Show off your cast iron

[Echo2]

Snapped a pic of what was in the cabinet...

http://i1277.photobucket.com/albums/y484/echo26c/castiron_zps395fe472.jpg

internal racks.....

http://i1277.photobucket.com/albums/y484/echo26c/castiron2_zps55785057.jpg

I'll get a pic of what's in the chuck box later....and I'll have to find a pic of some of the stuff at work waiting to be refinished....:)

[Willie51]

Echo, I like these bud. Especially the one on the very top right. My mom and dad used to collect these. If I'm correct , it has feet on the bottom and a lip on the lid for actually setting in the fire and then putting some coals on top of the lid too. These are pricy at the antique shops :)

[Echo2]

Yup....got feet and the lid lip.....It's had many of cobbler cooked in it.....and a few dozen loaves of artisan bread.....a few stews....but we generally use a stew pot for that.

We will occasionally slow cook a pot of beans in it....over this....

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8427/7570473000_2dc72e98cc.jpg

[bacpacker]

Looks nice Echo. I really like your stove/grill. Homemade???

We have several pieces and are getting a few more along the way. We have a Lodge outlet store about an bour from here. Found a 14" skillet last time we were up there. Got a 5 qt dutch oven with out legs a while back. I have also gotten some iron online from avri supply.com. Its not ladge wear but nice and heavy anyway.

I just got a large cast Wok I plan on tryin out a stir fry in this weekend. The wife has got to where she likes using cast better than anything else.

[Willie51]

^ I like! BTW, the ones with feet and lid lips that I saw a couple of weeks ago in the antique store were $200 & $250. I want one, but I will have to find a deal someday.

[bacpacker]

Willie i can find those new around here in 5, 6, & I think 8 qt models for under $60 at a few places here. Gander mtn, dicks, bass pro, & the outlet store.

[Echo2]

Looks nice Echo. I really like your stove/grill. Homemade???


Yup....made a pile of them....this is the last of them.

and I'm to the point of just trying to find a disc off a plow to make a monster wok....:)

- - - Updated - - -


Willie i can find those new around here in 5, 6, & I think 8 qt models for under $60 at a few places here. Gander mtn, dicks, bass pro, & the outlet store.

Yup....if you have a NorthWest TrueValue....they can get them too.

[Echo2]

I'm trying to score a 25 gallon copper cauldron....I friend of mine had a relative pass away....it was in the loft of one of the out buildings.....He has to check with out of state siblings.

It's sitting in his garage now.....cant wait.

There was an wooden paddle there....but was pretty well trashed....figure it was for the apple butter...and the mice chewed the wood.

[tkemedic]

Sam's and Dunham's also has the ones that have the lip and feet fir under $80.

[helomech]

I have the normal cast iron skillets and pots, but this is my favorite thing to cook on.

http://i266.photobucket.com/albums/ii247/helomech1973/home/IMG_1573_zpsdd35550e.jpg

http://i266.photobucket.com/albums/ii247/helomech1973/home/IMG_1566.jpg

[ladyhk13]

Great stuff! Wait until Izzy sees this thread. I believe he totally loves cast iron. When I was growing up we used it and my mom had one that was flat, round and had a tiny lip around the edge and was perfect for eggs or pancakes. Wish she still had that one.

[Echo2]

Spoon cradle....

http://i1277.photobucket.com/albums/y484/echo26c/castiron3_zps3b0a5a51.jpg

Ones at shop waiting refinishing....

http://i1277.photobucket.com/albums/y484/echo26c/castiron4_zpsa6dd4e0e.jpg

[Evolver]

What do you do when you refinish?

[Echo2]

What do you do when you refinish?

electrolysis.....in a big plastic drum and a battery charger.

Then on the grill with rendered bacon grease....many times over.

[Willie51]

electrolysis.....in a big plastic drum and a battery charger.

Then on the grill with rendered bacon grease....many times over.

Maybe you could elaborate the electrolysis setup sometime. I understand electrolysis but would like to know the details on setup and maybe some pics.

[Evolver]

I knew you knew better than to put a coating on it of some sort but I thought I would just check. :o Re-seasoning with a electrolysis twist is what your doing then. :cool:

[Echo2]

This is the article I first read about the process....




The following rust removal setup work great for those pots that are really rusted up. I use this setup a couple of times a year when friends bring me their negelected cast iron and when I find a D.O at a yard sale or a thrift shop. This info is from a site that I sometimes visit, especially when I think I have found a really old piece of cast iron-mostly though it turns out the the piece just "looks" really old.


