Log said:

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Because it takes 30 seconds to spray it and put it in the bag, and one minute to wash it off in the sink. You just do them several hours apart. Spray it in the morning, go to work, come home, and wash it off. And the Easy Off is more thorough than the wire wheel, since it gets into every little nook and cranny. And if you are talking about a collectible skillet, wire wheel marks will show up and ruin any value it has, since the serious collectors can spot them.

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You would have to try very, very hard to get wheel marks from a wire wheel on a cast iron pan. Grinder marks if you used a grinding wheel, that would be a different story. But a wire wheel will get everything you can get off the surface unless you have major pitting, and even then it will get darn near all of it.

Both obviously work, was just curious.

I've cleaned up about 6-7 skillets now with a wire wheel. They work great for cleaning up. You can definitely see the fine scratches. It's not blatantly obvious at first glance, but look close enough and you can definitely tell. I personally don't care about the fine scratches because these aren't being sold and I think they probably help the seasoning stick, but if I found a nice collectible skillet that I wanted to restore and sell, a collector who knows what to look for would certainly notice the wire marks.

Was perusing the old barn inventory for a cast iron skillet to use in our new (to us) mini-motorhome...found a "Wagner Ware" Sidney , labeled 1056T. Cleaned up nicely, but is it a collectible, or a bacon-and-eggs kinda skillet?

The one above is a Wagner 1058S. I'm of the opinion that life is short and it was made to cook with. Cook on!

Not really collectible, unless you are focusing on that particular brand/style/model. That being said, I really love the Wagner Sidney -O- models, since the tend to be thin & light, very slick once restored and seasoned, and very reasonably priced. My favorite one so far is a 1058 I found rusty & crusty at a roadside junk shop that is now literally slick as glass.

So how do you do the electrolysis tank?

Container of some sort
manual battery charger
sacrificial piece of metal
washing soda

Mix washing soda in water at a rate of 1 tbsp/gallon. Suspend the skillet in the solution and get as close to sacrificial anode as possible without touching. Negative goes to skillet, positive goes to sacrificial anode. Just remember that the black clamp goes to the black skillet. I run at 10 amps. I'd recommend a larger plastic trash can as opposed to a tote. I used the tote in the background shown here, but it was too small to do some of the larger pieces. I just upgraded to this 32 gal trash can.

Gracias. What kind of sacrificial metal do you recommend? And I saw Log mention something about the battery charger being different from the typical float charger I'd use on my boat- what's that about?

Also, how long did it take you to do the electrolysis?

You can't over-electrolyze your cast iron, so don't worry about that. I usually let mine run overnight, take it out and scrub it, and then stick it back in if there is any persistent rust that needs more time.

When it comes to battery chargers, you're going to need one of the old school ones that is shaped like a trapezoid when viewed from the front. If you use one of the new-fangled ones with the charge level display lights on the front, it's not going to work unless you hook it up to a battery as well, since it won't send any current out unless it senses a battery. One of you EE's can probably get into the details of this moreso than I can.

I'm stripping 2 skillets and 2 griddles with Easy Off tonight. I plan to start grinding and reseasoning them Saturday morning. Hope I don't break anything!

DON'T GRIND!

Just use a wire paint stripping brush and a green scrubby pad. And a regular kitchen knife to scrape/pry any stubborn seasoning off. Just do a bunch of Easy Off treatments/cycles before you resort to power tools. Easy Off soak for a day or two, scrub/scrape, repeat as needed. The Easy Off treatment works, you just have to give it time and some elbow grease.

Patience is the key here.

Agree with Log, do not grind. A quick strip disk in a drill works well too.

Sorry I said grinding, but I meant sanding. I was planning to use an orbital sander to smooth the cooking surfaces after the easy off had removed all the seasoning. All the pieces I am doing are very lightly used and came preseasoned, and haven't seen stellar care. I was going to start at 80 grit and work up to maybe 220 grit, then reseason properly with flaxseed oil. Is this ok?

