...if I manage to get a season out of the set of tyres I will definetly have had my monies worth.
Given I'm er, "careful" with money (aka a "tightwad"), I made search several years ago to see if these tires can be restudded to compensate for stud wear or loss and so extend their life.
Apparently, they can. At least, Schwalbe offer replacement studs here:
http://www.schwalbetires.com/accessories/studsI have not looked at the tools Schwalbe offer to accomplish this, but I have replaced some studs in a car tire for a friend. It is entirely possible with dishwashing liquid and some needle-nose pliers, especially if they're of the locking/vise- or mole-grip variety and you don't mind pushing till you get little clots in your fingertips. I know this firsthand.
After doing that, I got the bright idea to drill a hole in a solid rod and use that as a handle. Much better. Some tires are more accepting if inflated, others if deflated and pinched to open up the wells that hold the studs. Some people use a slotted screwdriver, others use a hollow punch. All methods pose some hazard to the tires if you "miss" when putting your entire body weight into the task. The drilled rod is probably best, but my career as a stud-setter came to an end when my friend sold his car. Dishsoap-and-water help. This is also a good time to make sure cameras are safely stowed away if you have an assistant or onlookers, as they *will* be compelled to document the ensuing tire carnage, which sometimes also involves fingers.
Fun for all, oh joy.
Unfortunately, there's a potential snag in restudding Schwalbe tires -- cost. When I looked at the price of replacement studs a few years ago, they were about USD$12/dozen. Now, Schwalbe has them on offer at the staggering price of USD$18.85 *apiece*.
It's not a misprint, either. I tried adding multiples to the shopping cart and they do indeed add up at that price. There's hope: Schwabe have been known to send replacements for free if asked nicely.
It does indeed seem Continental and Nokian studded tires are both made in Lieksa, Finland, so the odds of different factories there
each making studded bike tires seems unlikely. I've independently verified the studs are virtually identical, differing by only 0.1mm or so, well within production tolerances. For triangulation, see:
http://thegoldenwrench.blogspot.com/2010/11/replacement-studs-for-studded-tires.htmlThe Suomi/Nokian site makes for a fun read:
http://www.suomityres.fi/index.html Nokian also make a stud-replacement kit, at least for shoes with the required stud-wells (should fit the bike tires also):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nokian-Footwear-Studs-set-89100000/dp/B005JPLHMG Before you go there, no you can't add studs of this type to tires without the required stud-wells. DIY solutions call for either pop-rivets and backing plates as I used back in the day, or wood screws as shown here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI-fR2tXR_8Related, useful post here on another forum:
http://forum.ctc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=56322 By the way, more front studs tend to get expelled 'cos of the tangential forces applied in steering and heavier braking due to weight transfer torquing them out of their seats when ridden on dry pavement; surprising to me, as I would have thought expected greater loss due to traction forces at the rear.
Best,
Dan. (...who will kindly spare you all sorts of tagline puns that come so readily to mind)
