Suomi Tyres? What company is that!? Throwing it in the mix with the big players like Schwalbe and 45NRTH, Suomi Tyres is a small company from Lieksa, Finland. Run by avid cyclists and people with a vision, but handily enough also history in making rubber products, Suomi Tyres have released a few studded MTB and commuter tyres to the market and also have a new summer MTB tyre in the works.
The Piikkisika, or Porcupine, is a studded MTB tyre available with wire bead (TLR) and folding bead (TLR SL) and mostly in 29”:
I have both the 2.25” and 2.6” versions and both measure true to size. However, these things should probably be called porkypines as the claimed weights, while within 20g of what I measured, are properly porky. Like DH casing porky! My 2.25” measured exactly 58mm on a 25mm rim, so true to size, but the 2.6” is slightly narrow at 64mm.
Mine were easy to get seated with a floor pump. The 2.6” is dead straight but the 2.25” has an ever so slight wobble, though nothing nearly as serious as a friend’s SL version which was downright unusuable. Mine are both the wire bead version and both versions use the same hardened and sharp studs. There are a number of reports of tyres with bad QC issues, but so far the manufacturer has been quick to replace them.
These tyres are tubeless ready. My 2.6” sealed well without sealant but the 2.25” had several pinhole leaks on the sidewall, which would not seal completely with sealant during the first winter of riding. However, as I installed them again for this winter I was surprised to find no leaks of any sort.
I used to own a pair of Schwalbe ISPs and I’d like to say I liked them, but didn’t. Traction on ice is great but anywhere else they are truly terrible!
The Piikkisika is a totally different animal, pun intended: They roll surprisingly well, offer fantastic traction on icy and are surprisingly enough also very good in the snow! Traction is good and most of all predictable with good cornering grip and straight line hold.
The tread is quite hefty with strong cornering knobs and an open design which clears mud and snow well. The knobs don’t fold over even on icy or a hard surface like tarmac and while direction specific, I chose to run both tires in the “FRONT” rolling direction. This leaves the sloped center knobs facing forward which I think is better for rolling.
Studded tyres are definitely something only us living in the Northern hemisphere will appreciate. When winter riding is not just mud and slop but actual snowy and icy trails, studs definitely serve a purpose.
The major downside of the Schwalbe ISP is the frankly very poor tread pattern and narrow carcass. The Piikkisika fixes both of these issues and now that Suomi Tyres seem to have fixed the many quality issues that plagued their previous offerings, the Piikkisika is an actually good winter tyre.
Performance: 5/5 nothing to fault here
Build quality: Used to be 1/5, now probably more like 3/5
Value: 3/5 Studded tyres are always expensive
Overall: 4/5 I would buy these again!
The Piikkisika, or Porcupine, is a studded MTB tyre available with wire bead (TLR) and folding bead (TLR SL) and mostly in 29”:
- 27.5" x 2.6" (65-584) Piikkisika TLR W384
- 29" x 2.1" (54-622) Piikkisika TLR W396
- 29" x 2.25" (57-622) Piikkisika TLR W396 (1190 g)
- 29" x 2.6" (65-622) Piikkisika TLR W408 (1250 g)
- 29" x 2.8" (70-622) Piikkisika TLR W408
I have both the 2.25” and 2.6” versions and both measure true to size. However, these things should probably be called porkypines as the claimed weights, while within 20g of what I measured, are properly porky. Like DH casing porky! My 2.25” measured exactly 58mm on a 25mm rim, so true to size, but the 2.6” is slightly narrow at 64mm.
Mine were easy to get seated with a floor pump. The 2.6” is dead straight but the 2.25” has an ever so slight wobble, though nothing nearly as serious as a friend’s SL version which was downright unusuable. Mine are both the wire bead version and both versions use the same hardened and sharp studs. There are a number of reports of tyres with bad QC issues, but so far the manufacturer has been quick to replace them.
These tyres are tubeless ready. My 2.6” sealed well without sealant but the 2.25” had several pinhole leaks on the sidewall, which would not seal completely with sealant during the first winter of riding. However, as I installed them again for this winter I was surprised to find no leaks of any sort.
Riding impressions
The Piikkisika is a totally different animal, pun intended: They roll surprisingly well, offer fantastic traction on icy and are surprisingly enough also very good in the snow! Traction is good and most of all predictable with good cornering grip and straight line hold.
The tread is quite hefty with strong cornering knobs and an open design which clears mud and snow well. The knobs don’t fold over even on icy or a hard surface like tarmac and while direction specific, I chose to run both tires in the “FRONT” rolling direction. This leaves the sloped center knobs facing forward which I think is better for rolling.
Conclusion
Studded tyres are definitely something only us living in the Northern hemisphere will appreciate. When winter riding is not just mud and slop but actual snowy and icy trails, studs definitely serve a purpose.
The major downside of the Schwalbe ISP is the frankly very poor tread pattern and narrow carcass. The Piikkisika fixes both of these issues and now that Suomi Tyres seem to have fixed the many quality issues that plagued their previous offerings, the Piikkisika is an actually good winter tyre.
Performance: 5/5 nothing to fault here
Build quality: Used to be 1/5, now probably more like 3/5
Value: 3/5 Studded tyres are always expensive
Overall: 4/5 I would buy these again!
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