Cast Iron Skillet Refurb

[bruzer]

Awesome skillet! #10 puts it about 12 1/4 inches across? That's a lot of good ole American cast iron!! A little bit of care and it will last you a lifetime. The Wife took over the #6 WagnerWare because it is so nice of a skillet. I am seasoning a #9 round no name griddle as I type. Good to have a BBQ under cover. I am thinking about some corn bread cooked in the cast this weekend. Yum Yum
May God bless us all,
Mike

 

[rick49]

I had no idea we had cast iron folks on this site. Good to know. I have peplaced all the wife's frying and griddle pans out of my collection. One at a time until she got the hang of the process. The corn bread pans are a little trickey until you get the batter in sync with the heat. The waffle makers make em (waffles) taste fresh off the coals good.

BTW for what it is worth...I have never used any kind if grinder on any of my cast collection, and it numbers about 50 pieces. Mostly Griswold and Wagner

 

[rufus]

According to this website, a #10 is 10-1/4" of cooking surface, a #9 is 9-3/4". I guess the numbers correspond with the eye numbers in the old cast iron stoves. I'm learning as I go.

Stop in that trading place sometime, they have some huge skillets and lots of great cast iron pieces in there. Some big prices too. One old skillet, a number 14, was priced at $180. Yikes! It is fun to look at if nothing else.

Cornbread sounds wonderful. Pineapple upside-down cake is another good one. Yum...

 

[Redcap]

When my grandfather died at 97 a couple years back, one of the things I ended up was all of his old Griswold cast iron cookware. I frequently hit the Goodwill and garage sales to acquire more, up to around 35 pieces now.

 

[rufus]

Man, you guys have some big collections. As of today, my collection consists of one skillet and one handgun target. Ya gotta start somewhere.

 

[jbett98]

Old Klondike recipe for delicious corn bread.
10 minutes before pulling the corn bread out of the oven, spoon some buttermilk over the top, just enough to cover the crust.

 

[rick49]

One hint some of you might find useful...no tomato based dishes in your cast stuff. When I started judging CASI chili events way back when I noticed the cooks did not use the better heat conducting cast iron. A young lady with 40 years chili experience under her apron and runner up to the world championship, told me that the acid in the tomato took patina off the pans really quick and if let to sit too long could cause serious pitting in the metal.

 

[spectra]

Man, you guys have some big collections. As of today, my collection consists of one skillet and one handgun target. Ya gotta start somewhere.

Same here as I just started a year or so ago. So far a couple of Lodge skillets and a Dutch oven. Had to get the oven after a camping trip and having pineapple upside down cake over the fire


What was the process for the lye soaking as in how much lye to water ratio? How long of a soak? I have a real old pan that has seen better days and would like to try that.

 

[rufus]

I used 100% lye drain cleaner from the hardware store. Borrowed my wife's covered plastic storage tub (she was pissed!) and filled it up enough water to cover half the skillet, added about half the container of lye and continued to fill with water from hose until the skillet was completely covered. The stream of water from the hose mixed it up pretty well. It sat outside overnight. Then in the morning I used a long handled plastic scrub brush and scrubbed it for just a second. Everything came right off, right down the the bare metal. Removed from lye bath, rinsed, dried and immediately sprayed with aerosol cooking oil to ward off rust. Wear eye covering when working with lye, it's nasty stuff.

 

[spectra]

Thanks for the info am going to try it and see what happens. Only a 10 inch skillet so I think it will fit in a 5 gallon bucket no need to piss off the wife

 

[bruzer]

I mixed the 16oz lye crystals with about 4-5 gallons of water in a plastic tub. WARNING - WARNING Mix the lye into the water. DO NOT ADD WATER TO THE LYE!!! Adding water directly to lye can cause the lye to splatter, erupt, or "explode". When lye and water mix it will generate a good amount of heat. My plastic tub was very warm once all the lye was mixed in. Mixing the lye into the water slowly is a good thing. WEAR A GOOD PAIR OF RUBBER GLOVES AND EYE PROTECTION. Lye is caustic and works as a super duty degreaser. It will degrease the oil in your skin along with burning and eating your skin if given the chance. It will not harm your cast iron. Make sure your cast iron is completely submerged and it can stay as long as needed. Weeks if need be.
Please do not forget, "MIX THE LYE INTO THE WATER!"
Good luck, stay safe and may God bless us all,
Mike

 

[BAMCIS]

At an estate sale one time I bought a cast iron skillet. I refurbed it by making it one of my targets. It works well, but don't use it for "up close" drills. I would have used it for cooking, but I had some suspicions it may have been used in the production of lead fishing sinkers.

 

[Brutus57]

My wife is a terrific cook with our cast iron. I have bought her several pieces over the 4 years we have been together. She makes killer corn bread and an amazing impossible pie. Mom and grandma cooked with it on wood stoves for decade.

Brutus Out

 

[rick49]

[At an estate sale one time I bought a cast iron skillet. I refurbed it by making it one of my targets. It works well, but don't use it for "up close" drills. I would have used it for cooking, but I had some suspicions it may have been used in the production of lead fishing sinkers. /QUOTE]
LMAO

 

[rick49]

If you find one like this, please don't use it as a 100 yard gong. A Wagner is pictured but Griswold made them also.

 

[xm193]

If you ever want to clean a rusty abused cast iron pan just use Electrolysis. soda wash,water 5 gallon bucket ,cell phone charger and alligator clips.... oh an a hunk of old metal

 

[gunfreak]

Cooking a few pounds of bacon in a pan does a good bit of seasoning.

 

[RVTECH]

This may sound gross but chicken fat is the best I have found for seasoning cast iron. Also I found one of the 'sponge' style sanding pads works great for a quick touch up in the sink to keep the bottom glass smooth yet maintain the seasoning. I mean the thick style pad from the hardware store found in the sandpaper section, not the thin kitchen style. The medium to coarse works well and does not require much effort, just light even pressure to remove the hard deposits but not enough to bring the shine back to the metal.

 

[Redcap]

This may sound gross but chicken fat is the best I have found for seasoning cast iron. Also I found one of the 'sponge' style sanding pads works great for a quick touch up in the sink to keep the bottom glass smooth yet maintain the seasoning. I mean the thick style pad from the hardware store found in the sandpaper section, not the thin kitchen style. The medium to coarse works well and does not require much effort, just light even pressure to remove the hard deposits but not enough to bring the shine back to the metal.

Try duck fat.

 

[rick49]

Redcap nailed it about duck fat.

This is some duck breasts cooking between 2 cast pans. notice the coals in the top pan. The duck fat has about a 375 degree smoke point which in my humble opinion makes it very desiresble for cast iron work. (click to enlarge)