Snow/winter riding information

[rideLD]

Originally Posted by snowrider

but in a city like Omaha you should be spending well over half your time on mostly clear pavement.

Yep I bet more the half the time I will be on clear roads but almost always there is some ice on them too where the snow melts and re-freezes. I'm sure the studs will be pretty squirly on dry pavement but when I hit the icey spots they should make it all worth while

[Dysco]

Originally Posted by rc46

Yep I bet more the half the time I will be on clear roads but almost always there is some ice on them too where the snow melts and re-freezes. I'm sure the studs will be pretty squirly on dry pavement but when I hit the icey spots they should make it all worth while

My studs were enough to actually dig into dry pavement under heavy braking. I kept the turns slow and braked aggressively when necessary but otherwise I just took it really easy. A 21" front would probably eliminate most of the handling problems I had.

In Denver, we get a few mornings where there's black ice from sidewalk to sidewalk in the residential areas every winter. I spun my truck last winter trying to slow down for my turn where on my bike I would have maybe fishtailed for a second and then gripped right up. In situations like that, the studs are invaluable. I always figured that it'd be worth all the effort of making the tires and running them for six months even if I only needed them once.

[Dysco]

Originally Posted by rc46

I guess I am answering my own question, but here is the place in case anyone else is interested.
http://www.winterstuds.com
I ordered up a set and found my old hippo-hands. I will be mounting everything up on my XR650 and hope to be back to my daily riding very soon.

Those tires are not for road use. You'll really want to avoid them. All of my previous comments relate to studding DOT tires with DOT studs typically found on car tires.

[Dysco]

Originally Posted by RoundlightKnight

I'd love to know more about the electric visor. How much current does it draw? How does it work?

There's nothing I saw about current draw on anything I read for it. It attaches directly to the poles of your battery and then connects via a coiled RCA jack to the visor. Starts heating as soon as you plug it in but it never feels very hot. If you want to try my old one out you're welcome to it if you can make it up to my neck of the woods.

BTW- studs on your bike would last forever.

[snowrider]

Originally Posted by Dysco

Those tires are not for road use. You'll really want to avoid them. All of my previous comments relate to studding DOT tires with DOT studs typically found on car tires.

I'm enjoying that site though, just for the great pictures.

[Dysco]

Originally Posted by snowrider

I'm enjoying that site though, just for the great pictures.

It definitely crossed my mind to pick up a set for trailriding the WR

[KL5A]

I can't imagine anyone trying to ride 10/10ths on the street in the winter-like everything else, the stud/no stud is a compromise. You do lose a little dry road traction with the studs installed, but on the lake or on black ice they are very much appreciated. The black ice scenario was the real surprise for me. I was out on the highway, watching (nervously) as the cages around me slid around on the road, while I felt planted and secure. And the look on the Exploder driver's face as I rode past her after she drove right into the ditch was priceless .
So, do the studs decrease dry traction? Yeah, they do.
Are they worth it the reast of the time? Yeah, I believe so.

Something that I haven't seen mentioned is the traction from your boots. The time I came closest to dropping the bike last winter was when I stopped on a pure ice surface, so slick that my boot almost went out from under me. Can you imagine trying to hoist a bike up when you can't even get good foot traction? I may stud my boots up .

[RLK]

Originally Posted by Dysco

There's nothing I saw about current draw on anything I read for it. It attaches directly to the poles of your battery and then connects via a coiled RCA jack to the visor. Starts heating as soon as you plug it in but it never feels very hot. If you want to try my old one out you're welcome to it if you can make it up to my neck of the woods.

BTW- studs on your bike would last forever.

But how does the electricity keep the visor from fogging? is it like the electric defogger on the rear window of a minivan? Like a very thin energized conduit applied to the inside of the shield with insulation on one side to keep from zapping your nose? Is it a fused circuit??

JC Whitney used to sell some stuff to repair those rear window defoggers. I'm wondering if there is a way to roll your own on this without buying a new helmet and $90 visor.

Yeah, i'm that poor.

[JimVonBaden]

Originally Posted by RoundlightKnight

But how does the electricity keep the visor from fogging? is it like the electric defogger on the rear window of a minivan? Like a very thin energized conduit applied to the inside of the shield with insulation on one side to keep from zapping your nose?

JC Whitney used to sell some stuff to repair those rear window defoggers. I'm wondering if there is a way to roll your own on this.

I don't see why it wouldn't work, but the adhesive and little wires wouldn't do much for your vision. On the rear window it is so far away that you don't notice the wires and adhesive.

This is why they don't use it on the windshield.

Jim

[RLK]

Originally Posted by JimVonBaden

I don't see why it wouldn't work, but the adhesive and little wires wouldn't do much for your vision. On the rear window it is so far away that you don't notice the wires and adhesive.

This is why they don't use it on the windshield.

Jim

So how do these electric visors work? The seem pretty available through several vendors through snowmobiling dealers. Its not like HJC has cornered the market here. They all require buying a new helmet and $90 visor. There has to be a cheaper way.

[RLK]

On a face shield they would be close that as long as they are not right across your pupils you could see around them. It works for Hockey goaltenders and baseball umpires. Their masks are made of big fat bars, yet they seem to see the tiny little puck or ball and stop it or call balls and strikes pretty well most of the time.

[PackMule]

Looking at the picture of the HJC heated shield, it appears that there's a loop of "heating wire" that runs along the bottom, right side, and top of the shield -- most likely between the shield layers (the HJC snowmobile shields that I've seen have been 2-layered, with a noticable air gap between them).

[GStupid]

Studs and burnouts...wheelies even! The idea of shooting sparks & molten rubber at my next door nazis is almost too much. Unleash hell in a "keep your dog off my frickin' lawn" sort of way. Oh, and Merry Christmas!

[RLK]

Originally Posted by PackMule

Looking at the picture of the HJC heated shield, it appears that there's a loop of "heating wire" that runs along the bottom, right side, and top of the shield -- most likely between the shield layers (the HJC snowmobile shields that I've seen have been 2-layered, with a noticable air gap between them).

OK thank you!! All that stuff about "Dual lens" on the sales websites has just been comprehended.

I read "dual lens" and thought its for all these old guys who wear bi-focal eyeglasses with their winter helmets. I know they do.

[Dysco]

Right. That-there dual lens thingy keeps it from fogging.

The lame thing about the 'lectric visors is you can't buy them without all the wires to keep the cost down if you've bought more than one. The plastic is also really soft and scratches easily with road sand- the damn things are invaluable in falling snow, though.