Yaktrax  Quick Chains Traction Devices

Broke almost immediately. I think I got 3 miles out of these before one of the straps was worn through. Thought I just had a defective one, but when I took the other side off, it was a few threads away from joining. They weren’t too small and I made sure I used them correctly. Ending up taking them back to REI for almost a full refund, thank goodness. While they were on, there was definitely more traction, but it wasn’t much more than my boots had. Also no heel traction was a loss on uneven ground. Overall, I was kind of glad they didn’t work out because they weren’t very good even before they broke. Cheap, but certainly expected more than three miles out of them…

Bought these for bright angel and went cheap cause I wasn't expecting ice as it hadn't snowed for a week and a half at least, but still wanted something just in case it was. Glad I did. To put it short they work enough to get you up and down without slipping safely but not comfortably. Got a size medium which should fit a size 8W according to the box but they kept falling off the heel. I got them to stay by twisting the rubber on the heel 4-5 times and shoving it in my trail runners up against my achilles, which made the chains land on the arches of my feet instead of the toes and heels. I wouldn't recommend, but if it's all you can afford definitely get them rather than nothing

This variation of Yaktrax seems to work as well as the other models at least on icy walks and streets and is easier to get on and off. It's also the cheapest option and appears to be quite sturdy. I've put 15 or 20 miles on this pair walking my sister's dog (after she slipped and broke her wrist) and find that they are quite comfortable whether on concrete or icy paths. In comparison, I had been using the Yaktrax "Walk traction Device" and both sides were breaking down after about 50 miles in the same conditions. For climbing steep icy terrain or crossing frozen lakes, I would still opt for my Yaktrax Diamond Grips, but those tend to rust out on city streets.

Toe strap started to tear after five days of use. Chains aren't sharp enough to gain traction on smooth ice. Difficult to position so that they stay on.

The chains work well. The nylon parts are useless. Wore out after just one day. I had to stitch them back together to get a second day out of them

Purchased these in person (didn’t read reviews) to hike Mt. Whitney as there’d been some snow. These advertise that they have traction for ice and snow, they worked okay in that aspect but the fit was terrible. I would tighten in the front with the Velcro and then it would be sliding off the back of my boot. Both chains broke where the fabric for the Velcro meets the chains, the first one on the way up and the second one as soon as I started walking on the way down. thankful for the kind person who lent me a micro spike on the way down, because this was not it. REI should stop selling these immediately.

After several weeks of use, I love these. I have used previous iterations of Yaktrax for many years and these are the best ones because they are so simple to slip on. The older versions required much fighting to stretch the rubber around the base of a boot and the rubber or its wire wrapping would frequently break. These feel every bit as secure on icy trails despite having fewer points of contact compared to the old ones. It remains to be seen how the chains will hold up over time but they seem quite sturdy. Their compact shape makes it easy to stash them in a pocket for when they are needed. I have been rinsing them off after each use and allowing them to air dry and there is no sign of rust.

We used this to resurface an ice skating rink. It was too slippery to tow the resurface wagon. These worked great!

Not great for ice. Maybe it would work better in looser snow, or walking in flat ice. But I took in on a up slope trail covered in ice, and while they were better than my boots, it still kept sliding and I ended up having to turn around.

Need to amend my earlier 5-star review: after 6 weeks of use, I had the same issue with the toe strap disintegrating and had to return these. If you have a wide foot/toe box on your boot, you might not have this issue; the problem if you have a narrower foot is that the place where the strap connects to the metal is on the side of your boot or underneath which causes it to fray. I did find them far easier to attach to my boots than those which require a lot of hand strength to stretch rubber over a thick boot sole. And I thought the grips were as effective as the old-style coils. Neither style grips on smooth ice but is very effective if there is a bit of traction, like a skim of snow over ice, or if the ice is bumpy, like on a trail.