't think the average rider needs to spend that much.

I'm also unclear about why you bought a second set of wheels, but chose to fit the studded tyres to the existing wheels?