Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

Muc-Off Secure Tag Holder

4
£29.99

VERDICT:

4
10
Secure, simple, and robust, but it has a significant impact on long range signal and is a bit expensive
Very secure and doesn't rattle
Uses security Torx bolts
Easy to fit
Expensive
No seals
Signal is reduced at long range and outside of urban areas
Weight: 
24g
Contact: 

At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.

What the road.cc scores mean

Good scores are more common than bad, because fortunately good products are more common than bad.

  • Exceptional
  • Excellent
  • Very Good
  • Good
  • Quite good
  • Average
  • Not so good
  • Poor
  • Bad
  • Appalling

The Muc-Off Secure Tag Holder is a simple means of attaching an Apple AirTag securely to your bike. However, it is flawed as it reduces the power of the signal quite a lot.

I reviewed a pack of Apple AirTags last year and found them incredibly useful for bike security, offering most of the benefits of a GPS unit at a fraction of the price, with vastly superior battery life. The only problem was there was no easy way to attach one securely to my bike.

In the end I used a plastic holder that sat underneath my bottle cage, which was fine but dependent on any potential thief not noticing it was there and simply removing it. Other options, such as putting it in the frame, under the saddle, or in the stem cap, can reduce the AirTag signal, and again rely on a potential thief not knowing they're there.

Rather than keeping it hidden, this Muc-Off holder attaches more securely to your frame so the tag can become a visual deterrent. It's more secure for two main reasons: instead of regular Torx bolts it uses T25 security bolts, so unless a thief happens to have that specific key, they won't be able to simply unscrew it. Also, it's made from 6061 aluminium, with the AirTag bolted inside; there is no way to prise it open or cut it off.

2022 Muc-Off Secure Tag Holder.jpg
2022 Muc-Off Secure Tag Holder - long bolts and torq key.jpg

It's simple to attach to your frame's bottle cage mounting holes, either screwing it in alone or beneath a cage. I found the bolts were long enough to go through the two cages I tried it with.

2022 Muc-Off Secure Tag Holder - on bike 3.jpg

Since fitting it, there hasn't been any water ingress despite the lack of seals. You might want to consider where you fit it, though: under the bottle cage on the top of my down tube means water flows past it and underneath it, but if you mounted it on the bosses on the underside of the down tube, which are common on many gravel bikes, gravity could result in water getting in.

Adding the AirTag to the holder is simply a matter of unscrewing the back compartment with a hex key, popping it in, and screwing it back up. I didn't notice any rattling, despite the full metal construction.

2022 Muc-Off Secure Tag Holder - open.jpg

As I have mentioned several times, the AirTag holder is made from aluminium which makes it difficult to get off without specific tools. Although this does make it more robust, it has the impact of reducing the AirTag signal. In London this was difficult to detect because it appeared to operate the same way as my original test of the AirTags. It still tracked in the same way and I could pick it up from my bike shed when I was inside, and when I tested by riding around and tracking it from a different phone I had similar results to a ‘naked’ AirTag.

However, upon further investigation there is a definite a loss of signal when using the find function at longer distances. At under around 17 feet it still tracks as normal, but over this distance it loses signal. This compares to around 30 feet when I place a ‘naked’ AirTag in the same position.

It means that this is not an AirTag holder that is effective when it comes to tracking your bike over longer distances. It was still effective in built-up urban areas, but for the suburbs or rural areas this will have a significant impact.

We haven't looked at any other AirTag holders on road.cc to compare it with, but this is more expensive than what's available on Amazon. The closest I've seen in terms of construction and security is the Supmega AirTag Bicycle Mount, which also has an aluminium body and security Torx bolts, and costs £19.20. It's only available in black, though, whereas the Muc-Off holder comes in a variety of colours...

> Inside the mind of a bike thief — learn how to protect your bike

Overall, I have mixed feelings about this AirTag holder. In terms of the positives it is very secure and has a high quality finish, with it sitting well under a bottle cage. It is expensive, though, and the reduction in signal means that if you’re using it away from high population areas it will not be as effective as something made of plastic.

Amendments

In my original review of this AirTag holder I said there was no noticeable loss of signal, which upon further testing turned out not to be the case. I have therefore amended the article above and wanted to be transparent about how this mistake was made below. 

