Thread: The world has gone nuts

I confess to being part user, part fettler and part collector. Bergs and Titans. My Dad passed down one of those plakky handled Bergs and though it's not pretty it stands out in the toolbox!

Like Ern, I am something of a chisel tragic.
Over many years I have put together some Bergs and some Titans. Here is a family snap.
The two biggest on the Berg rack are a Titan and a Kronan respectively.
Cheers
SG

I'll tell you a story, a true story, it involves Swedish backpackers ... but it isn't ... it involves international travel ... but it isn't espionage ... it involves honour ... so it certainly isn't politics .... and it involves luck ....
A mate of mine ... yes SG, I have mates ... is an international pilot with a kangaroo on his tail, he lives on a property on the Snowy River and once had a couple of Swedish backpackers stay and work on the property. If I remember correctly, they were members of WOOF ... honest!.... and WOOF is an organisation wherby backpackers travel the World getting lodgings and some money as Workers On Organic Farms ... now the only thing organic on Dick's farm is the home brew.
The Swedes had a fabulous time ... as does anyone who tries his home brew ... or at least they vaguely think they did ...and Dick was invited to visit them and their family in Sweden ... which he did.
As a thankyou for looking after his girls, the father gave him a precious gift .... NO, not one of his daughters, but a chisel that "had been in the family for many years, since WW2 (?)" and it was an unused 25mm BERG!
Dick is a fantastic bloke, he has a continuous row of sheds of incompleted and pending projects ... there are disassembled water pumps mixed up with disassembled Laverda motorcycles and all aided by a healthy Australian larrikin attitude of using tools for the wrong jobs and fencing wire for everything else ... the chisel slowly rotted but at least it hadn't open any paint tins... he doesn't paint anything!
I drove the 5 hours to the property, rescued the chisel ... drank the home brew ... forgot what I was doing ... and woke up back at home with a virgin 25mm BERG beside beside ... still no ... and the chisel has been cleaned and sharpened and will be returned in a presentation box, when Dick's son turns 21 .... in 15 years!

fletty

Hi Fletty

Wonderful story. And wonderfully thoughtful gesture on your part.

This virgin Berg blade demonstrates what we all know already know - why Bergs are prized for dovetail work...



Regards from Perth

Derek

Reminds me of the Swedish doctor who was taken aside at Sydney airport many years ago suspected of trafficking in .
Turns out he was carrying X-Rays from Denmark - very revealing.
Great story Allan and a wonderful gesture.
You have some lucky friends.
Cheers
SG

Nuts indeed...E.A.BERG ESKILTUNA MASSIVE 2 INCH WIDE CHISEL SWEDEN - eBay Carpentry, Woodworking, Tools, Tools, Hardware Locks, Collectibles. (end time 21-Jul-10 11:48:58 AEST)

Cheerio,
Virg.

Holy macaroons Batman!
US$265 !!!
36 bids !!!!
Over 4 days to go until it finishes !!!!!!
You can see why my 2 inch chisel is a Kronan and not a Berg.


Just as an aside, while it is nice to own a 2 inch chisel, I have used it exactly once in the last ten years.

I wonder where this auction will end up!
Very interesting indeed Virgil.
Thanks for posting this.
Cheers
SG

The trouble is that once you pay a price like that you take the poor thing out of its natural environment. It will probably never have a chance to slice into wood again.

Just to go off at a smal tangent.
I would like to get myself a set of chisels suitable for using on dovetails (I"ll not use the term "dovetail chisels" as that seems to be a contentious point with some forumites ).
For no other reason than the fact I like the look of them, I'd like to get some socket chisels. Could anyone suggest a brand of socket chisels that I could build up into a set?

Thanks


Chris

These ones are only $79 each.

Nice story Fletty, very thoughtful

Here's my worker Bergs (far left is a 1/4" Toledo I think, and far right is a 2 " Kronan)
One day I'll replace the ring ins.

I picked them up individually from the bay for around the $10 mark over about a year. It is possible to build a set quite cheaply if you have the patience
I'm still looking for tanged sizes I don't have.

Originally Posted by Scribbly Gum

You can see why my 2 inch chisel is a Kronan and not a Berg.
Just as an aside, while it is nice to own a 2 inch chisel, I have used it exactly once in the last ten years.

I also can't afford a Berg 2" and I must admit I rarely use it

Derek, they are lovely for dovetails. I'm planning to get a couple more to turn into left and right skews to add to the set. What's the best width to get to make these ?

this is a berg i think ,it has a shark on it so thats the clue for me ,it has one unhappy life, but one day i hope to fix them all. Lloyd

Originally Posted by Thumbthumper

Derek, they are lovely for dovetails. I'm planning to get a couple more to turn into left and right skews to add to the set. What's the best width to get to make these ?

I would argue that a 1/4" is probably the most useful size since they only get pushed into corners. The smaller size is able to be used over a wider range of widths. I have such a set of skews by Blue Spruce. However I did make a 3/8" set from short chisels, and their larger registration makes them easier to use on wider half-blind pins.

I did not too guilty about grinding these up as they were not Bergs, although possibly out of the same factory.

20 degree skew.



Regards from Perth

Derek

Hi everybody

It's some really nice chisel on ebay, just a bit too expensive for me.
I'm wondering if anyone knows how to date them. I've been searching online for a while, but have come up with very little info.
Does anyone know if a typestudy have been done, like with stanleys and other brands, where every little change have been recorded and documented, or does anyone have old catalouges laying around. If so i'm very interested in learning more. I have a number of different stamps in my collection, and seen more online, and dispite that so many likes them no one seems to know much.
I did found one stamp with a positive date however, but that was it. Is anyone else interested in this? I hope so.

Attachment 141988

Thomas