Rust Reduction Electrolysis Setup

Rust reduction via electrolysis is almost harder to say than it is to set up. While it appears to be a way to remove rust, it is actually a rust reduction method whereby hard red rust (ferrous oxide) is reduced to soft black rust (ferric oxide). There is not much to setting up an electrolysis bath and this simple process will produce spectacular results on rustiest, crustiest, carbon-caked cast iron utensils you can find. There are only four components necessary for the entire setup...

1. A Battery Charger.
While any charger will work, a 12-volt charger capable of 35 to 40 amps is ideal. A 6-volt charger or a trickle charger will work, but will be extremely slow.

2. A non-conductive tu b or container.
This is to hold the solution and must be non-metallic. A five gallon bucket, an old cooler, a Rubber-Maid tub, a plastic 55 gallon barrel, anything that will hold the rusty utensil will work.

3. A non-conductive rack to hold the cast iron away from the anode. A plastic parts bin or dish rack will work nicely.

4. A supply of Sodium Carbonate. This is to create an electrolyte solution that is capable of carrying the current created by the battery charger. Two readily available sources are "PH+" (a swimming pool additive available at Wal-Mart or any pool supply house), or "ARM and HAMMER WASHING SODA" (Not Baking SODA). This is a laundry detergent available at most grocery stores. It’s in a big yellow box just like the baking soda and is found with the Tide, Oxi-Clean, Clorox, etc... Use 1 Tablespoon per gallon of water in your container. This does not have to be an exact measurement. Another measurement is two handfuls per every five gallons. Make sure the soda is well dissolved in the water.

5. Two chunks of metal. The one you want to clean and another you don’t. Any cast iron cooking utensil can be cleaned. Cooked on carbon, rusty, and the worse it is the better it will look. The other piece is technically called the anode. It is what we will be electroplating with the rust from our good piece. Just about anything metallic can be used for your anode. Re-bar, angle iron, coffee cans, shovels, cultivator sweeps, whatever you have handy. The ultimate is stainless steel as it will be less affected by the process, but don’t use your wife’s stainless steel potato masher without permission (voice of experience here). The larger the surface area of the anode and the more it surrounds the article to be cleaned the better. Try a coffee can with the lid flipped up and the side split and spread out. It makes an easy one to start with. Now comes the fun part.

You must rig your setup in such a way so as to suspend the article to be cleaned next to but not touching the anode. Old dishwasher racks, bolts, c-clamps, bar clamps, duct tape, baling wire, let your imagination run wild. The desired result will have the anode secured and the part to be cleaned next to, above, or below it but again not touching. If something doesn’t look right, stick your hand in the water and straighten it out. The solution is harmless. Make sure it is secure enough so that a bump won’t tip something over. Now for the critical part... the red (positive) battery clamp must be attached to the anode (scrap piece), and the black (negative) clamp MUST be attached to the part to be cleaned!!!

Now hook your red clamp to your scrap iron and the black clamp to your griddle. Make sure you have a good connection. Use copper wire and more clamps if you need to completely submerge your piece. If it will only partially fit in the tub, you can turn it over and do it in two or more sessions. There will be no lap marks. Try not to allow the red clamp to come into contact with the solution as it will be attacked by the process. The other (black lead) may come in contact with the solution but will have to be cleaned frequently.

Now turn the charger on! If equipped the charger amp gauge will jump slightly. Bubbles should immediately start coming from around the iron pan. If not, check your connections. Make sure you have good metal to metal contact at all points. Let it run for an hour or so and check your results. Always turn off the charger before playing in the solution. If you don’t it will let you know. You will see a black coating on the cleaned part. This can be removed by an air compressor or by washing. Bare metal will lie underneath. The bubbling action is what cleans the cooked on carbon off. Sometimes it needs a little more time to clean. But this method is self-correcting in that you cannot over cook it. The clean metal will stay just the way it is and the crud will be removed. Let it cook for 6 or 8 hours and come back to it. The carbon will fall off. Polish it a bit with your favorite method if you want, but it is not necessary. Season it soon as it is extremely susceptible to rusting at this point. Now go show it off to your spouse.

JUST A COUPLE WORDS OF CAUTION. The bubbles coming from the process are pure hydrogen. It is extremely flammable. Do not set it up by an open pilot light, and make sure you have some ventilation. Failure to do so will probably wind you up on the Darwin List.

The solution will become rather ‘horrible’ looking in just a short time. But the solution will last forever. Only add water for whatever evaporates, as the sodium carbonate will stay suspended. When you can’t take the look anymore, simply dump it out in the yard. It is iron enriched laundry water at this point.

Be ingenious with your setup. Try whatever seems right. Hook two anodes together with a copper wire and do two sides at once. Find something plastic to set your part in. Resurrect that old cooler with no lid and set it up. Hit the brakes hard and have your spouse grab that great looking piece of stainless in the barrow pit. Start buying those really rusty pieces of iron because you love the challenge. Try it once and you’ll never go back. And all that old iron will love you for it...

