Swan is one of many great American edge tool makers that are no longer with us. These Ebay chisels seem to be commanding a premium for being NOS. NOS is cool, but I much prefer bevel edges and long blades for paring; also socket rather than tang except on the really thin blades (beware of any socket chisel without a handle that has mushrooming on the socket; it's also tricky to fit a socket if they come unhandled). If you keep watching Ebay there are always good old chisels, but I have noticed that auction prices seem to have come up quite a bit in the past year or two. Other brands to look for: Stanley (wood handled, esp. #750), Buck, KeenKutter, Pexto (or Peck, Stow & Wilcox, or P.S.&W.), Greenlee, Jennings, Union, Witherby, Ohio. Most of the old Sheffield steel (often marked "cast steel") is far better than the current stuff (although I think current Crown and Footprint are good values).
It seems to me that somewhere around mid-20th century, steelmakers turned all their attention to high speed alloys and rust resistant alloys. Perhaps there was not much room for improvement on carbon steel's edge taking and holding; or perhaps there was no marketing gain to be had, with the numbers of buyers who appreciate those things dropping.
You would need an awfully damp shop for rust to be a problem with old steel. If you keep humidity in the guitar making range, it's not a problem at all.
[edit] I got distracted by a phone call before I could edit to add the Swedish makers; thanks Arnt for the reminder. Yes, anything that comes from Eskilstuna and has a wood handle is likely to have great steel. I have a set of "Janport" chisels that resemble Berg; great tools.
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