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Here is a more detailed rundown of the steels:
420J2 - Won't rust, but won't hold an edge at all. Used in dirt cheap knives and display pieces.
440 Surgical - This does exist. It is a simple stainless steel that is used in guess what surgical instruments! Sounds nice? Well, it isn't. A surgical instrument is made to be used once and never again, think about that.
440A - The most basic stainless. FIne for a low end knife.
AUS6 - The overseas version of 440A.
440C - The nicest 440 steel. Can be forged. With a proper heat treat, it makes a very nice knife.
AUS8 - the overseas version of 440C.
154CM - One of my favorite steels. An awesome high tech stainless made in the USA. Holds a great edge, but still very rust resistant.
ATS34 - The overseas version of 154CM, and performs like 154CM too. However, it seems to take a better polish than 154CM.
BG42 - The cream of the crop stainless before the CPM steels came out. Still one of my favorites. Holds and edge like you wouldn't believe, but is a little tougher to sharpen.
S30V - The flagship steel of Crucibles Particle Metal (CPM) process. Probably the best all around stainless today. Good edge holding and easy to sharpen.
Then there are other tool steels like D2, A2, and L6 that are far less common. Plus, the simple carbon steels like 1050, 1080, 1092, 52100, 5160 and more, which forge well.
BTW, as an ABS member myself, I can say that a forged blade will have benefits that a stock removed (ground) blade will not. Even assuming grain refinement is not an issue, the fact that the grain structure is altered, not removed means that there will be fewer places that are prone to fail under stress.
However, the bottom line is no matter how great the steel is, it doesn't mean anything without a good heat treat. I've got a knife made from an old leaf spring in Nepal that could outperform most anything made in a factory today.
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Starkizzer Fan Club - President & Founder
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