[Echo2]

I use a 55 gallon drum....a craftsman 40 amp charger....and suspend with 1/4" copper grounding wire.....rebar works for the sacrificial metal.

Any one in the SW Va area is more than welcome to drop off some pieces they want done this way....I'll be doing some at the end of the month at my shop.

I'll take pics of the setup and try to give some detailed instructions with the pics.

[Willie51]

Hey folks, I was at wallymart in the hunting section and saw a Lodge 8 qt. camping dutch oven. It has the legs and lipped lid like Echos. It was on the bottom shelf and they only had one. It was $59.88 so I grabbed it....couldn't help myself. :o

[Sniper-T]

Here's a link to an old thread, there's some links to some recipes and another on the second page for a decently priced dealer

http://www.shtfready.com/threads/754-Dutch-Ovens?highlight=CAST+IRON

[FL-Jeeper]

Excellent thread! I've long had a soft spot for cast iron & my favorite piece is grandaddy's 10" round griddle/skillet lookin thing. I have no idea how old it is but after a session with a heavy wire wheel & reseasoning, it still makes perfect pancakes. I never knew how to perform the electrolysis process described but you can bet your ass I'll be scrounging local yard sales for the gnarliest, cheapest POS cast iron cookware I can find now!

[izzyscout21]

Wow.................this thread is awesome..............I loves me some cast iron.......

[ak474u]

Really cool article on electrolysis, I suppose this could be used for cleaning old iron decorative shelf brackets and antique stuff, that is, if you wanted it to look new. It also gives me an idea for making hydrogen for my blimp, what could go wrong? Lol

[Taz Baby]

Just found this while looking at griswald cast iron collecting tricks. I love cast iron cookware but I will only buy old griswald. But anywho here ya go.

Numbers & Letters

Numbers

Skillet size number with pattern letter.Regardless of what other markings or logos the major foundries incised into their products, common among nearly all vintage pieces-- whether they be skillets, dutch ovens, waffle irons, or griddles-- are size numbers.

Often, the assumption is erroneously made that the large numeral, found normally either on the top of the handle or on the bottom of a piece, indicates its diameter in inches. A measurement of both the top and the bottom rim of a pan, however, will quickly confirm that the number has nothing to do with either dimension.


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

http://www.castironcollector.com/images/tmbanner.jpg

[bacpacker]

Cool info Taz. I had never paid much attention to the markings, sure didn't know what they were for.

[Sniper-T]

I believe i mentioned earlier that I picked up a few pieces of cheap chinese cast iron for stupid cheap... During my couple weeks away, I cooked exclusively on them on the propane stove in my stand-alone camper hunting shack, and they performed beautifully.

Had they been shit, it was no big deal, as I had a place to stay/cook nearby, and could borrow/buy new cookware.

But I had a 6 and an 8 inch frypan, that I did everything in from full meals to boiling water for coffee. NO complaints.

I LOVE cast!!!

btw... 6" pan 2.99
8" pan 3.99

[Possom]

http://www.cafepress.com/+womens_boy_brief,432316109

[ladyhk13]

I found the coolest pieces not long ago. A pot (not real big) with a smaller pot inside and a ladle like thing to match. I haven't looked for any markings but it's almost like a mini Dutch oven without a lid. I need to soak it in vinegar to clean it up but it's in good condition. The tag at the antique shop said they are rare, I've never seen anything like it before.

[Sniper-T]

let's see some pics LH...
sounds intriguing

[Socalman]

About 7 years ago my son took one of my mothers cast iron to use with his gas grill for making blackened fish, etc. Long story short, it sat outside for several years, and rusted badly. A few months ago I cleaned it up by following a YouTube video and re-seasoned it. After some time now it has become my favorite pan and works well for many things. It is a Wagner from Sydney, Ohio. I am guessing that my mother originally got the set sometime around the time she got married. That would date it back to the early 1930's.

A reported bonus to using cast iron is that minute amounts of iron leech into the food and provide a good nutritional benefit. Not sure if that is true or not.

[ak474u]

A buddy posted a pic of the food he cooked in his cast iron frying pan from 1862. He's got an electrolysis rig, and he's got the clean up and restoration thing down.

[Sniper-T]

I found a pan in a midden pile about 25 years ago... it was a solid mass of rust. I wire brushed it, treated it, and did it again 3 times, before it was decent. then I re-seasoned it...

here it is right now, with some spaghetti squash seeds that I toasted last night:
http://i605.photobucket.com/albums/tt140/Sniper-T/0113151941a_zpsc9414d9d.jpg (http://s605.photobucket.com/user/Sniper-T/media/0113151941a_zpsc9414d9d.jpg.html)