Which 9 speed chain/cassette?

[tdm]

I realised today that the chain on my winter bike is really rather worn and should probably be replaced. I'm a little overwhelmed by the choices out there. So I've been looking at the following:

Sram PG951 and 971 (Both under £10)
Shimano HG93 (Currently discount to £14ish)
KMC X9-73 and X9-93 (£14-16ish)

As for cassettes, I'm open to suggestions. I've got a Ultegra 6500 cassette which looks like it might take a new chain so will probably try that first before I buy anything else.

Any opinions/suggestions? Weight isn't a huge deal for me because my bike (Cannondale CAAD5) is almost 10kg with all the winter bits on, but I care about durability and performance.

 

[Biker Joe]

KMC chains are the bee's knees. Can't go wrong with them.
I've always gone with Shimano Tiagra cassettes with no problems.

 

[uclown2002]

KMC for chains; SRAM for cassettes.

 

[smokeysmoo]

Always KMC for chains.

Whatever the best deal is for cassettes IMO.

 

[the_mikey]

Just to add some kind of consensus:

KMC chains, X9-93 for example is a good hard wearing 9 speed chain.

After trying many varieties of cassette, Sram 9 speed cassettes are the most consistent and reliable in terms of quality and wear, shimano cassettes are also useable. BBB cassettes are of variable quality, I have had mixed experiences with them, so only use if you absolutely have to.

 

[I like Skol]

I always run KMC X9-73 HERE for only £9.09 delivered (I just bought 3 last week ) and also Sram PG950 11-26 HERE at CRC for only £14.99 and they seem to last better than the Shimano alternatives IMO.

 

[fossyant]

SRAM cassettes also tend to be much lighter at the lower end.