I did that same method on my 12" Lodge. I used 80-120-220 grit with an orbital sander. Turned out nice and smooth, but I had hell getting the seasoning to stick. I used Crisco and the Jeff Rogers method of seasoning. It would start flaking off no matter what I cooked. I went back and used like a 40 grit by hand and tried to rough it up as much as I could. Reseasoned using the same method, and I finally got the seasoning to hold. I also wipe down again with a thin a layer as possible of Crisco after cleaning, and put it back on the stove top upside down and heat it up until it begins to smoke. Check out the Culinary Fanatic on Youtube.

As far as flax goes, I've never personally used it. But I seem to read more and more about people not liking it because it tends to flake off over time. I'm on a cast iron group on FB, and it's widely viewed there as a no-no.

Well damn. Should I just use 80 grit then to just smooth things down a little but not get it slick smooth?

Yes, and use the Crisco method I have posted earlier in this thread.

Got this off of Facebook marketplace last week. Pretty sure it's an unmarked Wagner. Stripped it and have one coat of seasoning so far.

Along with this one I also got a 10" post 50s or 60s BSR. It's still in the bag with oven cleaner. Really stubborn seasoning on the walls. $25 for both

I did another new Lodge skillet for my brother recently, and I only used 80. It's not as smooth as mine, but it is considerable smoother than factory. He hasn't had any issues.

Yep, that's a Wagner.

No. 7 or No. 8 BSR?

Says number 6 I think? Found this pic I got from the seller.

Sand too smooth and the seasoning will have a hard time adhering...which is not good if you want a uniform color. For actual cooking, it doesn't make a huge difference.

I stop at 120 on the sanding - just knock the ridges and high spots down. Everything I have is flaxseed oil seasoned - no issues with flaking or chipping. Going on a couple of years now with most of it. Maybe I got lucky.

'03ag said:

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Says number 6 I think? Found this pic I got from the seller.

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That's a No. 8, since they are 10 5/8". No. 6's are 8 11/16".

Ah ok. Just looking through my pics and I also have a no 6 that I'm working on. Pretty rusted, but salvageable. Will have a nice lineup soon -

BSR No 8
BSR No 6
BSR Red Mountain No 5
BSR Red Mountain No 3
Wagner No 3

The 5 and 3 Red Mountains were my grandmothers so. They have decades of seasoning on them.

I found a Red Mountain No 8 that I think is too far gone to cook with. Got the rust off but way too much pitting.

Well damn. If I want Crisco for my weekend hurricane project I'll have to fight the current panic at the grocery store.

Log said:

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Yes, and use the Crisco method I have posted earlier in this thread.

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Are you talking about the Culinary Fanatic method?

Preheat oven to 200*, warm stripped pan for 15 min, apply crisco, wipe off, return to oven, preheat to 300*, take pan out 15 min later and wipe oil off again, return pan to oven, preheat to 400*, leave pan in oven for 2 hours at 400*, then let it cool completely. Repeat process 3 times.

That's the one.

Pretty much, but I only do an hour at 400 F, and I've gone to 6-7 cycles rather than just 3. The first few cycles add seasoning, but it will look dull. Once it starts looking glassy, you know you're at the right amount.

I did 4 cycles and then started cooking with it, adding a cycle every now and then afterwards. I think I'm up to 8 in 3 months with about 5 times cooked on. After I cooked with it, I did a mini cycle (heat, crisco, 200, cool).

Ok. Ive got a Lodge skillet, dutch oven and two griddles in the oven at 200* right now. I sanded all but the dutch oven with 80 grit. The Easy Off stripped the lodge seasoning off all of them easily. I have one of these

https://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/artisanal-kitchen-supply-pre-seasoned-cast-iron-skillets/3282887?skuId=45760846®istryId=544175390

and the factory seasoning seems super hard to get off. This skillet got just as much Easy Off and sat the same amount of time as the Lodge pieces. The seasoning on the Lodge pieces basically rinsed off with water and then I scrubbed some with 0000 steel wool. The Artisinal Supply piece still has almost all the seasoning on the outside of the skillet and most of the seasoning on the inside of the sides. It comes off in large flakes. I resprayed with Easy Off to let it sit overnight again.

I probably should have done one pan for my first time at this instead of 5 different pieces.