# Snow Socks



## peejay (May 10, 2005)

I already have snowchians for the van but I'm interested in purchasing a pair of snowsocks as a lightweight backup/alternative.

I would be interested to hear from anyone who has had first hand experience of any of the various brands

>Autosock<

>WeissSock<

>Rud SoftSpikes<

Pete


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## trek (May 1, 2005)

Hi Pete

I have Autosocks & snow chains for both my camper & car 
(Autosocks for speed fit & the chains for severe conditions)

I bought the Autosocks last Autumn & expected to use them on my skiing trip last winter but the traction on my twin wheel Sprinter was superb in the snow so I didnt need to fit them 
(not like my mates in their ducatos who were using the chains all the time !!!!!!!!!!!!)


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## Wupert (Aug 6, 2007)

peejay said:


> I already have snowchians for the van but I'm interested in purchasing a pair of snowsocks as a lightweight backup/alternative.
> 
> I would be interested to hear from anyone who has had first hand experience of any of the various brands
> 
> ...


hi Pete

Looking at the spec alone the Rud....

Certified by TÜV (German Technical Inspection Authority) and Austrian standard V 5121

This is a big plus in their favour.

Wups


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

trek said:


> (not like my mates in their ducatos who were using the chains all the time !!!!!!!!!!!!)


Mines on a FWD Ducato as well, so thats why I want a pair :lol:



Wupert said:


> Looking at the spec alone the Rud....
> 
> Certified by TÜV (German Technical Inspection Authority) and Austrian standard V 5121
> 
> This is a big plus in their favour.


Thanks Wups, I think they are all TÜV approved but I too was possibly erring towards the Ruds, they are more expensive than the others but their construction looks more robust to me with the metal inserts in the fabric.

Pete


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## Wupert (Aug 6, 2007)

peejay said:


> trek said:
> 
> 
> > (not like my mates in their ducatos who were using the chains all the time !!!!!!!!!!!!)
> ...


I spend my winters in Austria and have winter tyres chains etc but i'm quite interested in these Rud thingys.

Wups


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

Thanks,

Has anyone actually used these things in anger and like to comment?

Pete


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## moonbeam32 (Oct 12, 2009)

*Snow socks*

I've used them on a car, an Audi A4, and basically they do what they say on the tin. They are particulary useful when the road still has some tarmac showing. In these conditions chain wear is very high, but the Auto Socks seem to take it, give good grip and are quick to put on and take off.

The real answer is winter tyres of course. I had a set of spare wheels equiped with winter tyres on a Passat, and whilst I had these on the only time I had to use chains was when the gendarmes were stopping everyone and only alowing you to continue if you put them on. Don't know how they work but the grip is amazing.

Moonbeam32


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## 2escapees (Nov 28, 2008)

I have bought autosocks from the UK importer

www.roofbox.co.uk

they have got to be better than chains; easy to fit, small, washable and lightweight


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## madontour (May 19, 2008)

hello

Last time I checked autosocks and the like were not legally accepatable (certainly in Alpine regions). Even if they're legal the police don't seem to like them and (as a previous poster has said) often insist on chains in poor conditions even if you have an alternative. I'd rather not argue with the police (in a foreign language) in the snow, so I wouldn't want to take autosocks as my only option.

rgds

Mike


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## Dick1234 (Jun 15, 2008)

I looked into these some time ago. I could not get a definitive answer re the weight they can take (my Burstner 5 ton all up). So with that in mind I went for the chains and snow tyres as these needed changing anyway. Check the weight limits as you might find that they cannot cope in your time of need.

Regards

Dick

PS Not sure of the legal position but the socks are widely used in France, not so sure about Austria though.


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

Thanks Mike.

I agree, although it appears they have TUV approval they shouldn't be considered as a complete alternative to chains.

As I said, we already carry chains, I see snowsocks as a handy lightweight back up, say in light snow where you wouldn't neccesarily use chains but it would improve grip substantially compared to driving without.

Of course winter tyres would be the best option but not everyone can justify the substantial cost for just a few weeks in alpine regions each year.

Pete


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## trek (May 1, 2005)

Hi Dick1234

I can understand your concern regarding weight limits (my camper is also 5ton) but Autosocks are also made to fit trucks

take a look at the website :- http://www.autosock.co.uk/ and select trucks


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## Dick1234 (Jun 15, 2008)

A haaa he says. Missed the truck socks when I was looking about a year ago, might have gone for them at the time but the chains do fine if required (putting them is my teenager's job with some supervision, no crwaling around in the snow for me!!!)

I can recomend snow/mud tyres, great for getting off the wet field as well as the snow. Paid less for mine than a standard motorhome tyre, well worth considering if you are due to change the tyres anyway. 

