Originally Posted by
cyccommute
That's the way that I take the SRAM links apart when I don't have the pliers handy. I don't know how well it works with 10 speed chains since I only have one of those but the squeeze trick has worked on every link I've used up to 9 speed.
In my experience, 8 and 9 speed links will come apart by hand while 10 speed need the pliers. I remember thinking something was wrong when I first installed a 10 speed link because it was so tight.
Anyway, I always pinch the links a bit whether using the pliers or not when removing the link. Seems to help them come apart a bit more smoothly.