We’ve got a few chain lube reviews in the works, including the absoluteBLACK GraphenLUBE and Molten Speed Wax’s newest hot melt wax, but to start off, let’s talk about Muc-Off’s Ludicrous AF chain lube.
Muc-off has been creating chain lubes for years, along with cleaners, polishes, and other products for bikes, motorcycles, and cars. They have also had some high-profile sponsorships, including Team INEOS Grenadiers, EF Education-NIPPO, BMC Pro Triathlon, Canyon//SRAM, among others. Most recently, they created the chain lube that was used for Filippo Ganna’s record-setting hour attempt. You’ll find them in many bike shops, so all that said, it has to be good, right?
About a year ago, we covered the launch of the new Ludicrous AF lube, so check out that article if you want to read the details and hype about the lube. The high level is Muc-Off claims it is the fastest lube in the world and gives a nod to sustainability. “…no coloring, no fragrance, no additional corrosion inhibitor, just a unique blend of renewable and readily biodegradable ingredients designed to minimize chain friction and wear, whilst maximizing performance in all conditions. This all means one thing – RAW SPEED!” They don’t tell you much about what is in it, besides “top-secret proprietary formula has self-lubricating capabilities and synthetic polymers.”
It’s also not cheap. At $64.99 for a 50mL bottle, this probably isn’t going to be the lube you reach for when prepping your bike for your weekend group ride. That comes out to about $1.30 per mL, compared to $1.05 per mL of absoluteBLACK’s GraphenLUBE (140mL bottle). I’d estimate that you’d get about 10-12 applications per bottle by following their one drop-per-link application method.
Out in the Wild
I had a chance to test Ludicrous AF on the road and also gravel with varying results. In both cases, I started with new, stripped-down chains. That meant baths of white spirits and isopropyl alcohol, something that I have done many times in the past using hot melt waxes. Once the chain was stripped, rinsed, and dry, I added drops on each link, and let it dry for at least 24 hours for both setups. In both cases, I was using YBN SLA110 TN-Gold chains. The road bike was set up with SRAM Red eTap 11 Speed with absoluteBLACK premium oval rings and Sunrace cassette. The gravel bike used SRAM Force CX1 with absoluteBLACK 1x direct mount rings with a Sunrace cassette and CeramicSpeed Oversized Pulley Wheel System with coated bearings.
On the road, it was all dry conditions with 99% road and maybe 1% of hardpack cinder rail trail. The most this bike saw was a little bit of dust and pollen that accumulates over the miles or riding on country roads. The experience here was pretty good. Everything shifted well, the chain ran smoothly, and there wasn’t much that I could complain about. It did look like it was getting dirty rather quickly though, as the dust seemed to collect on the lube. A wipedown after the ride cleared that up, but you’ll get a Cat 5 tattoo if you are not careful. Since I rode in generally clean conditions, chain wear didn’t seem to be too bad, but it was a little higher than other lubes I’ve used.
On gravel, the experience was a bit different. I had used it for a bit of fair weather training that ran mainly on roads, but I’d mix in some dirt roads and rail trails as I could. I did notice that the lube started to pick up grit quicker than others I’ve used when I rode in dusty conditions. Before one of my bigger gravel events, I decided to put it to a tough test. I followed the same prep and application process and the bike sat, ready to ride, for a few days before the event. On the day of, conditions were definitely wet. It rained a good portion of the 125 miles with 11,000 feet of climbing and 80% gravel. Twenty miles in, my legs were covered in mud, and the bike was quite gritty. By the end of the event, the shifting had degraded a bit with the chain hopping on a few gears, but I was able to get it across the line. There was still lube left on the chain, but it was tough conditions for any lube to say the least.
In either case, I can’t tell you if the chain was any faster or slower than other lubes I’ve used, at least as far as saving watts. When the chain was clean, it definitely didn’t feel slow. As it got dirtier, it still felt smooth until things got really nasty on the big gravel event.
Wear and Costs
So here’s the thing. Using a chain lube is not just about how much the lube costs, but also how things like chains, cassettes, and chainrings wear. A good lube will reduce wear on all of these parts. A bad lube, well, you’ll be replacing these parts more often.
With the Ludicrous AF lube, I did notice accelerated wear on the chain on both the road and gravel. The road was a bit less, because it was always clean, dry conditions. Gravel was a mix of clean and dry and some nasty. Under the more intense conditions of the gravel bike, I went from a new chain to needing to replace it in the near future, after a little less than 500 miles. In contrast, I’ve ran hot melt wax-coated chains for 2-3 times that long before I even thought about replacing them. I didn’t measure wear on the chainring or cassette, but if you are running through chains that quickly, it won’t take long to go through those parts as well. When you add all of that up, you are looking at some hefty investment to keep your bike running.
When it comes to reviews, we are not a world-class testing lab. We don’t have rigs and testing protocols to do to test efficiency gains and wear rates, but there are some sources that I trust when it comes to these areas. One is Zero Friction Cycling. Adam Kerin has become an expert in this area and keeps ZFC as an independent lab. Many brands trust their work when it comes to wear testing, and will contract him to conduct independent testing.
For Muc-Off, he has found their products to not perform well in his testing. Whether it is the Ludicrous AF, Hydro Dynamic, or Nano lubes, none of them made it past the second block of testing (where contamination is added) in his full load testing, which is similar to how a bike drivetrain works. Essentially, the chain is under load across the top, but is under very little load along the bottom, where the lube can work back in and the chain can realign itself. For the results ZFC has posted, there was only one other lube that has not made it out of the second round. When looking at the difference between wear rates in clean conditions (block 1) and contaminated conditions (block 2), saw an increase of 70.1% in only 1,000km. On average, other lubes only had an increase of 16.4%.
My personal conclusion that I took from the data he has posted for a range of lubes tested is it is hard for me to believe that a lube could be the fastest in the world, yet cause that much wear on the chain. Reducing friction between parts reduces the amount of power lost in a drivetrain. Reduced friction also means reduced wear. So if the chain is wearing significantly faster than other lubes, I can’t say that it would make an efficient lube. Again, I am not a scientist. I don’t have an engineering degree, but I do have an everyday working knowledge of efficiency in a bike drivetrain.
So Should I Buy It?
I’ve used many Muc-Off products over the years. Their cleaners were some of my go-to until I had a chance to test the Finish Line Super Bike Wash and I still use some of their polishes that I have sitting on the shelf, but when it comes to lubes, I feel there are better options out there. From my own experience with the chain wear of the Ludicrous AF lube and seeing the data that seems to back it up from Zero Friction Cycling, I can’t say that I recommend using it. Whether you want to go through the process of using hot melt waxes, or you are looking to use a drip lube that is easier to apply to your chain, there are definitely better options out there will not wear through your chain and components as quickly.
We’ll have more lube reviews coming in the future that are better options to keep your drivetrain running smoothly and reduce wear.
Heckling Editor, Image Taker, Crash Test Dummy, and Beard Master at Bikeworldnews.com
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Location – Lancaster, PA
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