Posted: 12/1/2007 12:08:57 PM EDT
| I'm looking to get a set of ice cleats to keep handy so I'm looking for any recommendations anyone has based upon their experience. Thank you. |
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www.yaktrax.com/ They kept me on my feet in the ice, what more do you need to know? 
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+1. Compact too. |
Or the slip onto your shoes chain/studs. <--- I use these for walking on winter ice up here. They do work very well. Never needed crampons but maybe that's what the OP is looking for. He just might be a glacier walker or a winter mountain climber. |
I have a couple extra sets for visitors. They work great. |
| Mine are slip on like the Yaxtrax but a different design. Very compact so I just leave them under the seat in the truck all year long. The work well for walking around after an ice storm. The Yaxtrax look like a better design than what I have so I may need to upgrade. Can anybody confirm that they work okay on a soft-soled shoe as shown on the site? Mine work great on hard soled boots but a softer soled shoe gets folded, collapsed, compressed, etc. around my foot. They still work but are uncomfortable. |
I think you would like the stud type best for soft soled footwear. The spring or chains kind, would be better for hard soled shoes/boots. Form my trials, I find the studs are the least at gripping and the spring/coils are better and the chains are the best at giving the best grip on ice, except for crampons. |
FWIW, I've tried both to keep running during the winter. I started with a a pair of slip-on's with studs that worked ok. The only problem is that I lost one during a run. I bought some Yaktrax Pro's and they worked great.
I had a similar experience. After about 1/2 a season of regular running (on snow, ice, wet concrete, dirt, rocks) some of the rubber making up the Yaktrax was worn all the way through. |
I'll second this recommendation. I'm a postal carrier, and I was offered a pair of cramp-ons last year. I bought these instead, and they helped me stay on my feet without a problem. |
| If you find yourself in an extreme pinch (or looking for something a bit more packable) you can alway use 20-30 3/8-1/2 inch zip screws to screw through the bottom thick part of the sole (making sure not to penatrate the inside sole). When done use a Multi-tool to un-install. |
The ones that say PRO. Thay have a strap that goes over the shoe so you don't lose one in reaally deep snow. I had to back track about 1 mile in 2 ft of snow one time to find one of mine while hunting.
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yaktraxpro |
I've done that myself before. Phillips head screw maybe 3/8" long run into the soles on my old combat boots. Works great on ice but slides all over on concrete. A tip if you do this, just a few screws in the area under the balls of your feet and walk with your weight there if on ice, leave the heels bare and put wieght there if on concrete. |
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Hey guys, I wear some type of these all winter long, and I've been through about a dozen Yaktrax. I used to think they were the best thing going, I went through a pair about every 2-3 months for several years. The rubber part breaks, then the metal spiral thing will wear through (and stick to carpet if you walk inside with them). They work well on packed snow, but are still somewhat slippery on ice. They just aren't that durable if you wear them very much, and they are DANGEROUS if walk inside on tile with them. Yaktrax are good for running shoes on packed snow, because they are light, and they are good if you just use them to go from your car to inside, but if you spend any significant amount of time in them, they come up short. I've tried pretty much every thing on the market and the best for me is the Stabilicers. They work perfectly on all packed snow and ice. They are very durable. I'm still on my first pair, but I've had to repair the front strap on both of them because it has worn through and I've replaced the spikes countless times. They also stay on your feet (I've lost a few Yaktrax in the snow also). The disadvantages to them are they are a bit more expensive up front, the spikes will wear down and become less effective, they are noisy on dry pavement (they all have this issue though), and they can spark on dry pavement (don't be standing in a puddle of gas with them, again they all have this issue). I like to remove several of the spikes for better traction on tile, as I spend a lot of time going in and out and don't want to take them out. Stabilicers |