"Winter Motorized Bicycling, tips and tricks"

Dan

Dan

Staff
A few of us were talking about starting a thread on winter MBing. Please feel free to post any thing you have found or do. Dress, mechanical or what ever ya think is part of the winter thing.

This kinda surprised me. I (this time of year) wear Carharrt bib overalls, boots, hood that covers my face and, big time important, the back of the neck. With raw hide gloves am very comfortable with a few layers underneath. Skipped the layers under the coat and wore a lighter coat. Was not at all cold but my hands (with the same gloves) were frozen and uncomfortable. Rode home and put on some layers. Still not cold but hand and feet were comfy again. Old boat thing; "if your feet are cold, put a hat on" All about core tempiture I guess.

Also, with the 4 smoke, be sure to use the right oil.

Killer did a pretty wild studded tire.

I am thinking of doing a seat heater conducting heat from the exhaust pipe.


Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
 
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re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

Hey, first off, I needed a studded tire for winter, but I'm too cheap to spend $60+(each) for 'store-bought' studded tires, so this is what I ended up with:

Pictures046.jpg


I got my inspiration from these threads on snow/ice riding:
http://motorbicycling.com/f3/made-my-own-studded-snow-tires-5439.html
http://motorbicycling.com/f11/winter-tires-11692.html

But a couple of lines in a totally different thread on 'Goats Head' caught my attention:
source
WayneC said:
...you could also try the tire-in-a-tire method. Similar to above but uses another tire inside the outer one. Sometimes you have to cut the bead off so watch out for the wire if your tire is of that type. If it's got the Kevlar bead then no problem.
Click to expand...

So off I went, to my shop/kitchen(yes I'm a bachelor). What I needed was an old mtb tire, 26x2.25 with decent nibs(chunky tread), and an old 26x1.75 road tire, a decent tube, trued rim(optional), and 100 #6x3/4" screws(what I had 100+ of). The screws I had were 'round head' 'green handle' robertson(square), but use whatever screws you have a hundred+ of that are the same size... :p

I'll say this off the top, 3/4" were too long. If I had a front fender and stock forks I wouldn't be able to get away with 3/4". I have no fender(yet) and wide triple trees. My stock fork truing stand is chewed up just from a few spins of the finished flesh-shredder, heh heh.

1/2" should be lots to get a good bite without having to wait for the pavement to wear down the screws so they clear your fender... Just a heads up, if you have fenders/stock fork use 1/2"

I say use #6 because they are only 1/8" and don't require pre-drilling, trust me, 100 screws to put in is alot of Simpsons episodes playing in the background, drilling 100 holes for a bigger screw would only be that much more monotonous.


So enough of my yakking, lets get to the pics! :)

This rim was already half rotten from sitting in snow against a fence for a couple of years so it was a good candidate for more snow/salt.

Some WD-40 on the spoke heads, and rebuild the bearings with synthetic grease and its ready to go.

For some odd reason(like getting chucked in the back forty) the spoke liner was gone, so I had to use good'ol duct tape to cover the spoke ends.

*Tip, wrap half the rim with full wide DT, and cut in half for twice the length of tape, you only need half wide tape to cover the spoke-ends.


So for the actual putting in of the screws, there's nothing to it. A drill with a bit is highly recommended! At first I'd turned the tire inside out, but then I was worried about the angle of the screws. So I just screwed from inside - out with the tire as normal.
 
re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

"Of the studs:"

-inside peek:


-outside peek:



Now the fun part, the liner... So I took my old 26x1.75 road tire and sliced the bead off both sides. *tip- "pull out" on the tire behind the blade, not in front, you'll save money, time, and anti-septics, but anyway; continuing on...

You'll have a beadless tire-liner when you're done cutting:
Pictures050.jpg


So you'll end up with 4 parts(tube is out of shot):
Pictures034.jpg



Now what you want to do is stuff the de-beaded 1.75 inside the 2.25, Like this:
Pictures051.jpg



Then when that's in, you stuff your tube(I'm still using my 2.25 tube @25psi) inside the 1.75...
 
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re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

So finally, you end up with something like this in layers:
Pictures057.jpg


Then you just carefully cram everything onto your 'winter-friendly' rim(nipple first), throw in some air; the lower the pressure the better the traction(but lower the speed...), and you're done.

Pictures018.jpg



*Note- If you bring that flesh-eater inside, put down some cardboard or something, especially if you have a significant other, or wood floors. :P


*Note2- That tire only took 100 screws double spaced. On my first ride the extra weight had a centrifugal(gyroscopic) effect when trying to turn. So start out slow 'till you get used to it.

