I'm thinking about switching to Shimano chains for my 10 speed Shimano road cassette, which is made of a mix of CS-4600 and CS-HG500 cogs, and RD-4700 and SRAM YAW FD, and TA double chainrings. I've used the KMC X10-93 (new name X10 silver/black) but it only lasted around 2000km until it reached almost 0.5% pure stretch (excluding roller wear). I'm now using the cheaper KMC X10-73 (new name X10 gray) which has inferior plating, but cheaper price.

I was wondering if the Shimano CN-HG95 and CN-6701 chains might possibly last longer than the 2 KMC chains that I've used. Both Shimano chains are around the same price of $20, similarly priced to the KMC X10-93 (silver/black).

Will both CN-HG95 and CN-6701 work on my road drivetrain? Which would last longer and run more efficiently?

The product info for CN-HG95 says not compatible with road components. Wiggle QA says no. Chainreactioncycles QA says yes. But the road compatibility chart says both chains work for CS-4600 and CS-HG500 cassettes and RD-4700, which are mostly road components. The cassettes show up on the MTB compatibility chart too. So I'm not sure why the CN-HG95 product info says no to road.

Both chains are directional. CN-HG95 has the HG-X feature with solid plates and sil tec mud shedding coating, says for 2x and 3x. While CN-6701 has slotted plates without the coating, says for 2x (CN-6600 for 3x).

Whichever of the 2 chains, are there any problems with using KMC quick links with them instead of the Shimano pins? I read on other forums that people do this just fine. Or is it more efficient or wear resistant when using the Shimano pins?

The short answer is yes, they will both work.

In my experience, all chains- regardless of manufacturer and original use intended- can be used for road applications as long as they are the correct size for the number of speeds on the cassette.

While the Shimano chains are nice (do they now come with a quick link instead of a driven pin?), the last few years I've been using SRAM 870/970/1070 chains- depending on whether it's a 6-7-8-9-10 speed drivetrain- and found them very durable & available at a competitive price. 2K on a chain is a pretty short life; do you ride in a particularly harsh environment?

And what is your clean/lube regimen?

I usually use KMC X10.93 chains but sometimes use the Shimano 6701 if on sale and have noticed pretty much zero difference in durability and performance. Also I use the KMC link for both and no issues, never had one break either. If Shimano is now including a re-usable link then just get whichever chain is least expensive. I remember when my buddy went to his favorite LBS for a new chain for his triple and they said Shimano recommended not getting a 6701 chain for his 6700 groupset. No official explanation has ever been given for this but possibly the hollowed out sideplates were more prone to cracking due to having more sideways flexing on triples but that's just a guess. If you do get the directional style Shimano chain make sure you mount it in the correct direction or shifting can suffer.

I wipe with rag dampened with degreaser and drip lubricant, run the chain for a minute and then wipe off the excess.

In the past I used to do it once every 150km in dry weather or after the rain, with finish line wet lube. After I noticed the short chain life I now do this one every 75km with lighter Pedro's chainj..

I agree 2K is a very short chain life unless you are changing it often to protect a particularly expensive cassette. How do you measure chain "stretch"? If you use a "chain checker" instead of the ruler method you may very well be getting misleading readings.

I'm measuring actual center to center of the pin, using a digital caliper, and I measured at 3 or 4 different sections of the chain. This was several months ago and I've already tossed this chain. This is how you measure accurately while excluding roller wear: take 2 measurements and subtracting them (A-B) will give you a measurement from the same sides of the roller. I have both a cheap chain wear tool that measures opposite sides, which shows me 0.75% wear, and the Shimano chain wear tool which measures the same side and shows me just barely passing, which I assume is just a little bit below 0.5%, but it's a pass/fail tool so it won't tell you the actual wear. The digital calipers with A-B measurement gave me somewhere between 0.45 to 0.50% at various sections of the chain.