Grivel G12’s or BD Sabretooths?

[Bonzo]

I’ve decided to go ahead and pick up a general-use pair of crampons, and right now I’m split between these two.  120g separate the two in weight, with the BD pair coming in lighter and being made from stainless.  Both sets would be the bail version, I assume, since my boots have toe welts.  Anything else I should be considering?  Price is the same and they’re both pretty simple, so do I need to look elsewhere or just pick one and see how they do?

[Ryan Jordan]

I have both and have used both extensively. I have the anti-bot plates on both as well, and with the plates, the Sabretooths are a few oz lighter than the G12’s.

The G12’s steel is more durable and stays sharper, so I tend to use them more on mixed terrain with a lot of rock.

The Sabretooth’s extra vertical points in the forefoot section are noticeably more secure while flat-footing (pied a plat) on steep, icy/hard terrain.

Both are excellent crampons and have served me well, and I’ve owned the same pair of each for at least a decade.

[Bonzo]

Thanks, Ryan; that’s very helpful info.  Do you see any advantage between one or the other when paired with a Scarpa Phantom Tech?

[Ryan Jordan]

The newest model of the phantom tech has a pretty aggressive asymmetric last. I don’t expect that these crampons would have an issue with it, but on a similar boot, I had to bend the crampons crossbar between the heel and forefoot sections to make it fit better. I did this with a metal worker who knew how to deal with metal without weakening it. But this seems like a really special use case, and the phantom is a really popular boot so I can’t imagine there would be an issue.

[Bonzo]

Good to know.  I like the Sabretooth’s lower weight, so I may just go that route even if I have to take the lap to them a bit more often.

I do have one further question, though: what’s the difference in their widths?  I’ve been looking for that info and somehow not finding it.  I don’t really want anything that’s very narrow, but since my gait is extremely linear – like, I always have scrapes and scratches on the insides of my ankles from the opposite shoe striking them – I don’t think I want something especially wide, either.

[Ryan Jordan]

I don’t have access to my winter/snow gear right now so can’t measure the widths of mine. However, I don’t recall either being particularly narrow or wide, I’ve never given that any thought…

[Bonzo]

It’s not a big deal to get that info; I was just wondering if there was any appreciable difference in the two.  Guess I just need to bite the bullet and pick one or the other.

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