What went wrong

The main problem is that I live and ride mainly in London, which meant that when I was tracking it as an anti-theft device it was tracking as it normally would because it was seldom over 10ft from somebody with an iPhone. It was also picking up signal fine from my bike shed to wherever I was within my flat, and the only other place I regularly leave my bike is in the secure bike storage under my office, where I wouldn’t get a signal anyway. I therefore thought I had no reason to go into the same depth in terms of signal as the original review for the AirTags themselves.

How I became aware

road.cc was made aware of a video from YouTuber Shane Miller who had done a long-range test with the Muc-Off holder and found something I had not: the signal was weaker.

So I took some time to take another look and reassess. 

My additional testing found that where a ‘naked’ AirTag would be picked up at between 27-30ft, this only picked it up at between 14-17ft. In terms of the day-to-day usage in an urban area, it didn’t really have much impact, since the kind of riding I was doing during the test meant it was seldom more than 10ft from anybody with an iPhone, so tracking wasn’t impacted, which is the main quality I was looking for.

So, although I said it didn’t impact the signal, that was not correct.

Conclusions

In future I will not be basing my conclusions on initial findings as I did here, and will fully test how a housing product impacts the performance of the full range of features for the device it is housing.

We have similar products that we’ll be reviewing over the next few months and years and this has been a wake-up call not to test such products based on limited data points.

 

Verdict

Secure, simple, and robust, but it has a significant impact on long range signal and is a bit expensive

If you're thinking of buying this product using a cashback deal why not use the road.cc Top Cashback page and get some top cashback while helping to support your favourite independent cycling website

road.cc test report

Make and model: Muc-Off Secure Tag Holder

Size tested: One

Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

Muc-Off says: "The Muc-Off Secure Tag Holder offers a secure way to install a tracker to your bicycle frame using the bottle cage mounting holes, so you can track down your bike down in the event of theft and can locate it."

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

Muc-Off lists:

Supplied with 2x T25 security 25mm bolts and 1x security key

Non-rattle design to hold tracker securely in place

Available in 12 anodized colours with bead blasted finish to match your Muc-Off Tubeless Valves or Stealth Tubeless Puncture Plug

Tracking device not included with mount!

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
10/10

Quality construction means you won't be able to snap it or pry it off…

Rate the product for performance:
 
4/10

…but this comes at a price as it does have a significant impact on signal..

Rate the product for durability:
 
9/10

The robust aluminium body and lack of water ingress suggest this is likely to last.

Rate the product for value:
 
3/10

This is the most expensive AirTag mount I know of and it also reduces signal.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

It secures to the bike in a way that allows the AirTag to be used as a visual deterrent rather than just a way to get your bike back if it's pinched, but it then makes it more difficult to be found by reducing signal.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

The simplicity of securing it to the bike.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

The reduction in signal.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

We haven't looked at any other AirTag holders on road.cc, but it's more expensive than others I have seen on Amazon. The Supmega AirTag Bicycle Mount, for example, also has a full aluminium body and security bolts and costs £19.20.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Only for urban areas.

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Only for urban areas.

Use this box to explain your overall score

It's a good idea but flawed. The extra security it adds to mounting an AirTag to your bike means it can be used as a visual deterrent not just a tracker, which is great. However, outside of an urban environment there will be others that work better.

Overall rating: 4/10

About the tester

Age: 33  Height: 6 ft  Weight:

I usually ride: CAAD13  My best bike is: Cannondale Supersix Evo

I've been riding for: 10-20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, club rides, sportives, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed,

George is the host of the road.cc podcast and has been writing for road.cc since 2014. He has reviewed everything from a saddle with a shark fin through to a set of glasses with a HUD and everything in between. 

Although, ironically, spending more time writing and talking about cycling than on the bike nowadays, he still manages to do a couple of decent rides every week on his ever changing number of bikes.

Add new comment

19 comments

Avatar
ejocs | 1 year ago
3 likes

Kudos to the author and road.cc for updating and reposting the review based on new evidence, and for being transparent about it.

Avatar
ads-b | 1 year ago
1 like

I use 3M heavy duty double sided VHB tape and shoved it under the saddle. Also put a black silicone key fob holder on it to disguise it. Totally invisible and doesnt impact range.

Avatar
Zebulebu | 1 year ago
1 like

If you want an *actual* review of this POS, pop along here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUcStFN--VA

Avatar
sizbut replied to Zebulebu | 1 year ago
2 likes

Yep. Just watched it and a right roasting to the product and a name check to a RoadCC review that gave it 8/10. May be George should have considered that things that work in the ultra high density iPhone world of central London might not fair so well in the real world (that or very few Ballarat bus users have an iPhones).

