OT. making frying pans question.

[DDoug]

my grandmother always served rancid leftovers , that had been in her freezer for who knows
how many years. freezer burn't to sludge . i don't miss her food. she assumed that if you
freeze spoiled food.....it will improve ...it doesn't .

yuck.

The "Freezer Museum" I kept refering to my mothers full sized upright freezer.

So many un-identifiable lumps of ice we tossed when we cleaned up/out.

 

[Ries]

Both my grandmothers, who lived thru the depression, were terrible cooks. The both loved TV dinners, non-stick cookware, and instant anything. That said, my maternal grandmother was still sneaking ciggy butts out by her oxygen tanks and living on oreos, hot dogs, and tv dinners, and really cheap cans of beer, at 100 years old. She died at 101, pissed off that she didnt beat HER mother, who made it to 102.
Age does not always confer wisdom.

 

[adamm]

In my small foundry I melt iron in 60 pound batches burning diesel.

Do you have this set-up documented anywhere on the web. It sounds interesting. I'm curious how it is laid out.

 

[dgfoster]

Do you have this set-up documented anywhere on the web. It sounds interesting. I'm curious how it is laid out.

Here are a couple vids to give you an overview. On a different web site devoted to small-operation casting I am an active member and have posted lots of details about all aspects of foundry work.

In this video I was experimenting iwth a sort of funnel-like add-on over the pouring basin. This is about a 65 pound pour:

And here is one which shows the hoist mechanism I designed and built to allow me to work solo safely.

I make straight edges of my own design for machinery rebuilders.

Denis

 

[Scottl]

Both my grandmothers, who lived thru the depression, were terrible cooks. The both loved TV dinners, non-stick cookware, and instant anything. That said, my maternal grandmother was still sneaking ciggy butts out by her oxygen tanks and living on oreos, hot dogs, and tv dinners, and really cheap cans of beer, at 100 years old. She died at 101, pissed off that she didnt beat HER mother, who made it to 102.
Age does not always confer wisdom.

Too bad, both my grandmothers came from more rural parts of Canada and were excellent cooks. The one on my dad's side baked homemade bread that was awesome! As a young girl she served as a cook on her father's Grand Banks fishing schooner during the season.

 

[plutoniumsalmon]

Thank you all. As far as casting I saw a video of an old dude doing train parts or something. Looks doable if unnecessary for me. Also I bought a finex. Have been making hash browns and corn bread.

 

[jccaclimber]

<snip> The magic is in the finishing although "as cast" will smooth out with seasoning, which is actually baked on carbon. I have an old USA made 10" lodge that was given me by a dear friend who is now deceased. The finish is definitely "as cast". I also have a newer cast iron pan from Lehman's that has been ground smooth and nitrided. It still required seasoning.
<snip>

This was not my experience. Growing up we had some ancient Wagner and similar pans. Easy to care for, worked well, and never gave it a second thought.
Got married and my wife wanted a cast iron pan. Her mom got us a new Lodge for around $20, rough cast on the inside. Several dozen rounds of bacon or sausage and eggs later it still sucked to use. I noticed on the next trip home that my parents' pans were ground (or something) on the inside. Clearly not from wear as you could see the rings on the inner walls which were also smooth. Returning home I took a flap disc to the Lodge until it was smooth and one round of bacon later things didn't stick anymore.

Had to get another one a few years later and I roughed the center quickly on a knee mill before hitting the edges with the flap disc. Like the first Lodge it took a few weeks to darken up, but it functioned as intended after a single cooking of bacon and hasn't given us any issues since.

Cleaning is typically a couple wipes with the metal pad of your choice to break off the burnt bits followed by one pass with a rag to get any excess grease, followed by a trip back to the burner to dry. I'm not actually sure this last part is needed, but at least it's back at the point of use for next time.

 

[72bwhite]

Yup aluminum fairly easy to melt and cast
Copper alloys harder because of higher temp and other things.
Then there is cast iron only the best backyard foundry’s can manage that,
Just because of the temperature involved and it’s heavy.
Only melted iron once and man the heat coming off everything.
Those who do it in a home furnace have very large brass balls, that they possibly cast earlier.

 

[pavt]

Been using my great grandma's 12" Griswold skillet for my entire life. Wouldn't have it any other way -- very smooth and controllable. Cleanup isn't too bad either. FWIW, I prefer to cook with gas.

 

[thermite]

Only melted iron once and man the heat coming off everything.
Those who do it in a home furnace have very large brass balls, that they possibly cast earlier.

USED to have, you mean.

Git to workin' real ARN the puny fuggers just MELT run down yer USWA Union legs, and fugup yer steel-toad boot tops!



Back-yard furnace?

Pilgrim? Whole lines of Bessemer converters were still hard at work, my hometown, "back in the day".

You have no klew what HEAT IS until you have met an open-hearth at full-gallop!

https://www.amazon.com/Pittsburgh-Universe-Frank-C-Harper/dp/B000H3WZ4E

Used to be - ends at open hearth:

The Drama of Steel - YouTube

More recent - basic oxygen an electric arc cometh;

UNITED STATES STEEL CORPORATION MODERN STEEL MAKING PROMOTIONAL FILM MD86474 - YouTube

Note "precise amounts of nickel and Chromium..." tossed-in by guys with coal shovels..