MB.com Sticker plug:
Pictures016.jpg
 
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re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

well done killer if i wasnt so damm lazy i might do the same but i am so im just gonna ride my wore out set till i find a steal of a deal on some extremes
 
re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

ok so i guess the only real tip for winter riding is proper preparation

first dressing well i wear
a bomber hat, a face mask, and a old t shirt, for a neck and chest protecter,a set of cozy mittens, for a coat i am currently wearing a carhat the collar is really bad on those lets the wind right in (hence the old cut up t-shirt) i also wear snow pants and a safety vest

if its really chilly out i wear a second layer underneath coat and snow pants


ok so thats dress then theres tools of course and extra gas

i also carry extra gloves with me and a pair of socks with additional waterproof socks incase i get wet i can put the same boot back on with out loosing a toe

and then theres the survival pack it includes fire starters hand warmers knifes string all sorts of things basically i havent had to use any of this stuff this season but i carry it on me incase

other than that its all about defensive driving and choosing the best routes across town talk with local bicyclists they will tell you the best routes and travel across town
 
re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

That looks so cool Killer. Thanks for posting.

Wholly cow WA! I just looked at the thermometer and is 15F here. Don't ride below 32 due to ice. Kinda feelin' like a wus after reading; "....i get wet i can put the same boot back on with out loosing a toe" and "if its really chilly out i wear a second layer underneath coat and snow pants"
lol

All relative I guess, but wholly cow.
 
re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

Hmm... 'bout the only thing I can think to add is careful w/the cables below freezing temp - sometimes water can get in there and freeze, sometimes it can get so cold as to make the cable lube thicken up, some even become a solid if it's cold enough.

So... even if they worked fine when ya started out ya may find the brakes are inclined to betray you, not working at all or even staying locked up - rare, but sketchy as the road conditions are prolly questionable heh

 
Re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

I think I see your problem BA. Your bike is frozen to that pole.

wut? snork


Just had that problem. Well, cracked a sheath but was a cheapie more plastic one. But as you suggest, I should have checked b4 just using it like it was a summer day.
 
Re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

Florida you say ?
Isnt that just where old people go to die?
No biggie to each their own, sure winter sucks when its mind numbingly cold, but I will take the odd month of crappy weather no problem, there is no way i could give up skiing , snowboarding , x country skiing, snowmobiling ect ect.

I kinda like winter ...
 
Re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

dan said:
Wholly cow WA! I just looked at the thermometer and is 15F here. Don't ride below 32 due to ice. Kinda feelin' like a wus after reading; "....i get wet i can put the same boot back on with out loosing a toe" and "if its really chilly out i wear a second layer underneath coat and snow pants"
lol
Click to expand...

lol i gotta chuckle out of that it really isnt that bad winter biking really! its fun!

ts true that ice is a advasarie but u get used to going slow sometimes my fear is loosing control and sliding into oncoming traffic

yesterday was pretty cold -11 in some places my face got wind burn and my legs where cold i didnt have a second layer on and that would have made a difference

i still cant wait till summer when i can ride in my t-shirt
 
Re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

zueedapman said:
Hehe, you should motorize a bike like this...........

YouTube - Ktrak

I think, it makes real fun....
Click to expand...


i actually considered this but the kit is super pricey and i was concerned with longevity
 
Re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

all i do for winter is throw on extra layers now studded tires, maybe mt bike tread thats about it. only problems i have had from winter riding is from me doing donuts and tacoing a rim
 
Re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

muddybike said:
Florida you say ?
Isnt that just where old people go to die?
No biggie to each their own, sure winter sucks when its mind numbingly cold, but I will take the odd month of crappy weather no problem, there is no way i could give up skiing , snowboarding , x country skiing, snowmobiling ect ect.

I kinda like winter ...
Click to expand...
I agree just went kayaking today - no boats - flies - mosquitos-
.shft.-its cross country skiing on Wednesday also had bike -my fast Morini out today
but oh i forgot to mention it was 12c -54f today ! the USA is not the only warm place sometimes !
 
Re: "Winter MBing, tips and tricks"

I'm using a set of Tiogas with car studs in them lined with wire bead road tires(wire bead cut off). I've had them out on the lake for a couple km, Awesome grip with this pattern and I have leftover studs from the car stud sized box for replacements. I am curious about the performance with the screws they just look wicked!
 

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