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Robert R. Scheibe, mechanical engineer and author, concluded in his research article, An Overview of Studded and Studless Tire Traction and Safety, the following:
Studded tires produce their best traction on snow or ice near the freezing mark and lose proportionately more of their tractive ability at lower temperatures than do studless or all-seaon tires.
Well then, I would have no use for a studdedd tire up here in northern Wisconsin not only since they are illegal but more importantly becasue they would not dig into the ice nor concrete when the outdoor temps fall below freezing (32F). And last year's mean temp. for the month of Jan. was 7F.
But are you taking other variables into consideration? I doesn't snow much below +10. The natural snow fall doesn't set up, like snow once removed does.
Any road salt warms the snow to around +27 degrees. After sunset, the water is partly salt water and freezes as black ice, making things some slick.
Nothing beats steel points for bitting in ice, except maybe boaron points.
I can drive on anything from bald tires to steel studds on ice, but the way I drive changes. It's far easier to steer and brake on steel points.
I am guessing that you don't have two sets of well used studded tires in your garage like I do, right? The tires wear faster than the studs. Even on pavement.
I have have several sets in the shed. But as I mentioned before, the studs wear-out in two to three seasons. The rubber remains in perfect shape until the studs wear-out. At that point it's the rubber that's in full contact with the pavement, so what I do is to re-stud the taller ones (16" and taller), and remove the worn studs from the 13" ones and sell then. The studs on smaller tires wear-out real fast.
That said, the studs are designed to wear at a similar rate of speed as the tire. When properly installed, the tip of the stud sticks out enough to continue providing traction. But if the tire still has sufficient rubber after a couple of seasons, some shops re-stud the tires for you. As I said before, re-studding can be as expensive as some new tires, so all depends on how expensive your tires are.
Ray, I think the import of what you have said is that the studs support the vehicle until they wear down and then he tire makes contact with the ground. Then the tread wears down. I think that's what you think, right?
Forget that I have two sets of studded tires with worn tread and good studs for a moment and think about the physics of your opinion. There are about 10 studs on each tire on the ground at any time. They are an eighth inch in diameter each. They are pressing against the road on one end and a tire on the other end. They cannot put more than 32psi to the road. In order for them to support any weight of the car they would have to support more than 32psi. In order to keep the tread off the road, they would need to apply 7000psi or so. Since they only present 32psi, they support no more than .5% of the car's weight, the rest by the tread. Thats one half of one percent of the cars weight supported by the studs, the rest by the tread.
As for wear, the studs are like 100 times as durable as winter tire rubber. Maybe 1000 times. Since the studs and the tread are wearing at teh same time, the tread wears much, much faster than the stud.
OK? Feel silly for suggesting that the studs wear out first yet?
Last edited by Wilson513; 10-02-2011 at 01:59 PM..
Reason: Be nicer than usual
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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For NE snows.
1. good quality snowtire will suffice (non studded)
2. if lots of city / low mileage trips, studs will help on icy / hard packed snow (no better in slush and powder)
Be forewarned (as you have been) that studs can reduce traction on dry roads, drive accordingly (increase following distance, slower corner speeds).
That said... in my history of living in SE NE, I used snow / traction tread (more often for mud than snow, lived on farm on dirt road)
in CO and WY, I seldom used traction tread, only an all season radial (powder / wind conditions)
in WA (Columbia Gorge) I wear STEEL studs on all four from Oct - April... STEEP, curvy, DARK roads with NO shoulders, Frequent Freezing rain, frozen roads, Silver Thaw, 80 mph winds, varying snow levels at MINOR elevation changes (seldom powder, usually mush, my neighbor (1/4 mile) may have zero snow while I have 2').
I often get used studded tires for $100 / set with wheels. Many folks get them and don't like them (noise) or need them. I never have bought new (since the 1980's). There was a period when they were trying all ALUMINUM studs... that worked for about 50 miles.... You want STEEL studs with good protrusion,
you MUST consider rotation and keep uniform direction each yr.
Eventually the studs will poke through to inside of tire and tire will get slow leaks and go flat.
Get another set of wheels so they are always mounted and marked for L/R
Check craigslist, (know your wheel bolt pattern and cars that match Check with tire store where you buy your summer tires).
on a light car they will run many seasons. (I get ~ 4 yrs on a heavy vehicle and 7+ on my light (Stealth(VW)Rabbits )
. . . .
Eventually the studs will poke through to inside of tire and tire will get slow leaks and go flat. . . .
Ray, please note experience of another studded tire user^^^^^.
