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CeramicSpeed UFO Drip chain coating gets better, faster, cheaper… just don’t call it a lube

ceramicspeed ufo drip chain coating wax lube shown on chain closeup
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The new CeramicSpeed UFO Drip wax-based “lube” gets completely reformulated to be easier to apply, last longer, roll faster, and cost a lot less. Oh, and it’s a lot more eco-friendly, too!

Why reformulate? Well, the original formula was from Jason at Friction Facts, and it was good. It was also flammable. But, with the main priority at that time being to get the fastest lube they could into a bottle, other factors were left for later.

ceramicspeed ufo drip chain coating wax lube packaging
Packaging’s not fancy…it’s what’s inside that counts. Actually, this bag is pre-production sent as a media sample only.

Now is later, and, technically, this non-flammable version was in the works before they acquired Friction Facts. The new UFO Drip combines the best of both to make a better, and eco-friendly, chain lube coating that’s:

  • 15% faster
  • 50% longer lasting
  • 50% more coatings per bottle
  • Broader Temperature Stability (5-35ºC / 41-95ºF)*
  • Bio-degradable
  • Non-Toxic

ceramicspeed ufo drip chain coating wax lube packaging

It’s also a LOT less expensive. Everything from the packaging to labeling was reconsidered, too, helping them reduce costs in all aspects. The result? A 40% price drop for a product that now lasts 50% longer while using a little bit less per application.

The 180ml bottle will retail for €40 / $45, with a 15ml sample bottle going for about $4.

*About that temperature range: They say this range is the stable range for storage and application, not riding. You don’t want this to freeze, so best to store it and apply it indoors in the winter. While riding, it’ll easily handle freezing temps and high summer temps. As long as you’re not riding where it’s over 100ºC (212ºF), it won’t melt off your chain, either.

How much should I use? How long does it last?

ceramicspeed ufo drip chain coating wax lube application and drying closeup
It goes on gray and wet, dries gray and dry. Note the dribble on cog below chain in right image, it dried in less than a minute.

The initial coat should be about 8ml, with touch up coats to maintain it around 5ml. That’s about half as much as before, making it a much better value. they say you should be able to get 35 applications from the 180ml bottle.

Each coating lasts up to 300km, depending on conditions. That’s up from 200km for the original version, and they say it’s good for any kind of bike – road, gravel, cyclocross, mountain bike, etc.

Wetter and dirtier conditions will wear it off faster, and if the chain is visibly dirty, you’ll want to wash it off before reapplying. But, as with most wax-based lubes, it will slough off grit and dirt as you ride, helping to keep the chain clean.

Is it really faster?

ceramicspeed ufo drip chain coating wax lube shown on chain closeup

CeramicSpeed says power transfer has been optimized, and friction minimized. When asked how, specifically, they told us that the formula is, of course, a secret. But, one of the most noticeable differences is that the new UFO Drip is thicker and easier to see on the chain.

This helps you get a more even, thorough coating, which certainly helps. It does, indeed, coat the chain in gray and seems liquidy enough to quickly soak into the rollers and between links before (also quickly) drying to a waxy coating. Hence the “chain coating” versus lube nomenclature.

ceramic speed ufo drip lube friction comparison chart to other top bicycle chain lubes

The real improvements come from its specific blend of “waxes, trace oils, and friction modifiers”, which they tested against the competition. The result? It’s 15% faster than the original version, and more faster than their tested competition (their results).

CeramicSpeed UFO Drip First Impressions

ceramicspeed ufo drip chain coating wax lube shown on chain closeup
Before the first ride, after letting the UFO Drip dry overnight on a perfectly clean chain.

I started this test with a serious chain and drivetrain cleaning involving a degreaser, two toothbrushes, and plenty of elbow grease, then drying the chain in the oven at low heat. Then came the application, which they recommend you do the day before use to allow to completely set.

The pic above is what it looked like prior to riding…and the pic below is after 70km (~43mi).

ceramicspeed ufo drip chain coating wax lube shown on chain closeup
After the first ride (70km / 43.5mi), it’s noticeably diminished, but still present.

Note that there’s still plenty of wax left in there, but you can also see that a lot has sloughed off. Throughout the first ride, the chain was very quiet and felt smooth. Of course, anytime we start with a clean drivetrain and fresh lube, we expect a smooth, quiet ride. We’ll see how it fares as I close in on the 300km mark…stay tuned.

ceramicspeed ufo drip chain coating wax flakes coming off road bike chain

One quick final note. If you’re using a wax-based lube, don’t ride that bike indoors, especially on carpet. Those flecks in the image above? That’s from three backward pedal revolutions. Not three full chain revolutions, just three backpedals. Wax sloughs off, and it will fling everywhere under your bike. I speak from experience.

ceramicspeed ufo drip wax chain lube retail packaging
Here’s what it looks like in proper retail packaging.

Stay tuned, but first impressions are good…so much so I included this in my 2020 Editor’s Choice roundup! It has also made it into our list of the best bike chain lubes. Available now in stores and online.

CeramicSpeed.com

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14 Comments
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BooNe
BooNe
3 years ago

Chain is inside out or leftside right?

absoluteBLACK
3 years ago

We believe it is finally time to stop producing “self-polished” graphs in our industry by the very same company that sells the product.

The latter is why we commissioned several independent laboratories to test our #GRAPHENlube, resulting in the prove that our bold claims are real.

