The secret of the tread in the spikes

The material from which the body of the anti-skid studs in tires is made was discussed in a recent article.
But what is the core made of? After all, it is this element that bears the main load. In addition, almost all studded tires spend most of their time on asphalt, only occasionally getting on ice and snow. Therefore, it is quite logical that this material should be as wear-resistant as possible.

This is tungsten carbide, or, as it is sometimes called, Widia - an extremely durable material. Perhaps you've encountered it before in such tools as circular saws and concrete drills.

An interesting fact: when producing cores for studs, they are baked in a furnace at a temperature above 1500 degrees Celsius. Before this stage, they are a brittle substance consisting of powdered crushed tungsten carbide material.

After baking the cores, they are pressed into the stud bodies and only after that they are ready to be installed in tires.

It's also interesting that today, only Continental has its own production of anti-skid studs. While other manufacturers place their orders with specialized manufacturers.