****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
(UPDATE 12-5-2013.... I sold my 2010 Silverado and purchased a new GMC 4x4 2500 HD Sierra and the tire/wheel size is larger than my old pickup... I got onto Amazon late yesterday, ordered two new sets for the GMC, front and rear, and less than 24 hours, here they are. This makes my 5th set of these. Needless to say, they worked well for me and anyone that has provided a less than favorable review, I have no idea why they are not as satisfied as I am, except to believe they are not installing them correctly or driving way too fast, or they don't remove them soon enough as they drive off of snow/ice onto payment that is dry or free from snow.)BELOW IS MY ORIGINAL REVIEW..................I purchased a 2010 Chevrolet 2500 4X4 last year and from previous experience of driving 4 wheel drive pickups as a civilian and in the Army, I knew 4x4s gave inexperienced drivers too much confidence in certain snow conditions, especially on roads having hidden layers of frozen ice underneath snow. I would have purchased 2 sets last year, but I read several bad reviews about the cables and decided just to try one pair. When my first set arrived, they were in use a few weeks after Amazon sent them.I was very impressed with the ease of installing these compared to conventional heavy tire chains I've used in the past. I'm pretty darned decrepit but it was very easy installing these. I practiced first in my driveway on a "nice" warm day. It is a simple matter of laying the cables in front of or behind the tires on the ground and then pulling your vehicle directly over the cables and "draping" them on top of and over the tires and fastening a small hook on the back, and a "clog" like catch about the size of a pencil eraser on the outside. I have a torn rotator cuff in my right shoulder and bursitis in both shoulders as well as arthritis, and I was concerned when I ordered these from Amazon, if I would be able to install them by myself, but it literally (and figuratively) was a snap. The rubber tension bands easily connect on the outside and they snug the cables up tight on the tires.When the first snow came last year, I found the cables worked like a charm on my farm. I used them hard-packed dirt roads covered in snow, in mud and slush and as well on the highway having both snow and ice. I was so impressed, I bought a second set to use on the front wheels. Today (exactly one year later), the second set was a life saver. (In the Army, we were trained to use chains on the front and the rear on 4x4s... and chains on all 4 wheels on a 4x4 makes a lot of difference in going forward, stopping and side-slip control and I'm glad I had these cables on all 4 wheels today! See my photo I shot on the day I wrote this review.)I had to make an emergency run to a town 50 miles away (2-3-2011 in Central Texas) and the roads were mostly covered in two inch thick ice. In some places, there were patches of exposed asphalt and in other spots, large chunks of broken ice accumulations about the size of cinder blocks covered the road and I was concerned about damaging the cables. I made the 50 mile trip to town and 50 miles back and saw more than 40 vehicles (some were 4x4s) that had spun off into ditches or fences or off of culverts.As I took the cables off this evening, they were easy to remove and I saw no evidence of damage, despite running them in the conditions I described above.As per the instructions, I'll rinse these off with fresh water tomorrow morning and I'll spray them with WD-40 before putting them back in their plastic box.In reading other unfavorable reviews about these chains, I can only imagine that people were driving faster than 30 miles per hour, or may not have installed the rubber tension bands correctly. The maker claims "Light Truck & SUV" and some of the people giving low opinions were running these on one-ton trucks pulling heavy trailers, not what these cables were designed for. I'd suggest that they invest in chains designed for heavier rigs. In reading complaints about these cables, I also might believe that there could have been some manufacturing defects in the crimping process where the cables bind at the ends or at junctions. China has some work to do in ensuring their products are made properly, but in my experience with these cables, I have no complaints. I'd suggest if you buy a set of these, look at the junctures (crimp connections) very carefully and if you see any frayed wires, contact Amazon for refund or replacement.As for me, after my 100 mile "adventure" on two-inch thick ice and snow and driving partially on exposed asphalt, I am extremely impressed. They provided great traction, allowed me to slow down and/or stop easily and they offer a much smoother ride than conventional chains. I will be ordering a pair for my wife's Volkswagen Jetta. I'm sure she would be able to install them as easily as I was.I'd like to add, avoid making tight turns on exposed asphalt with these because the stress-loads and torque factors might be too much for the multi-strand cables. Avoid rapid acceleration and do not "spin" your tires as one reviewer said he did. Mine never, ever failed to "bite" in snow, mud or ice and I can't understand why someone said he was "spinning" his tires while these were installed. These are not solid "bar chains" and thus if someone needs something that will never fail, get a heavy pair of conventional chains... I am totally delighted with the performance of these on my 4x4. Please see my picture, where I helped pull a driver out of a ditch while having these on my pickup.