With that in mind, we commissioned a test sample of the New CS UFO lube to an independent University Laboratory like we have done with other lubricants before. The result? Not quite the same as claimed above. You can find those test results on our website.

Shaun Grisby
Shaun Grisby
3 years ago
Reply to  absoluteBLACK

It’s funny that Absolute black mentions have testing protocols done by an independent lab yet they still publish the results they arent published by the university! Anything can be put through the marketing filter and it is hard to believe AbsoluteBlack when they had to sue their testing lab in australia because they so misrepresented his information he did not want his information used!

absoluteBLACK
3 years ago
Reply to  Shaun Grisby

University will not publish the results as we “paid” for commissioning the test. You need to understand how Universities work. For them to call the test fully independent they would need to come up with an idea of such test themselves, buy all the lubricants & all that is necessary and let someone to run the protocols first under supervision of another person, then agree the budget with the director and only then run the test and write the white paper. Then to publish it in the journal University would need to pay money as journals don’t do it for free. So what normally happens Scientists focus on stuff they can get a grant on from the Gov and that there is a big chance to publish it in the journal as they get “points” for that. If not published in journal = not worth taking care of. So in order to get tests done by an University we still need to pay for it and then can use the results on our own.

Regards Adam at ZFC. You got slightly confused. Adam published the results of tests from very early prototypes he made for us and he published them a day before the official launch of the product. While results were very good, this was not the product that was announced. We didnt sue Adam (he confused a letter with a lawsuit) and we have already settled the matter amicably long time go.

Moreover ZFC tested our lube for longevity and it scored 5000km on a single application with only 0.214% at the end of the test.

Robin
Robin
3 years ago
Reply to  absoluteBLACK

Your description of the university research process is not exactly accurate.

As for “self-published” tests, they should be evaluated with the scientific skepticism as all tests. “Self-published” tests are not necessarily flawed or misleading, and independent tests aren’t necessarily better or more objective.

And in this case, comparing tests from ZFC, your independent researchers, and Ceramic Speed is pointless if you’re not measuring the same metrics in the same way. Even then an eye has to be kept on the statistical analysis methods and proper error analysis of the measured data.

Unless you can point to errors in Ceramic Speed’s experimental setup, data collection, and data analysis or misleading or fraudulent claims, your criticism of their data is misplaced and maybe even misleading.

Dex
Dex
3 years ago

There are plenty of suckers out there willing to throw away their money when they could have just spent it on a race day chain “brand new dura ace wax treated chain”and used a regular chain and lube for training.

Dirk
Dirk
3 years ago

Hope ab brings out a similar option as msw. I really like hot flush/wax application. That would shift me away of msw. But the cost to do that would be astronomical

Tony
Tony
3 years ago

2 takeaways from this article and AbsoluteBlacks comments:
1) AB seems to be heavily invested in finding true, no-bs, unbiased results. We can and should acknowledge that as a great thing in a competitive, if not over saturated, chain lube market.
2) Who actually cares? I used triflow a long time ago, and for like 10 years. Just had to apply it every 8 miles. Ride your bikes people. That’s the important takeaway

absoluteBLACK
3 years ago

Hi Robin,
Thanks for the comment. If you are familiar with this topic then you know we could write to no end about this and that every country in EU and other places in the World have slightly different rules and options to fund the research.

Self published (but measured by someone else) is one thing and self measured&published is another.

Regards the errors.
Just as means of an example as there is not enough space to describe all, the graph you can see in this review shows completely different results for their old UFO lube than the graph they produced before (and is still visible on their website). So for the same old UFO lube on the current graph power loss starts at roughly 3.75W and is almost completely stable during the whole test where the same lube on their older graph shows that lube starts at 4.5W and slowly decreases over time to roughly 3.75W. The same lube is represented by two very different outcomes from the same testing equipment.

This is where pin on disc test removes chain variability and only measures lubricant performance.

Robin
Robin
3 years ago
Reply to  absoluteBLACK

“Self published (but measured by someone else) is one thing and self measured&published is another.” And yet neither is empirically better than the other.

I think your negative sentiment “self measured & published” is just spin. It’s certainly not scientific thinking. It doesn’t make your data more credible than Ceramic Speed’s. It’s akin to an “argument from authority”: your data must be better because it was done by an independent lab.

And your results? What’s the uncertainty in your data? Was a proper error analysis of the setup up done to see how measurement uncertainty would propagate through the measurements?

Duncan
Duncan
3 years ago

I think this is healthy competition and good on AB for pointing out flaws in data/presentation. Sure, get out and ride. But I bet you’ve paid hundreds (more likely thousands) on getting the most efficient bike, clothing, drivetrain… a good lube/coating can not only give you marginal gains for good value but also reduce wear on chain, cassette etc.

Alex
Alex
3 years ago

45 dollars can can buy you a lot of paraffin and you can make your own chain coating/lube. I’ve done this on and off for some time now. The major drawback is that these don’t last very long. A single ride in the rain will wash out the wax. I try to avoid riding my bike in the rain, so I would not need to re-coat that often, once every two weeks.

Dinger
Dinger
10 months ago
Reply to  Alex

The major drawback is removing the chain and using cooking equipment to melt wax, followed by cool down, cleaning and putting away the equipment. His product replaces all of that with a compact bottle which I think is worth the price of admission to most who believe in dry/wax lubes.

MBR
MBR
3 years ago

$45 USD PLUS $20 USD for shipping for a small bottle? Twenty dollars to ship a small bottle, seriously?

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