Originally Posted by
Wattsup
I have a 1x11 XT drivetrain, and I'm looking for a good, cheap chain. There are just sooo many choices, and so much variation in price. I simply want something reliable that won't leave me in the wilderness. And cheap!
Buy something. Don't spend a lot of money. The rest is just details that don't matter much. From cheap to expensive, they are all going to wear about the same.
Originally Posted by
u235
If there is a common problem of chains breaking and getting stranded, it has completely avoided me. I carry a spare link but never had to use it yet. Replacing a chain because of wear and tolerance is common but that is not a sudden thing. My choice with a balance of price, performance, and longetivity is the KMC SL series. The KMC X series is a great chain but in my situations the SL lasts as least twice as long and a better overall value to me. This is gravel and MTB that are always dirty, gritty, and wet. I can't speak for a dry clean road bike.
With regards to breaking, I've had similar experience. The only chain that has broken in my family's fleet over 40 years of bicycling is an early SRAM (Sedis maybe?) that used the old style master link. The link is the part that broke.
On the other hand, I'm not going to say that one brand or kind of chain is longer lasting or performs better in any measurable way. A chain's lifespan falls into a fairly narrow range of 3000 to 4000 miles with 3500 being just about the average in both my experience and in reporting here and elsewhere. More expensive chains are just more expensive. They don't offer any added benefit.