Nordman 7

185/65 R15. It grips in snow, but is non-revealing on ice, is sensitive to the track, quite heavy and stiff, which is not very comfortable, and the spiders are coming out, which have never been seen before, but it responds well to the steering wheel (does not bend the side). The studs do not lose their grip, it gnaws around them, but the studs remain even if you whack them. It is quite noisy for the first 1

After Hakapellitas 7, I tried a pair of 8s, but I was a bit let down and decided to take a 7, but they were no longer in production. I then took a Nokian 7, convinced that it was as good, if not better, as the legendary 7s, and cheaper to boot. However, on the leading axle, a 17-18 year old tire on a shoddy 7 had two studs come loose

Compared to the studded tires Nordman 5 RS (185/60/R15), which I've been driving on every winter since 2015 (7 years + 2 years ago I did a re-studding on them), I didn't bother and bought almost the same thing. I can say that I didn't see a big difference from the Nordman 7 (195/60/R15) tires, because in my opinion, the seventh model might be a bit softer than the fifth, and it's also less noisy on asphalt, although the number of studs on both tire models is absolutely the same. The only difference is that the seventh model has a more aggressive tread pattern, and I saw a small positive difference in the first winter of use, when I was driving out of snowy drifts in the courtyards of city apartments - the new tires grip better. Over the year of use in the winter season, I drove more than 2,000 km on them, not a single stud came off, although there were cases of wheelspin on slippery snowy reagent mash on asphalt more than once. But on the fifth model, I also didn't have a single stud come off in the first winter. In the second winter, 3 or 4 studs came off (I don't remember exactly), and afterwards, of course, more. I think it will be the same with the seventh model. On the fifth model, there were cases when I got into mud - it gets stuck instantly. With the Nordman 7, it will probably be the same, because you have to understand that these types of tires are designed exclusively for operation in harsh winter conditions. Well, for several years now, I'll definitely have enough of this tire, and then we'll see.

The handling on dry roads - well, how can I say? If you don't brake sharply at high speed, it won't lose traction. At turn angles of 60° at 100 km/h in winter on cleaned asphalt, I didn't feel any skidding, probably the role was played by the side-sloping lamellas.

The tire is resistant to aquaplaning, confidently pushing water out of the side grooves, but at 120 km/h I didn't drive into a puddle, of course - I'm not crazy enough to do such experiments...

As for the noise on the road, I think it's foolish to talk about it, because these are studded tires. But I'll say one thing - the softness is at a sufficient level for the class of my car. And if you compare it with the Kama 236 summer tires, which came as standard equipment when I bought the new car, then at a speed of 130-140 km/h, the winter Nordman, both the 5th and 7th models, is quieter than the Kama 236 summer tires 😄☝️