DIY Snow Chains

[TimO]

I came across a crowd who have just reinvented snow chains for bicycles again.  They don't obviously appear to be available (easily) in the UK.  They can be fitted, without removing the wheels, which has to be an advantage for occasional use.

Slipnot Bicycle Traction System

[mrcharly-YHT]

That's very ingenious.

But

Slipnot provides better traction on ice, snow and mud than studded tires

I call bullshit. No way are smooth rounded chains going to get better traction on hard black ice than sharp-edged studs.

[Kim]

Agreed.  I can imagine it working well on loose snow, though.

[TimO]

I've seen better types of snow chains than that previously as well (see below), but I'd imagine it's certainly an improvement over a non-studded tyre in some circumstances (eg ice), but how effective it is with mud and snow, compared to a good treaded tyre, would be variable.

Kool Stop Quik Klaw Cleats

There's some discussion of Snow Chains on bicycles here.

[rogerzilla]

Those cleats look as if they would work.  You don't need especially sharp spikes to grip ice; winter tyres for cars just have lots of sipes, and as they squirm under the weight of the car the sipes open up, resulting in lots of extra edges.

[TimO]

The main problem with the Kool Stop Quik Klaw Cleats, is that Kool Stop haven't made them for several years, so finding a set would be a good trick!

[PhilO]

Has anybody ever tried simply wrapping a length of chain or wire rope helically around the tyre and rim? Maybe twice, so you have left- and right-helices. Only possible with disk or other hub-mounted brakes, obviously.