I normally don't promote specific products.
-
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
The best time to buy them is *after* the winter, in late spring
That's how I got mine for less than €30. -
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
@jwildeboer I was looking at these but then the temperature rose and all the snow and ice disappeared. Next year.
-
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
@jwildeboer how do you handle it when snow and ice is gone? Is it okay to use them on asphalt for a while? (You usually have much longer snow and ice in the Munich area than we have in the Mainz area)
-
@jwildeboer how do you handle it when snow and ice is gone? Is it okay to use them on asphalt for a while? (You usually have much longer snow and ice in the Munich area than we have in the Mainz area)
@sf On my e-bike I just do it like with car winter tires. The German O to O (Oktober bis Ostern, from October to easter). They are OK on asphalt etc. And also in autumn, when rain and leaves are on the streets, the spikes already help a lot
-
@sf On my e-bike I just do it like with car winter tires. The German O to O (Oktober bis Ostern, from October to easter). They are OK on asphalt etc. And also in autumn, when rain and leaves are on the streets, the spikes already help a lot
@jwildeboer perfect. Already thought about them. Thanks for your experience report.
-
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
@jwildeboer I won't get them as we don't have snow as a regular occurrence in Berlin, but Schwalbe Marathon are excellent tires! I can confirm that
-
@jwildeboer I won't get them as we don't have snow as a regular occurrence in Berlin, but Schwalbe Marathon are excellent tires! I can confirm that
@acid Guess to what I switch during summer
-
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
@jwildeboer I have two sets of these, and I should fit them about now (as I slipped on my bike yesterday due to the negligence of architects using a particularly slippery type of paving slab around a corner and on a complex slope – I went into greater detail using different and far louder words at length at the time yesterday). Having said that, they would still have slipped on that particular spot, but not as readily.
The thing I don’t like about these is that they’re very very tight to get over the rims of my folding bike, so I tend to delay putting them on in case I don’t have to at all (like last year and the year before, I didn’t bother putting them on either of our bikes) and they’re hard to get off, so when they’re on I delay getting them off until about late spring in case we’re due more snow or ice. I’ve had punctures just getting them on or off, they’re so tight on the rims, having to use the plastic tyre levers quite energetically.
Also, once they’re off again in the Spring, riding the bike with the normal tyres back on gives a tremendous feeling of freedom that the bike goes easily again – these Winter Pluses make it quite turgid to ride.
I’ve also lost quite a few studs over time (which actually doesn’t matter much at all).
I should put them on really. I’m just not looking forward to it. -
@jwildeboer I have two sets of these, and I should fit them about now (as I slipped on my bike yesterday due to the negligence of architects using a particularly slippery type of paving slab around a corner and on a complex slope – I went into greater detail using different and far louder words at length at the time yesterday). Having said that, they would still have slipped on that particular spot, but not as readily.
The thing I don’t like about these is that they’re very very tight to get over the rims of my folding bike, so I tend to delay putting them on in case I don’t have to at all (like last year and the year before, I didn’t bother putting them on either of our bikes) and they’re hard to get off, so when they’re on I delay getting them off until about late spring in case we’re due more snow or ice. I’ve had punctures just getting them on or off, they’re so tight on the rims, having to use the plastic tyre levers quite energetically.
Also, once they’re off again in the Spring, riding the bike with the normal tyres back on gives a tremendous feeling of freedom that the bike goes easily again – these Winter Pluses make it quite turgid to ride.
I’ve also lost quite a few studs over time (which actually doesn’t matter much at all).
I should put them on really. I’m just not looking forward to it.@u0421793 Yeah, they have their specific annoyances, agreed. But as I am using them on my 28" rims, putting them on is not a biggie. They are noisy and make riding a bit more sluggish, but on my e-bike that's not really a problem. I got a pack of replacement studs with the special insertion tool but so far none have fallen out
-
@u0421793 Yeah, they have their specific annoyances, agreed. But as I am using them on my 28" rims, putting them on is not a biggie. They are noisy and make riding a bit more sluggish, but on my e-bike that's not really a problem. I got a pack of replacement studs with the special insertion tool but so far none have fallen out
@jwildeboer one thing I found that they’re surprisingly better at than normal tyres is if I ever ride over loose gravel, like the decorative gravel patches that landscape gardeners use in public spaces. Normally the bike slows to a grind and I want to get off as soon as I can, but with the Winter Pluses on it’s a lot nicer to handle loose gravel surfaces (which is probably where I lose some of the studs).
