Machining cast iron cookware

[david n]

Heck....just source some D-2 plate.....

Cast has pores.......................

 

[DDoug]

Cast has pores.......................

McDonalds seems to understand this quite well eh ?

 

[duckman]

I have and use a huge quantity of Griswold CI from a #0 to a #14 frying pans #14 is the largest that GW made if mine get a little sticky after cooking bacon I just use a plain steel spatula upside down and scrape the bottom till its not sticky, I would never pour water into a hot CI pan to easy to crack them, then you have a nice paper weight.

 

[BoxcarPete]

I have and use a huge quantity of Griswold CI from a #0 to a #14 frying pans #14 is the largest that GW made if mine get a little sticky after cooking bacon I just use a plain steel spatula upside down and scrape the bottom till its not sticky, I would never pour water into a hot CI pan to easy to crack them, then you have a nice paper weight.

When I say "hot" I don't mean "sear your meat hot" but more like a "if I were showering in this water I'd turn it down" hot. Usually lines up pretty well with the end of a meal. Leave the pan on the stove while we eat, and go back for it right away before it cools all the way down. I would never put water in a pan hot enough to flash boil it, that's too much thermal stress.

The temperature shock from a slab of pork going in the pan on heat is probably significantly higher than the effort it needs to put in to get warm wash water to uncomfortably hot wash water.

I've always wanted to try induction, but I've just gotten tuned in to the gas burners here at the new house, and I don't have enough counter space to go adding things right now. Maybe someday when gas stoves are finally outlawed, I'll still be cooking on these pans

 

[Joe Gwinn]

I would never pour water into a hot CI pan to easy to crack them, then you have a nice paper weight.

I've been pouring a half-cop of warm water into a 10" or 12" Lodge skillet that is around 500 F (bacon grease smokes) for years, without any effect other than getting a clean skillet.

 

[Joe Gwinn]

McDonalds seems to understand this quite well eh ?

I learned the water trick at a McDonalds when I was about 18. Their griddle was a 4' by 8' sheet of hot rolled steel, from the looks. It was not all that thick, maybe 0.5", and so cannot have been cast iron - too fragile.

 

[PackardV8]

A few years back I got a spectacular Griswold 14" skillet (small logo) at an estate sale. Prices on the cast iron in the house were pretty high. Fortunately it was out in a workshop, filled with junk.

It is a great casting, and surprisingly light for the size. Slight gotcha - it is a 'spinner' - there is a low spot in the center of the cooking surface due to some past thermal trauma. I have wondered if there is a way to correct that. It is probably more of a theoretical question because I'm not going to risk cracking it.

As to the risk of cracking it, in my experience, heat seldom-to-never cracks cast iron. It's sudden localized cooling or sharp impact which will be fatal.

I've had mixed success correcting warped bottoms. Sometimes they come back; sometimes they don't. The thicker the pan, the more likely it is to pull back flat. If a thinner pan has really been hit with cold water, it ain't coming back. However, in a dozen times doing these, I've never cracked a cast iron pan with these methods.

1. Put the pan upside down on the lower shelf of an electric self-cleaning oven and set the timer for three hours. The oven heats slowly and evenly and cools the same way.

2. Put the pan in a wood stove or a fireplace with a good fire going, then leave it there overnight as the fire dies and cools.

3. Hang the pan from a sturdy hook so there is full access to all sides. Fire up the rosebud torch and move it around to evenly heat the pan to red hot. Then, turn down the torch to low and move it around just the outside rim of the pan. The idea is to keep the outside warm as the warped center cools. Sometimes, this will pull out the warpage.

Your results may vary, so maybe you should just send me that useless pan.

jack vines