The reason the studs go through the tire on the inside is that they don't wear down and as the tread wears the stud pushes deeper and deeper into the tire casing.
Ray, I think the import of what you have said is that the studs support the vehicle until they wear down and then he tire makes contact with the ground. I think that's what you think, right?
Forget that I have two sets of studded tires with worn tread and good studs for a moment and think about the physics of your opinion. There are about 10 studs on each tire on the ground at any time. They are an eighth inch in diameter each. They are pressing against the road on one end and a tire on the other end. They cannot put more than 32psi to the road. In order for them to support any weight of the car they would have to support more than 32psi. In order to keep the tread off the road, they would need to apply 7000psi or so. Since they only present 32psi, they support no more than .5% of the car's weight, the rest by the tread. Thats one half of one percent of the cars weight supported by the studs, the rest by the tread.
As for wear, the studs are like 100 times as durable as winter tire rubber. Maybe 1000 times. Since the studs and the tread are wearing at teh same time, the tread wears much, much faster than the stud.
OK? Feel silly for suggesting that the studs wear out first yet?
Maybe I was not very detailed on my previous posts. So I will agree with you in relation to the tire material (rubber) wearing faster than the stud. But when the studs are properly installed they are designed to wear at a same rate of speed as the rubber. See, only a short portion of the stud protrudes from the tread, and this portion stays relatively the same in relation to the tread (both wear down proportionally) for a couple of seasons, except if one decides to drive on bare pavement. In this case the portion of the stud that protrudes from the tread wears a lot faster than usual and in time becomes level with the tread's surface. But since the thickness of the tread is greater than the stud's length, some tires can be re-studded when the studs not longer protrude from the tread. If the tire wears sooner than the stud and the stud protrudes too far, it's usually ejected from the tire.
One of the reasons why the local shops re-stud tires is because the tires still have sufficient tread left.
Ray, please note experience of another studded tire user^^^^^.
The reason the studs go through the tire on the inside is that they don't wear down and as the tread wears the stud pushes deeper and deeper into the tire casing.
Yes, that's possible. Another reason for stud doing such things is when the wrong studs are used. The stud size has to match the tread thickness.
Some of this is explained here: http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/...jsp?techid=151
Since I don't want anybody to think that I am trying to argue with you, please allow me to clarify a few points, and then post a few photos to illustrate what I have been trying to say in previous posts:
a. Driving conditions in the interior of Alaska, where I have resided for over 32 years, probably is a lot different than your driving conditions. In here the roads are usually covered with solid ice and packed snow for a great portion of the winter, although sometimes we do get dry winters which in turn leaves the roads clear of ice (bare pavement). Anyway it starts snowing about this time of the year, and we still have ice on the roads sometimes by April. And yes, sometimes it snows in may or June over by Denali Park. The temperatures can drop from -20 to -65 sometimes, and it has stayed down there for two or three weeks at a time in the past. When the temperatures drop to -40 or so, driving belts on the car sometimes break to pieces while driving, and the CV boots crack. A little fender bender means large pieces of plastic bumpers all over the place Plastic and rubber falls apart on impact.
In my view, with today's new breeds of tires like the two mentioned in this thread, one can very well not need to use studded tires in the lower-48 as long as these tires are used. But again, these tires are made of a very soft rubber compound for a reason, and that is for flexibility in cold weather. The added flexibility or softness increases traction. Just keep in mind that these tires wear real fast if you leave them installed during the summer (they are made for winter driving).
Now the photos I mentioned above:
This is a 15" Nokian tire that's perhaps 8 seasons old, but still have plenty of tread left. I plan to pull all the studs out, and use the tires during the winter on a Suzuki Sidekick. Please notice how the two studs are worn. The hardest portion of the stud is like a pin in the center of the body, but after two or three seasons the studs wear down and become level with the tire tread's surface.
Below is a 13" tire that I use on a Honda Civic. It's three seasons old, but while the studs are worn there is plenty of tread left:
Just a fyi never weld on a rim that has a tire mounted to it with out breaking the bead or removing the tire first.
The heat from welding will increase the psi in the tire to the point it will explode.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wilson513
Mac:
I have a buddy who tack welded a set of chains on his off/on snow tires. He plows with a 4wd pickup and just uses mud and snow tread unless its real bad and he is plowing and then switches on his chained tires. Have you considered chains?
The local govt. has outlawed studded tires. They cite the road damage caused by them. I guess the roads are more important than lives are.
So for us no matter what tire you run "tire sipping" is a key factor in winter traction.
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Plastic and rubber falls apart on impact. 
