2rocky
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- Jul 23, 2010
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I did the Oven cleaner trick and reseasoned 10 years ago. Been good ever since...
Restoring cast iron
- Thread starter Gellar
- Start date
I did the Oven cleaner trick and reseasoned 10 years ago. Been good ever since...
MThuntr
Well-known member
Oven cleaner and a trash bag is low investment option. Probably best for the garage. Electrolysis is very effective and seems to yieldthe best results. Wire brush and angle grinder are blasphemous on anything old. That being said a new, cheap lodge crap has more craters than the moon so grind away.
So cast iron is worth something? I have some dingy pans around somewhere. mtmuley
Yep. For example, certain Griswold #2's go for well over $1000.
Gellar
Well-known member
I have no clue what kind it is. I know she got most of them from her mom. So they could be older?
I put it in the lye bath this morning. I’ll soak it tonight and look at it tomorrow.
Looks like it’s got a faint circular logo on the bottom under the crud, which could be a very good thing.
Gma in law sent us home with an erie #8 and a Griswald slant logo 10 dutch oven , because she "knew we liked to camp". Family wasn't happy. We had no idea...
About a year later, my dad pulls an early 70s (mint condition still in the box) gold coleman 200A lantern down from a shelf in the garage, and asked if I had a use for it. But I'd learned my lesson and looked it up before I went to use it.
Gellar
Well-known member
24 hours in the lye. The gunk is becoming very loose and I’ll use a scratcher to remove it this afternoon.
shannerdrake
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Certain Yeti pans are worth over $400.
kevine001
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- Aug 14, 2023
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I've done it with the easy off oven cleaner in a bag method. hose off after, dry completely and hit it again and again until every speck of old seasoning is gone. Very easy.
I have also sanded some of my larger new Lodge pans. You don't need it for older Griswold or Wagner pans. They should already be smooth. There's a few types of discs that come in handy. One was the curved edge flap wheel for grinder and a regular flapwheel. Different grits help too. Another was the sanding discs that fit in a cordless drill. You have to do the pan as evenly as possible.
For re-seasoning, I now make my own wax based seasoning. Pure bees wax (1 oz) to half grapeseed/flaxseed oil (1.5 oz of each). Stuff is amazing. And I do the first seasoning on my charcoal grill. Get it above 400 degrees for 45 mins, then shut the vents so the heat dies down. Leave it there overnight. After one seasoning, it's nice and black. I have done 2-3 seasoning this was on one pan, but two is usually enough.
I have also sanded some of my larger new Lodge pans. You don't need it for older Griswold or Wagner pans. They should already be smooth. There's a few types of discs that come in handy. One was the curved edge flap wheel for grinder and a regular flapwheel. Different grits help too. Another was the sanding discs that fit in a cordless drill. You have to do the pan as evenly as possible.
For re-seasoning, I now make my own wax based seasoning. Pure bees wax (1 oz) to half grapeseed/flaxseed oil (1.5 oz of each). Stuff is amazing. And I do the first seasoning on my charcoal grill. Get it above 400 degrees for 45 mins, then shut the vents so the heat dies down. Leave it there overnight. After one seasoning, it's nice and black. I have done 2-3 seasoning this was on one pan, but two is usually enough.
Gellar
Well-known member
Well I got busy and let the cast iron sit in the lye bath for much longer than needed. It is a Western Foundry of Chicago Mi pet 5. After some google searching it seems the foundry was in business from approximately 1896-1949. All the articles said not much else was known about the company other than they had a series of labor strikes in the 1940s and that is probably what did the company in. I’m working on seasoning it now. There was one available on EBay for $90.
rideold
Well-known member
Looks great! Better than my daily use skillets 
270.Rose
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- Dec 12, 2020
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Great job, that came up nice!
HuntTalk Freak
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Im glad I wondered into this section of the forum again. I have a cool looking dutch oven with feet and a long handle that was gifted to me but covered in rust that I want to clean up. Also have a few other pieces.
Im gonna try the oven cleaner method. I don’t have a self cleaning oven but have done the throw in fire method on lightly rusted lodge pans.
Im gonna try the oven cleaner method. I don’t have a self cleaning oven but have done the throw in fire method on lightly rusted lodge pans.
stevejfarms
Well-known member
I redid my big lodge camp skillet. Got rid of the old with a grinder and wire brush (in a hurry). Got rid of the lodge dimples with flapper wheels and smoothed with an orbital sander. Cooked cornbread for dressing and nothing stuck. What it looked like after wiping it out with paper towels. Not perfect as some of the dimples were deep. A few more cooks and they should fill in.
Hem
Well-known member
Found this cast iron at my jobsite.
All it says is Made In The USA, and 3 qt on the bottom.
Worth the effort to restore?
So soak it in vinegar to loosen rust, then oven cleaner/ garbage bag/ sun. Then asses?
All it says is Made In The USA, and 3 qt on the bottom.
Worth the effort to restore?
So soak it in vinegar to loosen rust, then oven cleaner/ garbage bag/ sun. Then asses?
Gellar
Well-known member
Hell yea! It’s not much effort to restor a cast iron and it could be worth a lot or it could be worth nothing. But just think of the stories a 100 year pot can tell! I’m anxious to see the results.