-
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
@jwildeboerAnd before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
makes sense I guess, since there's not a 1.5 ton machine on top of them -
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
@jwildeboer
This is the way.
Greetings from Finland and -20°C...
Hard core bikers of course have two sets of rims and the swap is fast...
And remember to lubricate brake and transmission cables before they freeze
-
@jwildeboer I was looking at these but then the temperature rose and all the snow and ice disappeared. Next year.
@wlukewindsor @jwildeboer
That's the best time to get them -
@jwildeboer I have two sets of these, and I should fit them about now (as I slipped on my bike yesterday due to the negligence of architects using a particularly slippery type of paving slab around a corner and on a complex slope – I went into greater detail using different and far louder words at length at the time yesterday). Having said that, they would still have slipped on that particular spot, but not as readily.
The thing I don’t like about these is that they’re very very tight to get over the rims of my folding bike, so I tend to delay putting them on in case I don’t have to at all (like last year and the year before, I didn’t bother putting them on either of our bikes) and they’re hard to get off, so when they’re on I delay getting them off until about late spring in case we’re due more snow or ice. I’ve had punctures just getting them on or off, they’re so tight on the rims, having to use the plastic tyre levers quite energetically.
Also, once they’re off again in the Spring, riding the bike with the normal tyres back on gives a tremendous feeling of freedom that the bike goes easily again – these Winter Pluses make it quite turgid to ride.
I’ve also lost quite a few studs over time (which actually doesn’t matter much at all).
I should put them on really. I’m just not looking forward to it.@u0421793 @jwildeboer Agree on the difficulty to put them on. This year I first exchanged my daughter's tires and was so annoyed afterwards that I did not change mine. So I still have to cycle carefully until I muster the patience exchange my set
A version as Faltreifen without the wire rim would be great. -
@u0421793 @jwildeboer Agree on the difficulty to put them on. This year I first exchanged my daughter's tires and was so annoyed afterwards that I did not change mine. So I still have to cycle carefully until I muster the patience exchange my set
A version as Faltreifen without the wire rim would be great.@nicmclee @jwildeboer I sort of half fantasise that the solution would be to simply buy a second set of wheels etc. But then, as soon as I have a puncture, I’d have to go through the ordeal again, so, not worth going the way of entire summer and winter wheels.
-
@nicmclee @jwildeboer I sort of half fantasise that the solution would be to simply buy a second set of wheels etc. But then, as soon as I have a puncture, I’d have to go through the ordeal again, so, not worth going the way of entire summer and winter wheels.
@u0421793 @jwildeboer apparently Continental has also a Winter tire without spikes but with lamellae. It seems to be of the folding type. https://www.continental-tires.com/products/b2c/bicycle/tires/top-contact-winter-ii-premium/
-
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
@jwildeboer I don’t bike much in winter, even though I live in Canada with 3-4 months of snow. I have found on short rides just having one on my front wheel is sufficient. I have put it on a separate wheel, so swapping it is a 30 second job. (We do have freeze and thaw cycles when the roads are clear again and in February/March even dry from the stronger sun.)
-
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
While Schwalbe says "240 spikes", most manufacturers call them "studded" tires, which is probably more accurate (and far less threatening.)
-
I normally don't promote specific products. But this one is truly a life saver and deserves to be known. The Schwalbe Marathon winter tires for bicycles with metal spikes. They make cycling in snow and ice during the winter so much safer. It's now my second winter with them on my e-bike and I couldn't be more happy that I decided to buy them. And before you ask: yes, metal spikes on bicycle tires are legal in Germany and in most other countries.
@jwildeboer
I totally agree!
Our whole family is using these tires during the winter.One additional tip: In spring, check the tires for lost spikes. You can buy spare ones as well as a special tool to replace them, which is much cheaper and sustainable than replacing the tires.
-
@jwildeboer
I totally agree!
Our whole family is using these tires during the winter.One additional tip: In spring, check the tires for lost spikes. You can buy spare ones as well as a special tool to replace them, which is much cheaper and sustainable than replacing the tires.