Avatar
Jack Sexty replied to sizbut | 1 year ago
1 like

Just to add we're aware of this, and the reviewer is going to do some further testing of the signal. Obviously reviewers can only report their findings, George shown us the tracker picking up perfectly fine from quite some distance - but perhaps a more rigorous test is needed, and we're willing to change the score if the results are different this time around. 

Avatar
mpdouglas | 1 year ago
2 likes

1. "Secure" torx keys are ten a penny

2. Surely any thief would simply pop a quick slot through the aluminium holder and airtag (thereby killing it permanently), with the cordless angle grinder they used to cut through your lock? 

Having an airtag on show and accessible to destroy/remove seems to reduce the effectiveness to a very low level.

Avatar
Mybike | 1 year ago
0 likes

I use NFC sticker with my contact info

Avatar
IanGlasgow | 1 year ago
3 likes

Their Stealth Tubeless Tag Holder looks like a better idea and much better value at only £14.99
Tempted to upgrade the tyres on my commuter bike to 38mm gravel tyres and go tubeless next time I'mm replacing them so I can fit one of these.
https://muc-off.com/products/tubeless-tag-holder

Alternatively Vodafone's Curve bike light & GPS tracker is only £10 plus a £3/month subscription if you use the code SAVENOW10
https://eshop.v.vodafone.com/uk/curve-bike-light-and-gps-tracker-very-me...

 

Avatar
ktache replied to IanGlasgow | 1 year ago
1 like

Tags hidden in tyres are starting to make sense.

Avatar
IanMSpencer replied to ktache | 1 year ago
8 likes

Especially if they are Schwalbe Pro Ones on Hunt rims and it takes 20 minutes to remove one  3

Avatar
Secret_squirrel replied to IanMSpencer | 1 year ago
8 likes

Schwable Marathon pluses.  The thief will still be trying to remove them when the sun goes nova....

Avatar
wtjs replied to Secret_squirrel | 1 year ago
0 likes

Schwable Marathon pluses

Alternatively, I can get my 700Cs off with any old levers, and on by hand. I haven't had a puncture for 9 months, but recently had a new wheel. Looks like Air Tags are no use to me

Avatar
open_roads replied to ktache | 1 year ago
0 likes

But the thief would just get the alert they are being tracked and would disable it on his / her iPhone. Or throw the wheel away.

Also - with a decent kerb / rock strike the AirTag would take a direct hit and break anyway - potentially breaking the valve stem in the process.

Avatar
Jimwill replied to open_roads | 1 year ago
0 likes

Was thinking an iPhone would alert you to being tracked by air tags. But not an Iproduct user so was unsure.

Avatar
zideriup replied to open_roads | 1 year ago
0 likes

Thieves might get alerts but it seems to be a varying amount of time when they might actually get alerted. To actually stop tracking, Apple AirTags need to be physically disabled by removing the battery. The strong aluminium casing and security screws hopefully go a longer way to stop potential opportunist thieves just prying the holder off the bike and removing the AirTag as can be the case with the cheaper, 3D-printed ones. 

Avatar
open_roads replied to zideriup | 1 year ago
0 likes

Apple have changed how AirTags work. The thieves phone would show they are being tracked and give them an option to turn off the tracking.

Avatar
Secret_squirrel replied to open_roads | 1 year ago
0 likes

Not entirely correct. It pops up a warning.  Disabling only happens when the battery is removed which in this case the thief will need a secure Allen key or brute force.

Also only on iOS unless android users download something from the play store. 
Also how many junkies bike thieves are going to have an iPhone?
 

Its not foolproof but at £25 it's a damn sight better than nothing. 

Avatar
NOtotheEU replied to IanGlasgow | 1 year ago
2 likes

Thanks for the heads up, just ordered two Curves. At that price even if they are useless it's not a huge deal.

Avatar
HoarseMann replied to NOtotheEU | 1 year ago
1 like

That is a good price for the curve. I've got a vodafone tracker and it does work. A different prospect to the AirTag though, it's not fit-and-forget, you do need to keep on top of the charging regime. But as long as there's mobile coverage, then you'll get the benefit of movement notifications, GPS ringfences and responsive notifications that do not rely on the fortuitous passing of a random iphone.

Just be patient with it if you are requesting a location update and it's not in motion. It goes into a low power battery saving state when not moving, so can take a few minutes to pick up an ad-hoc location request from the app.

Latest Comments