Winter Bike Tire Recommendation

Not sure where you’re riding.  Studs are only useful on ice. They’re heavy, will slow you way down and need to be replaced periodically. If you don’t need to stop or turn, you can get away without studs — something like micro-spikes come in handy then, however, so you can throw a foot down.  If you will be on ice, then, yes, you’ll benefit from studs.

I can’t give you a specific recommendation b/c my household is on 700/29″ wheels (for others, I recently switched to 45NRTH Nicotine and really like them if you can’t fit anything wider). I’ve used Nokian Suomi and they do stick nicely on ice when new and will keep the bike from sliding out from under you when old (I believe they make it in 27.5); the float is bad though (too much stud, too little casing) and they’re heavy but if that’s not a concern, they could work.

Fun fact:  two winters ago when we really didn’t get a winter, I slid about 30 feet trying to stop just short of traffic with tire studs and boot studs — a slow motion nightmare.

Peter White Cycles has a large selection of studded tires with very good descriptions of their strengths and weaknesses. A mix of off road and commuting tires, you might find some ideas there.

I had Kenda Klondike 42s on a Surly Ogre, Kona Rove, and Krampus for commuting in SE Alaska (temps around freezing, usually fresh precipitation in various forms). They are heavy tires, as far as that size goes, but my commute is short and switching to a more ‘premium’ tire didn’t save that much weight since the studs are going to be weighing it down no matter what. They’re a good place to start as they’re often very cheap. My friend has the 45NRTH 29er tires; I’m not sure if there’s a 27.5 variant but he likes them ok on 45mm rims for winter commuting in Alaska. I think cross tires are fine in our conditions because they cut down through the slush or brown sugar snow to grip the road beneath,