What about BG-42 ???

A

almtiba

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Aug 29, 2003
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I know the old sebenzas were BG-42, and now S30v...

I know it's a premium, top of the line steel, but nobody uses it anymore. What can you guys tell me about it ? Edge holding, sharpen, etc ? How does it compare to the modern, premium ones, like S30V or VG-10 ?

Thanks in advance,

Andre Tiba - Brazil
 
These things come and go... It's every bit as good as it was when it was The Big Deal. The three you mentioned are probably in the top five best stainless steels right now--certainly in the top ten.

Sometimes this reminds me of the guys who insist that a '66 Strat sounds much better than a '65 Strat, or who replace their tuners for "the tone, man." (Yeah, I was one of those.) Look at it this way: if you were given three identical unmarked blades--same finish, same sharpening angles, same shape--and told to go cut some random daily stuff and figure out which one was BG-42, well, you'd have a one-in-three chance, y'know?
 
I read here and there that bg42 comes in rods in limited diameters instead of like other steel in various sizes of bars. This will certainly increase the tooling cost. So when s30v comes out with similar performance, makers claim it's better than bg42 and get rid of that extra cost with bg42.

Just my thinking, which could be wrong.
 
I like BG42 better than any other stainless actually. My next fave would have to be VG10. I like D2 best for non stainless but I am also a big fan of simple plain old 150+ year old 1095 and have many blades of that steel that work just fine.
 
I prefer it to S30V. I have found it to hold an edge longer on the knives that I have. A step above VG 10, but both are good. Very good.
 
Of all my stainless blades (including S30V, VG-10, ATS-34, 440C, etc) my BG-42 holds an edge the best (both are from Buck), but is harder to sharpen. The S30V is close, and easier to sharpen. BG-42, when properly heat treated, is a great steel.
 
I don't think you'll see a huge difference in normal use between S30V and BG-42. I think S30V is better in most respects, and it is the best steel of its type, but two of my favorite knives are in BG-42. Good edgeholding, decent toughness for a stainless, and zero problems with corrosion even after exposure to sweat, highly corrosive industrial water and blood.
For the sake of this discussion, I'll state that I have a Rinaldi Gambit in BG-42 and a TUK S30V, both with Paul Bos HT, with the same target hardness of 60Rc. I've had both for several years, and both have seen a lot of use.
The TUK is ground thinner, yet shows better toughness, with less microchipping, and holds an edge longer, at least on cardboard tests. I haven't been able to tell a difference in stain resistance though both have been used in the kitchen on fruits and such, and intentionally left overnight with lemon juice on the blades to see if it had any effect-which it did not.
The BG-42 Gambit is my all-around favorite knife to carry and use due to its size, which makes it practical for EDC when I want a fixed blade, and a good companion piece for a larger knife in the outdoors(while the TUK is probably my favorite cutting tool, period), but for the given reasons, I would pick S30V over the BG-42 given the choice.
 
I think when BG-42 came out it replaced ATS 34 for a loy of makers, now everyone is jumping on the S30v bandwagon. It is a very good steel don't get me wrong. However my choice is CPM S420v, that is a hard one to beat.
 
I like M2 better but that isn't stainless. BG-42 is my favorite stainless so far, though it is a bit quirky... very tough tenatious stuff that forms a large floppy burr that doesn't want to let go (I freehand sharpen on Shapton pro waterstones) so I have to remove it manually between stones (the Shapton's have had no trouble with any kind of steel I've thrown at them, but "burr control" does add a bit of extra hassle), and the stuff seems to self-sharpen... I'll be cutting things and it holds an edge for a really long time but will eventually seem to dull a little, then a day or two later, it will seem sharper again (I think maybe the edge eventually rolls a little after I abuse it for a while, but it has sort of a memory effect and returns to its previous shape when left to sit for a day or two)
 
lreed said:
I read here and there that bg42 comes in rods in limited diameters instead of like other steel in various sizes of bars. This will certainly increase the tooling cost. So when s30v comes out with similar performance, makers claim it's better than bg42 and get rid of that extra cost with bg42.

Just my thinking, which could be wrong.
Click to expand...

I think you are probably very close to the answer. ;)
 
OwenM said:
I don't think you'll see a huge difference in normal use between S30V and BG-42. I think S30V is better in most respects, and it is the best steel of its type, but two of my favorite knives are in BG-42. Good edgeholding, decent toughness for a stainless, and zero problems with corrosion even after exposure to sweat, highly corrosive industrial water and blood.
For the sake of this discussion, I'll state that I have a Rinaldi Gambit in BG-42 and a TUK S30V, both with Paul Bos HT, with the same target hardness of 60Rc. I've had both for several years, and both have seen a lot of use.
The TUK is ground thinner, yet shows better toughness, with less microchipping, and holds an edge longer, at least on cardboard tests. I haven't been able to tell a difference in stain resistance though both have been used in the kitchen on fruits and such, and intentionally left overnight with lemon juice on the blades to see if it had any effect-which it did not.
The BG-42 Gambit is my all-around favorite knife to carry and use due to its size, which makes it practical for EDC when I want a fixed blade, and a good companion piece for a larger knife in the outdoors(while the TUK is probably my favorite cutting tool, period), but for the given reasons, I would pick S30V over the BG-42 given the choice.
Click to expand...


Hey Owen, hows it going? You never call you never write;-) Glad your diggin your tools buddy.
I think S30V is the way to go in stainless, nothing wrong with BG, ATS, or 154, especially in smaller knives. BUT once you get into larger knives S30V's toughness REALLY shines. Just my .02.


Take care
Trace.
 
I find that I can get BG42 sharper than S30V. In most other regards they are pretty similar.
 
Jeff Clark said:
I find that I can get BG42 sharper than S30V. In most other regards they are pretty similar.
Click to expand...

This has been my experience as well.
 
Mine too, I also Like ATS 34 for ease of sharpening. S30V is at the bottom of my list.
 
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