Team GB will use Muc-Off “nanotube optimised chains” in the Rio Olympics

Team GB is constantly looking for every competitive edge it can gain over its rivals, and the latest development to be unleashed at the 2016 Rio Olympics is a “nanotube optimised chain” developed by Muc-Off, the British company best known for its pink bike cleaner.

Muc-Off will supply over 75 chains to the likes of Sir Bradley Wiggins, Mark Cavendish, Liam Phillips and Laura Trott. The chains, prepared by hand at the company’s offices in Dorset, are claimed to reduce friction with a power saving of up to 6 watts over a conventional chain.

The specially developed chain is nothing new. Sir Bradley Wiggins used a similar chain for his successful Hour Record. No stone was left unturned by Sir Bradley Wiggins and his team during that ride, with Muc-Off developing a chain that apparently cost £6,000. Presumably, it has managed to reduce the production cost of the 75 chains it’s supplying for the Olympics.

British Cycling’s Commercial and Technical Manager, Dave Parsons, said: “We’ve been working closely with Muc-Off to ensure that the chains used by the Great Britain Cycling Team are of the highest possible standard, and obviously lubrication plays a huge role in this. This is why we have entrusted Muc-Off to deliver highly optimised chains as well as faultless service to the team.”

Alex Trimnell, Muc-Off CEO, added: “We’re always looking for new ways to optimise performance using cutting-edge innovations. Working so closely with the British Cycling technical team at the highest level of international sport is a huge project for us and an absolute privilege to be a part of. 

To create this go-faster chain involves speed grading each chain under load on a bespoke Chain Lube Optimisation Dynamometer testing rig that Muc-Off has built. The chain is then sonic cleaned in several formulas and treated with a nanotube formula.

The idea behind the chain is to reduce any efficiency losses in the drivetrain. Air resistance is the biggest obstacle to going fast, with mechanical drag, friction in the drivetrain, contributing a very small percentage of the overall drag. A modern drivetrain is in the region of 90-98% efficient, depending on the conditions of the drivetrain, but that still leaves a marginal area of potential improvement. 

Muc-Off built its own ‘Chain Lube Optimisation Dynamometer’ to provide detailed quantitative data on the efficiency and durability of any lubricant and chain combination. This means it can provide data for each chain and validate claimed improvements, the sort of data that Team GB likes to see when testing new developments. 

For the Wiggins Hour attempt, the company actually graded over 30 Shimano Dura-Ace chains on this testing rig to find the fastest chain, and then treated this one with the new formula which utilises an “advanced new military grade additive.”

It’s largely understood that lubing (oiling) a chain is a good thing. But does it make any impact on the performance? In a study of the efficiency of bicycle chain drives by James Spicer, it was argued at chain lubrication has a negligible effect on efficiency under laboratory conditions, and that friction can account for only a few percent of the overall losses in drivetrain efficiency. 

“This was verified experimentally. Lubrication effects on chain efficiency were tested using three different chain lubricants under a variety of test configurations. No significant quantifiable effect of lubrication could be inferred from these tests.”

Muc-Off is now selling a version of the chain called the Nano Chain, but at £135 it’s certainly a bit pricier than your average Shimano Dura-Ace chain (£37 in case you’re wondering) which it describes as an “exclusive personal service” and is available with Shimano, Campagnolo, SRAM and KNC chains. 

The company says the Nanotube Speed Film on this chain provides an all-weather treatment and will last 400+ miles in the dry and 250+ miles in the wet. A top-up bottle of Nanotube Optimised Chain Lube lets you reapply treatment to the chain, but it won’t be as fast as the original chain warns Muc-Off, but still thinks it’ll offer drag savings over regular chains.