Regards


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

*Mates*



trek said:


> Hi Pete
> 
> I have Autosocks & snow chains for both my camper & car
> (Autosocks for speed fit & the chains for severe conditions)
> ...


Thats Cruel!

What Brand and model tyres are you running on trek?

Trev


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## trek (May 1, 2005)

Hi Teamyob

running on the tyres that MB fitted when the van was new which happen to be:-

Goodyear Cargo G26

more than happy with them - used Cargo's for almost 70k on my previous Iveco camper

talking about fitting snow chains - has any one sat in a chain aire and watched the French TRY to fit their chains - its hilarious - they haven't a clue

I have pulled in on more than one occasion when I felt I needed to fit my chains only to find my path blocked 5 mins later after I have fitted my own chains with the French asking me to help them fit theirs

On one occassion it was almost like a group lesson, a crowd gathered around me as I fitted one chain to one side of someones car - I waited then for the owner to fit the other side then left the rest to do it themselves - one guy had even jacked up the car & removed one of the wheels and he still couldn't work out how to fit them.

moral of this story is have a practice before you go - I think the secret is to unwind / unravel them & lay them out flat on the floor before you start to take the cable behind the wheel to fit them


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

*Chains*



trek said:


> Hi Teamyob
> 
> running on the tyres that MB fitted when the van was new which happen to be:-
> 
> ...


Yes, chains what a pain to fit. I practiced at home, in the daylight and dark. Nothing prepared me for the cold. What I mean is, try fitting awkward snow chains @-22c in a drift. Never experienced cold in my hands like it and I was wearing gloves.

That was in my FWD VW Days. Never had to fit chains to any of our Mercedes RWD's

Have the same G26 tyres and they look more like M+S treads so may not fit winter tyres this time around. Will keep you posted.

Trev


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## trek (May 1, 2005)

Just in case you haven't heard of this little trick of fitting chains ( & snow socks) on a twin wheel rear axle van

drive up onto your leveling chocks positioned under the inner rear wheels only, then the chain slides under the outer wheel as this is so much easier than trying top push it between the two tyres especially when the gap is full of snow/ice/crud


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## wobby (May 1, 2005)

Dick1234 said:


> I looked into these some time ago. I could not get a definitive answer re the weight they can take (my Burstner 5 ton all up). So with that in mind I went for the chains and snow tyres as these needed changing anyway. Check the weight limits as you might find that they cannot cope in your time of need.
> 
> Regards
> 
> ...


If you look them up on Utube you'll see that in the States there use on rather large lorries so I think they should be fine on a 5000kg. Having said that I have a set for our Smart fortwo, used them last year and they worked very well.

wobby


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## moonbeam32 (Oct 12, 2009)

*Snow socks*

I think most people are missing the point here. Yes, the French Police will insist on you fitting chains if the conditions dictate, and there are some conditions when I would use chains in preference to socks. However, you are on a site which is 500 mts to the main road and covered in snow or ice, whilst the main road is clear. What do you do? Put the snow socks on to get you to the main road of course. It's a quick fix that is really useful in many conditions. Auto Socks are available for 44 tonnes trucks, and approved by TUV , so I doubt there is a problem with the extra weight of a motorcaravan.

Moonbeam


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## Italia (Apr 19, 2009)

In Northern Italy Snow Chains or Socks are useful, but the bottom line is "No Winter tyres, No Insurance" between 15 Oct and 15 Apr! Make sure you check your policy and Green Cards before travelling.

Eddied may be able to shed more light.


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

Hi again, thanks for the replies, 

I've had plenty of practice fitting chains to vans and would rather we didn't wander off down the winter tyre legality route here, so perhaps thats for another thread :wink: 

Socks look to me like a handy easier to fit option to keep in your van for those times when you probably wouldn't think it neccesary to crack open the chain box. They look much easier to fit to me and you don't have any weight or storage penalties, so you could keep them in the van all year.

I'll definately be getting a pair, its just a matter of deciding which ones.


Pete


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

Dunno whether to buy a pair from fleabay, certainly alot cheaper than mainstream ones.
What do you reckon?

>ebay snowsocks<

Pete


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## rupert1 (Feb 13, 2009)

I would leave these alone. My son had a pair last year for his car, pretty useless and French police think they are a joke. Buy a cheap set of chains in a French supermarket when you get close to the alps, at least these will work and the police will be happy.


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

rupert1 said:


> I would leave these alone. My son had a pair last year for his car, pretty useless and French police think they are a joke. Buy a cheap set of chains in a French supermarket when you get close to the alps, at least these will work and the police will be happy.


Thanks;

Do you mean the ones on ebay or just snowsocks in general?

Pete


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