Not to mention your tires last longer because they run cooler.

 

Gota ask what type of snow/studded tires do you have. I have yocohomma. Forget the spelling but I dont use chains and always have good traction. Just curious if you might have some bad studded tires. There are some good ones and some not so good ones. I have an F350 CC-LB and havent had an issue with ice or snow (25+ft so far). But as for your question I think the chains would best be used on the front tires since the majority of your braking is there. What grade is your down hill section and more important how well does your DOT keep the road clear of ice and snow. I think that last statement is the most important. Since we only have a few highways we do have pretty good snow removal. As for the weight issue, never hurts to have a few extra 100#'s in the rear.

I like to read these forums pertaining winter driving. It does vary from location to location. I dont know of anyone up here that uses snow chains other than the big rig drivers. Guess it varies from location. I also think alot of it has to do with experience. Our winter months are from Aug-Sep to May so we do get alot of winter driving experience. And yes usually the first month of winter we all forget and slip, go off into the ditch or things similiar.

I also agree if you are placing chains on your truck you might as well do all 4 tires. Good point about the brake lines. Diffently something to look at. Good luck and happy winter driving.

 

The tires are from Les Schwab, called "Wild Country Radial TXR". Maybe something made for Les Schwab?

The downhill is a winding 2 lane road. It gets plowed, but often has packed snow and ice, maybe with sand at times. Usually not more than a few inches on the road unless it is snowing real hard. What makes it tough is that there is often an inch or so of packed snow or ice with the new snow on top. The plows don't get it as clean as they do on the freeways as the road surface is not great. Melts a bit mid day, but by 5 or 6 pm, freezes up again.

 

If you are going to chain up, you should only chain the rears, or all four tires, period.

Only chaining the front is very dangerous for the same reasons that most states outlaw just having studed snow tires on the front of a FWD car. Most trucks run 65-70% of the weight on the front tires, but that remaining 30% in the rear (unloaded) is more than enough to send you into a spin, especially if the rear has something firm to pivot on, like front only chains. 30% of a 6500LB Superduty is ~1900 lbs and is more than sufficient to send your truck a spinnin'.

Ever try to spin a cookie with chains on the rear??? It can be done but it takes some effort.

Put those chains on the front and try spinning a cookie. It's so easy (and easier than without chains at all) it's down right spooky.

 

Makes sense and convinces me. Since you should not put chains on the front because of the brake lines being ripped off, I guess the best option is rear chains only. And of course a slow enough speed to keep the front end from slipping on the down hill curves. That's what started this thread anyway. I have to go 10 - 15 mph tops on slippery curving downhill roads to maintain control on the corners. Most of the other traffic wants to go much faster and seems to be able to do so with out losing control. With no way to pull over I just feel like I am holding things up. Oh well, I have never liked leading a parade. Sometimes I will actually slowly come to a stop and let the cars pull to the other lane to pass. But then as soon as I get going again, there's someone else behind me.

The easiest trip down that mountain I ever had was one time in a snow storm following another crew cab super duty. He was going exactly the speed I needed to go, probably for the same reasons. There were actually several SUV's and 4wd cars that passed both of us. We did not come across any of them in the bank on the way down, so I guess they were ok at the higher speeds.

 

We have pretty much the same situation as you do driving down from Big Mountain. I am a firm believer in the "do not go any faster that YOU are comfortable with" rule. If people want to go faster, let them go around you. As for chaining the front, again, try cables.
They are low profile so they should not hit any brake lines and they work well. If you are dead set on staying with chains you can rubber bungie cord the chains to keep them tight on the tire. It is when they get loose and flop around that brake lines get broken.
Les Schwab makes a killer studded snow tire that is used a lot up here, they are the M55 traction tire.
FEATURES:
• Heavy Duty Belt Construction
• Mud and Snow Rated
• Cut Resistant Compound
• Pinned for Studs

BENEFITS:
• Specifically Designed to Handle Harsh Applications
• Year Around Traction
• Designed to Perform on Rock and Gravel

SIZES & LOAD RANGE:
LT215/85R-16 D
LT235/85R-16 E
LT215/75R-15 C
LT235/75R-15 C
LT225/75R-16 D
LT245/75R-16 E
LT255/85R-16 D
LT265/75R-16 E

 

Honestly I've never seen a chain that couldn't work on the front of a SD, as long as they are properly installed.

The only things that I've got against cables is that they usually don't last as long, and don't have the traction that a chain has, but other than that they are better than nothing.

I know that some will let about 20 psi out of the tire, put on the chains, and then air it back up....personally I feel that this would be okay, but I'd fear the possibility of the chain snaping in my face.

 

TJ_82:

Per your comment about just pulling the rocks out of the sipes, that is not the reason "not" to sipe. When traveling extensively on gravel roads, the siped tread blocks tend to get chewed off. The gravel literally tries to round off the tire, and breaks off chunks of tread. The solid blocks on an unsiped tire take a beating, but due to support from the whole block, survive better than a siped tire, where smaller blocks are easier for the gravel to work on.

I have run siped tires for the past 30 years. On normal paved, snowpacked, icy, dirt, and occasional gravel roads, they have excellent tread life. One year I did a lot of travelling on a gravel road that allowed fairly high speed driving. I got about 1/4 of the mileage out of that set of tires as other sets when gravel was not as predominant.

You are correct in saying they make the tire run cooler, siping was developed by the over-the-road tire industry to extend tire life and improve traction.

 

Sounds like 4-chained up tires is the way to go in your neck of the woods. Winter driving does vary from location. Alot of our roads are better in the winter since the Ice and Snow fills in the frost heaves and pot holes. Smother driving.

 

For what it is worth,you can't chain the front of a big rig.The reasoning is that the additional torsional stress on the joints of the chain can cause stretching and chain failure.So when the chain comes flying off it will probably take brake lines, fenders and whatever else is in its path with it.Just keep a bunch of 10" bungee cords on hand to keep the chains or cables tight and be sure to recheck them after a mile for taughtness and you will be fine.