Piannyplayer

Hello!

I may be beating a dead horse here, but I need some advice. I am moving to Boston later this year, and I want to change out my knobby MTB tires for something that works better on pavement/bike lanes. I have a limited budget so I would rather not buy a pair of pavement tires and a pair of winter tires. I was wondering, is there a “hybrid” tire that will work great for pavement, as well as have the grip needed for snow and ice?
Some people also recommend using commuter tires, and then putting zip ties around the wheel to provide the grip needed in the winter.
Curious as to your thoughts?

Thanks,
Samuel

Wilbur Bud

I think not. Schwalbe winter marathon is a good compromise if your intent is to be always on road and the roads are generally plowed. Low stud profile, just off center so the drag is not horrible, but it's still a drag if you were to be pumped up and riding fast in the summer. I've found that with year-round riding I get 8k-10k miles per tire provided some horrible cuts don't occur, so think of your mileage, maybe start winter with a studded tire and ride one summer until your budget leads to a winter tire and a summer tire. I think you won't like riding a winter-capable tire in consistently good weather. With Boston winters, probably you'll be better off just putting the knobby on for winter in the case where you don't want to buy a knobby studded like the Nokian. Where I live in the flatlands we don't see so much snow but we do see ice a couple times a year, so the studs are very helpful on ice and not so much on deeper snow unless you have the Nokians.

Piannyplayer

Sounds good, thank you!

parkbrav

Hi Sam, a warm welcome to Boston!

I think you've arrived at the right place, there are many of us winter warriors from Boston here on this forum.

I'm wrapping up my 5th year as a car-less cyclist, and notched my 4th winter on a bike. This may be the last winter for me though (we'll see, knock on wood).

99% of my time I cycle on dry pavement.

We've been having some very mild winters in Boston lately, with much more rain than snow. I found that all I need is some relatively thin winter tires to repel the occasional black ice.

I have one Schwalbe Marathon on the front and one Xerxes on the back. The Schwalbe is a bit nosier than the Xerxes, although I quickly got used to it.

They both perform very well and very reliably on dry pavement.

Both perform well in virgin snow and snow pack.

I have tested them in 2-6 inches of slush, I find my winter tires perform not as well in 2-6 inches as on dry pavement.

I found I get some fish-tailing especially on the Xerxes in slush you might find on the margin of the road after a snow storm. The Marathon had much less issue although I didn't really test it out this winter.

As far as cost, I find they are both good values, especially if you buy this time of year. Since they are so reliable I find they are good value and worth it if they are bit over-priced. But a stitch in time is worth nine

wolfchild

Don't listen to people who tell you to put zip ties around your tires...It's a stupid idea, it doesn't work and it's dangerous on pavement. Plastic zip ties are slippery and can make you loose control and crash. ..Invest in winter specific tires if your budget allows, or just use your regular knobbies run at low pressure during winter.

parkbrav

I just checked and I found Schwalbe Marathon Winter tires on sale for $31/each. To me, that's a great bargain ...presumably you're getting two ... One 45 North Xerxes costs $60

2_i 

I ride Continental Top Contact Winter most of the time from late fall until early spring. Indeed this is the best time of the year now to buy winter tires.

Carbonfiberboy 

Have 2 sets of tires, definitely.

Piannyplayer

Thank you! Those tips were very helpful. I went ahead and bought a set of the Serfas City Drifter, as all the reviews said they were terrific on wet pavement. I am excited to be joining you guys in Boston!

timebomb

Have you had a chance to test these out yet? I'm curious to see how well they perform for you.

dabac

I’m not really a fan of the SMWs, as the quality seems a bit hit-and-miss. I’ve had to retire some early b/c the studs coming through on the inside, wearing holes in the tubes. Otherwise, they are available in two stud counts, and the lower count doesn’t drag as much.
For long wearing, Suomityres seems to do really well. The W240 also grips rather well in soft snow.

Piannyplayer

Hey timebomb! I haven't had a chance to try them out in colder weather yet, so I can't say how they perform in slush, snow, and ice. However, I have biked with them on some pretty wet and rainy days, and they performed very well indeed. I never felt like I was slipping on the wet pavement, and always felt like I was in control, even on tighter turns. I am not super experienced, but the amount spray kicked up from the tires seemed reasonable as well. Let me know if you have any other questions, but I would recommend them.

parkbrav

We get so much slush in the Boston area mid-winter, that having studs as opposed to all-weather tires are probably a good idea. But it's your call.

timebomb

Thanks for the info! I'll check back on this thread as winter rolls around to see how you're liking them in that weather.