winter tires 22x3

[Banjopete]

I got mine mounted up, so far so good. They fit! most importantly to start things off.

[nelglen]

I'm thinking of doing something similar to what Antti did.

How wide is your front tire, Antti?

Cheers,
--glen

Hi,

I live in Helsinki and have the RadWagon4. I have been through 3 Finnish winters with it. In Helsinki the temperature tends to fluctuate around freezing throughout the beginning of winter and then stays below freezing in Jan - Feb, so we get lots of slush, ice, and re-frozen semi-melted snow, with lots of bike-corroding salt thrown in for good measure 

I noticed that the stock RadWagon tires are slippery in the cold and they have almost no lateral grip in icy conditions. I've taken several falls when the front tire slipped out from under me. This makes riding in the winter very unpleasant. I don't like having to be "on edge" the whole time.

Last winter I laced up a 24in rim to a new front hub and used a 24in studded winter tire at around 3 bar of pressure. There were no tire clearance issues, and it completely transformed the bike. The grip, even on ice, was much much better and I felt a lot more comfortable and safe riding around in icy and frozen conditions. I just left the rear tire as stock. There is some slippage from time to time, but the back sliding out isn't really a problem.

Getting a new rim for the front can be kind of expensive, but if you are serious about riding around in the winter I would recommend it. I would say forget the snow chains or moped tires and get a studded tire.

[Banjopete]

This is still a great idea, and may end up not costing a whole lots more in the long run after buying a tire, then studs, doubly so if you're paying for someone to do it for you.

[Antti L]

My front tire is 47mm so about 1.85 inches wide. I run it at just below 4 bar (about 55 psi).

I've decided to convert the whole bike to 24in, so I will be re-lacing the rear hub motor to a 24in rim in the near future. The studded front tire is fine for 85% of the riding that I do, but  we've had a few days of above freezing temperatures and now that it is back to below freezing, the melted snow has turned into massive sheets of ice. I have decided that I want more grip in the rear as well.

For summer riding, once converted completely to 24in, I have been eyeing the Schwalbe Pick Ups. They seem like nice cargo bike tires also available in 24in.

I've also decided to upgrade to hydraulic brakes. The stopping power on the Tektros that came with the bike is fine, but the constant adjusting that is required is a real PITA.

[handlebar]

For summer riding, once converted completely to 24in, I have been eyeing the Schwalbe Pick Ups. They seem like nice cargo bike tires also available in 24in.

I've also decided to upgrade to hydraulic brakes. The stopping power on the Tektros that came with the bike is fine, but the constant adjusting that is required is a real PITA.

I had 30 miles on my Aventon Abound when the rear tire went flat. The cause was so small that I wound't have found it if I hadn't marked the sidewall at the valve so I could match it up with the hole in the tube. It appeared to be a particle of sand, embedded in the rubber. Besides puncturing the tube, the particle had cut a cord in the tire. I replaced the new tire with a 20" Schwalbe Pick Up. The old one has about 25 TPI, which is asking for trouble. The Schwalbe has 2 plies of 67 TPI. It feels much more substantial but hardly weighs any more, and there's no more rolling resistance as far as I can tell.

On my Rad bikes with mechanical brakes, it was the back ones that would get spongy. I decided that the cable housing, made of coiled wire, was stretching  because it flexed when the handlebars turned. Periodically, I'd put the cable housing under compression overnight by tying the rear brake lever to the handlebar. It helped.