No experience with the UFO chains but compatibility with one (used) chain/chainset interface and incompatibility with another (new) one sometimes points to a worn drivetrain. Perhaps your chainrings are worn?

Did you reach out directly to CeramicSpeed? Their customer service is top notch!

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-Brad Williams
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I'm stupid but do you need to shorten it? I had to take a few links out of my new MTB chain cause it was doing the same thing.

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2019 T-Rex Tri Series

+1 on worn chain rings.

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I bought it through RA Cycles and I sent them an email this morning. Waiting to hear back from them.

It is the same length as the Dura-Ace chain.

Chainrings do not look worn out, and the shop did not say anything about that either. I have always thought that worn out chainrings start looking more like a weapon than a chainring.

It's hard to see the wear on chainrings, without laying the old one over the new one.

One way to check is to wrap the (new) chain around the chain ring, there should be contact/tension on the chain from all the teeth around the chainring, on worn rings, only the first few teeth at the top are pulling on the chain, and there is slack/play in the chain towards the front. This would be the same for a old chain on new chainrings.

How worn is your chain? Do you have a chain tool?

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Has Ceramic speed gone away from the dura ace chain? And now just using KMC chains? I've noticed you can no longer get a DA UFO chain.

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blog

Yes, they stopped using Shimano and SRAM chains. They are using KMC only. They claim it's "faster" than the Shimano or SRAM chains.

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That's interesting. Doesn't jibe with FrictionFacts....

http://www.bicycling.com/...n-promise-free-watts

From the article:

When CeramicSpeed’s representatives sent me a review chain, the company was offering optimized 11-speed Shimano (which I received), Campagnolo, and KMC chains. They have since revised the product line and now only offer the KMC chain. In an emailed response to my questions, Hyldahl wrote, “Our recent tests show that this chain has the best performance; therefore, we have taken the decision to... deliver one chain, which is an optimized KMC chain, compatible with Shimano, SRAM, and Campagnolo.”

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Interestingly, in the third TT I did with the CeramicSpeed chain I had it come off on my 1x wide/narrow chain ring. I have ridden this setup (albeit with a larger wide/narrow ring until May this year) for 1.5 years and until June this year only with Dura-Ace chains. I have never had a single chain falling off (neither in training or races) until the CeramicSpeed one did in the third TT I used it in. It was also to the outside of the chain ring.

I have ridden a couple of hundred kilometres in training with it since (relubing it with Squirt) to see if it would occur again, but so far it has stayed on. So I'm not sure if it was just a freak accident or the chain has something to say.

FWIW I also have the KMC one (the only one they seem to do now) and in the instructions they say you have to mount it in the correct direction, but I have not been able to figure out which direction that is. They talk about a 'white band' (or something along those lines) on one side of the chain, but I have not been able to find anything of that kind on the chain.

Yeah, I believe it, it's just I wonder why the difference. Maybe KMC changed something in their manufacturing process? They do make the Shimano chains as well, right, so they'd clearly know how to make a low-friction chain. (unless Shimano had them contractually bound by some proprietary process).

I bet they don't sell a lot of the UFO chains and it became too expensive to stock 3 different companies. It makes more sense to have 1 chain that works on Shimano or SRAM.

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Ah, so you think they're being a bit coy. Possible.

they did not define what "best performance" was in that quote. it could mean anything

I missed this development. I know that I asked Jason at FF one point in time about Shimano's new Sil-Tec chains. At the time I also had the opportunity to talk to Michael Gallagher at Ice Friction and ask a lot of questions - fortunately he was willing to spend about an hour answering my various questions. I know they were using the new Shimano HG-900 11-speed chains for their Ice Friction chains. I really need to circled back around for testing results, but I thought the whole purpose of the chain was to reduce friction with the coated pins. Maybe just a marketing gimmick, but I have never been a huge KMC fan. Their chains never seemed to last - which I guess isn't the biggest deal in a race chain.

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Michael at ICE Friction is awesome to talk to. He answered a lot of my questions and spent an hour on the phone with me too. I bought my racing chain from ICE.

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As someone else posted, the chain is likely asymmetrical. If you can use link stamps or something else for reference, I would try flipping it and see if it helps. The new DA chains are asymmetrical. My eyes aren't why they used to be and I've put them on wrong side out before. I haven't thrown the backwards installed chain, but it chatters and skips in the small cogs when installed wrong.

I would guess that CS gives you a KMC link, but if for some reason you have a Wipperman link it also has to be installed the proper direction or it makes the chain skip during shifting.

I have wondered if the SIL-Tec coating actually reduces the duration of a waxed chain. This could be the potential performance difference. Shimano also changed something with the DA chain and now sells only the HG-901. Shimano only says something about it being more optimized...

Hi Jsosinski,

Firstly apologies for the issues you seem to be having. I encourage you to reach out to my colleague Paul in the Boulder office, on email ps@ceramicspeed.com. He will be best placed to answer your tech questions regarding the chain. You should not be experiencing any form of slip or skipping with your UFO chain. My first thought was chain ring wear.

The KMC Chains are not directional. If it is so that your instruction manual indicated so, this is incorrect and needs to be changed. Please advise Paul of this in your communication. This is likely an error that has not been removed from our communication when offering Shimano chains.

In direct reference to our move to KMC chains. Our aim is always offering consistency in performance. SummitAK is on point with his conclusion regarding reduction in friction performance. KMC chains have proven to be the most stable chain when if comes to fastest performing over the longest period of time.

Ben

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Chief Marketing Officer,
CeramicSpeed