I was gifted this antique shop find. What is it and how should I clean it up? I was thinking a good scrub with a green scotch brite pad and soap, then heat it and apply some crisco. Wasn't sure if I should use easy off and completely strip everything. Thanks.

That's a nice gift! I've actually been looking for one of those for awhile now.

Me personally, I'd go with Easy Off and strip then reseason. You would probably be fine with just doin a thorough scrub, but it would sure look better if you strip it down.

Once a pan is seasoned, if taken care of properly and used regularly, would it not need to be re-seasoned? or do you guys still strip and season periodically?

I have a lodge that we've had for about 10 years that i've only started using regularly in the last year or so. It's always seemed off to me - I can scrape it w/my nail and and it ends up with black char. I feel stupid for typing this, but I assume a properly seasoned pan won't have that if cleaned properly?

I suspect that the last time I 'seasoned' it I did a crap job. When I use it now I hit it w/a plastic brush and hot water while it's still hot enough that I need a silicone mit to hold the handle, then I dry it thoroughly before putting back in the cabinet. I assume that's fine maintenance if the pan was actually properly seasoned?

B-Day is around the corner and was thinking of getting a Stargazer pan. Not in need of much and figured why not - get a good smooth surface that is already seasoned.

reddog90 said:

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I was gifted this antique shop find. What is it and how should I clean it up? I was thinking a good scrub with a green scotch brite pad and soap, then heat it and apply some crisco. Wasn't sure if I should use easy off and completely strip everything. Thanks.

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That's an unmarked Wagner chicken fryer. Good find. The lid is a BSR lid though.

Use the method I posted earlier in the thread to strip it down to bare metal. Electrolysis, followed by several cycles of Easy Off (if needed) to get any stubborn seasoning off. Then re-season with Crisco.

I figured the lid wasn't a match, but I'll take it. Thanks. Do I really need to do the electrolysis?

Proper seasoning and maintenance is discussed earlier in this thread. Here is the method I used to strip my factory seasonings, then I sanded my pans a little smoother than factory, and reseasoned with crisco.

Not necessarily, but it will take that rust off a lot easier than using elbow grease and a scrub brush. Setting a tank up isn't really very hard. I just use rebar, washing soda, an old-school battery charger, and a 5 gallon bucket.

I'm pretty sure that chicken fryer is a Griswold. I have the same fryer. The lid is actually an 8" skillet with a little projection on the end of the skillet rim that inserts into the little square "ring" (for lack of a better word) on the rim of the fryer. The Griswold logo is on the skillet. I'll try and post a couple photos of it if I get time.

It's an unmarked Wagner. No doubt about it.

Could yall explain how you know it's an unmarked wagner and how you know the lid is a Birmingham stove & range? This is my first old piece. My others are new lodges and such.

The bottom of the handle, and that's just how they marked them on the bottom. I've got several Wagner's, both marked and unmarked, of the same size and they are identical otherwise. Only difference is the Wagner logo versus the print that indicates how wide it is.

BSR lids used those indented dimples. Pretty much every manufacture had a unique dimple/nipple/drip-drop design for their lids.

Thanks. For electrolysis, I can use something as small as rebar for my sacrificial anode? And the battery charger needs to be a manual model? Any particular amps? This one is cheap but only 6 amps.

reddog90 said:

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I figured the lid wasn't a match, but I'll take it. Thanks. Do I really need to do the electrolysis?

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No, you don't need to do it. You can strip the seasoning and rust off a number of ways. Electrolysis is one of them, a wire wheel is another, straight up burning it off is yet another.

A wire wheel with a light sand after is a much faster method of removing rust and seasoning IMO, but whatever ends up working for you is the way to go.

I would not use a wire wheel, and definitely don't burn it off. It will ruin the pan, and it will never season properly again. Plenty of articles and videos out there about this.

I'd string several pieces of rebar together with wire around the perimeter of whatever container you use so that the pan will be surrounded by the electrolysis process.

Everywhere I've read about cast iron says that burning it off by sticking it in a bed of coals is a big no-no, and how it can ruin a skillet.

I've personally never done that, but I've watched my dad do it several times over the years. It's never ruined any skillet he worked on, and they all turned out quite nice to cook in. I have put a skillet in the oven on self-clean mode once. No issues there either, other than it killing my oven and having to repair it.

reddog90 said:

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Could yall explain how you know it's an unmarked wagner and how you know the lid is a Birmingham stove & range? This is my first old piece. My others are new lodges and such.

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http://www.castironcollector.com/

schmellba99 said:

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reddog90 said:

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I figured the lid wasn't a match, but I'll take it. Thanks. Do I really need to do the electrolysis?

