This chisel is from the Eskilstuna Municipality in Sweden. They are commonly found in Canada, and it is speculated that they were made by E.A. Berg.
Sidenote – beavers were hunted to extinction in Sweden by 1870. They were re-introduced starting in 1922.
Vintage chisels from Sweden are usually quite exceptional due in part to Swedish steel. Some of the most common Swedish chisels found in North America are those manufactured by Erik Anton Berg (E.A.Berg) manufacturing company, founded in the town of Eskilstuna. The company was founded in 1880, and made straight razors. In 1896 a catalog shows the introduction of woodworking tools such as chisels, knives and plane irons. Eventually the company was bought by Sandvik. In the 1950’s the chisels were being cold in the U.S. under the “Shark Brand” by Sandvik Saw & Tool. They were advertised as being “genuine Swedish charcoal steel hardened and tempered”. The company was sold in the late 1950s to Swedish company Bahco, and which was itself bought by Sandvik in 1991. Eskilstuna was the home to a number of tool manufacturers. Unfortunately little can be found in English relating to the historical Swedish tool industry.
Here is an example of the label usually found on a E.A.Berg chisel. When the company first started, the logo was apparently a Wels catfish, although it later changed to the ubiquitous shark shown below.
An example of the blade markings of an E.A.Berg chisel (left), and that of another manufacturer from Eskilstuna – EskilstunaSteel.
A comparison of various E. A. Berg logos can be found on Kim Malmberg’s Flickr site. Compared side-by-side the chisels look very similar. They both have brass ferrules, although that of E.A. Berg has more refined offset knurlings, versus the vertical knurlings of the EskilstunaSteel chisel.
Brass ferrules of E.A.Berg versus EskilstunaSteel
The handles are extremely similar. It is said that the higher end chisels had handles manufactured by a company that used birch, and the cheaper chisels by a company that used beech. The cheaper looking ferrule on the EskilstunaSteel chisel may substantiate this somewhat.
Cost-wise, Jim Bode Tools has a number of sets for sale, with a 6-piece set ranging in price from US$500-700.
NB: Here is an ad for chisels in Post magazine, circa 1953.
A good progressive study of E.A. Berg plane irons can be found here.
working by hand 