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No, you don't need to do it. You can strip the seasoning and rust off a number of ways. Electrolysis is one of them, a wire wheel is another, straight up burning it off is yet another.

A wire wheel with a light sand after is a much faster method of removing rust and seasoning IMO, but whatever ends up working for you is the way to go.

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50% vinegar and 50% water will strip rust very well, but you have to watch it, because it can pit the iron if you let it go too long.

We have that same chicken fryer. We just assumed that it was a Griswold fryer because it has a Griswold skillet for a lid. The Griswold skillet is obviously a lid for probably a Griswold fryer. It fits the Wagner fryer perfectly. The skillet hast a projection on the rim that serves as a hinge that hooks into the fryer so you can lift it like a hinged lid.

On a side note, for Christmas, my MIL gave me a large cast iron Wagner oval roaster. It was owned by the same old school ranch family that had my Wagner fryer. We got all their cast iron when they passed away. I'll try to post a couple photos of it if I get time.

Just picked up a Lodge grill pan yesterday. Early last evening, I sprayed Easy Off on it and set it in a bag. Went to wash it off a few minutes ago and I didn't get all the factory seasoning off for some reason. I don't know if it didn't set long enough or I sprayed it unevenly. Anyway, I dried it and resprayed it. I will take a pic and upload when it is stripped.

That's a late BSR Red Mountain series #8.

Easy Off = Lye = NaOH = soap precurser

In other words, you're already exposed to it on a daily basis anyway.

Quote:

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That cast iron is porous.
False. Many have been led to believe that not only is cast iron porous, but that those pores expand and contract with changes in temperature, allowing oil or other foreign substances to not only adhere but to be "absorbed" or "sealed" into the iron. While even polished iron is not completely flat, any voids are simply microscopic irregularities resulting from the removal of crystalline graphite, a carbon component of the cast iron, at the surface.

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http://www.castironcollector.com/myths.php

Also, would the heat of the oven during the seasoning process degrade the lye even if you didn't get it off in the wash (which you would with minimal effort)?

Think of lye (NaOH) ask the exact opposite of hydrochloric acid (HCl). Equals volumes of 1M HCl added to 1M NaOH will result in saltwater. In other words, it is very reactive, since it is a strong base. Since it is a base, it won't react with metals, but it is very good at reacting with organics, i.e. carbon based molecules. Things like oils and greases. So it goes to work on the old seasoning, and leaves the metal alone. And it is extremely water soluble, due to its polarity.

Just use the lye in the pan to make some lutafisk, or pretzels.

I just received a lodge Dutch oven and skillet for my birthday. I've always wanted to get into cast iron and campfire style Dutch oven cooking, in part because of this thread.

I followed the seasoning directions that came with the lodge kit that had me wiping on the vegetable oil and putting it on the gas grill (to avoid the smoke inside) at 350 for an hour. The metal still feels sticky. After reading this thread more closely, it looks like I should be doing several cycles, at temps closer to 450-500. Do I need to strip that first coating off or just cook it again at the higher temp?

It wont smoke up your kitchen when it's in the oven. No reason to do that on the grill outside. As far as that sticky layer, I would give it a good thorough scrubbing with some really hot water and a scouring pad or the course side of a sponge, then just do a few more rounds of seasoning at 400 in the oven. You really wanna wipe every bit of oil off that you can before you put it in the oven.

Great, thanks for the advice!

I'll repeat myself again, but follow the method I posted earlier. It plain works, and it will turn out looking great.

The reason it is sticky is that you left too much oil on it. I would strip it down to bare metal using Easy Off and start over with my method.

I've got a size 5 BSR from the 40's and a 50's ish size 8 three notch lodge in the oven right now. Got them both for around $30 total at an antique store. Planning to give them to a young couple who just moved in to their first house. But, they're both so nice it'll be hard to let them go.

Found these gems today at an estate sale. 10" Griswold, 8" Wagner. Paid $20 for the pair! I'll post afters soon.

Throw those suckers in an e-tank and get them derusted. Should turn out nice.

Farmers Fight 06 said:

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I just received a lodge Dutch oven and skillet for my birthday. I've always wanted to get into cast iron and campfire style Dutch oven cooking, in part because of this thread.

I followed the seasoning directions that came with the lodge kit that had me wiping on the vegetable oil and putting it on the gas grill (to avoid the smoke inside) at 350 for an hour. The metal still feels sticky. After reading this thread more closely, it looks like I should be doing several cycles, at temps closer to 450-500. Do I need to strip that first coating off or just cook it again at the higher temp?

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If it is tacky, it is because all of the oil hasn't broken down. Just keep curing it. It may be blotchy, but as long as it all breaks down, you'll be fine. I would give it a couple more rounds of oiling and baking to build up the seasoning.