 

[DDoug]

USED to have, you mean.

Git to workin' real ARN the puny fuggers just MELT run down yer USWA Union legs, and fugup yer steel-toad boot tops!



Back-yard furnace?

Pilgrim? Whole lines of Bessemer converters were still hard at work, my hometown, "back in the day".

You have no klew what HEAT IS until you have met an open-hearth at full-gallop!

https://www.amazon.com/Pittsburgh-Universe-Frank-C-Harper/dp/B000H3WZ4E

Used to be - ends at open hearth:

The Drama of Steel - YouTube

More recent - basic oxygen an electric arc cometh;

UNITED STATES STEEL CORPORATION MODERN STEEL MAKING PROMOTIONAL FILM MD86474 - YouTube

Note "precise amounts of nickel and Chromium..." tossed-in by guys with coal shovels..

Yup, I worked with a guy that used to work tapping the open hearths at Armco in butler.

He told me "You can't imagine the heat, it takes your breath away."

 

[thermite]

Yup, I worked with a guy that used to work tapping the open hearths at Armco in butler.

He told me "You can't imagine the heat, it takes your breath away."

Nature of the beast. If you have not already read it?

https://www.amazon.com/Out-This-Furnace-Immigrant-America/dp/0822952734

The scary part is how little had changed by the time I was handed my USWA Union Contract book.

Not how much had changed.

 

[toolsteel]

Mrs. Toolsteel V2.0 and I use cast iron. Many of them we got when my "Late Great" Grandmother passed away (if she were on this site I suspect her screen name would be "Wrought Iron" or maybe "work hardened" ) Hers were mostly Griswold
The rest of them we have picked up at garage sales and auctions for $3-$5. Best score was a cast Iron Dutch oven for $5 at a garage sale. Seasoning them is pretty easy. Best part is it seemed like whatever we bought other than cast iron needed to be replaced every 3 years or so....not with cast iron.....and V2.0 says her swing has improved with them as well......
Side note.....when Granny (she loved us calling her Granny) found out I was going to school for machining / manufacturing she was SO EXCITED....I was pretty proud of her approving of my choice of careers...A couple of months into school I found out why Granny was excited....she slyly asked me if I could build her a still similar to the one she remembered her father using....amazing what some of us will do for an old woman...especially if she sweetens the deal with 3 bottles of dandelion wine and a copy of her recipe

 

[thermite]

Mrs. Toolsteel V2.0 and I use cast iron. Many of them we got when my "Late Great" Grandmother passed away (if she were on this site I suspect her screen name would be "Wrought Iron" or maybe "work hardened" ) Hers were mostly Griswold
The rest of them we have picked up at garage sales and auctions for $3-$5. Best score was a cast Iron Dutch oven for $5 at a garage sale. Seasoning them is pretty easy. Best part is it seemed like whatever we bought other than cast iron needed to be replaced every 3 years or so....not with cast iron.....and V2.0 says her swing has improved with them as well......
Side note.....when Granny (she loved us calling her Granny) found out I was going to school for machining / manufacturing she was SO EXCITED....I was pretty proud of her approving of my choice of careers...A couple of months into school I found out why Granny was excited....she slyly asked me if I could build her a still similar to the one she remembered her father using....amazing what some of us will do for an old woman...especially if she sweetens the deal with 3 bottles of dandelion wine and a copy of her recipe

ROFL! WBGVA G'mum was as strict as anti-drink ever got! English G'Mum in Pittsburgh would send Uncle out for "some of that very nice grape juice!" they only stocked at the liquor store for some odd reason? "Martell Cordon Bleu" I think it was? Cudda fooled me. Didn't taste like Welch's at ALL! I'd have figured any grape it had ever gotten near was badly mauled by an incompetent taxidermist.

Meanwhile, back in Appalachia ..

5,000 cider-apple trees no longer worth the hired-help to pick, press, and jug as the depression wore on then continued into a manpower-short World War?

G'Dad's "Home-made Blackberry Wine" became as famous as it was in constant demand.

Mind a VERY FEW gallons of it had to colour-up one HELL of a lot of pale-purple-fiery and knock-you-d'rectly on your ass... West Virginia Moon.... as earned more off the apples than cider ever had!

"WHITE" lightning was for the uneducated who only followed strong drink. Surely not for the discerning who were ever-so-much more genteel and cultured?

So long as your ass didn't BOUNCE when that purplish rocket-fuel had its way!

Was a tad "over the top", ration-size-wise ... to serve it out in pint Mason Jars!

By the time I got to breathing reg'lar enough to ask the grown-ups why a kid wasn't allowed as much as they were?

Couldn't get a damned ONE of 'em to pay a lick of attention to the question!

Dangerous Lead-soldered old car radiator?

Oh, Hell no!

Solid copper and proper flare fittings!

He weren't the B&O Railroad's Roundhouse Foreman by no accident of ignorance about how steam was meant to function!

 

[tnmgcarbide]

The "Freezer Museum" I kept refering to my mothers full sized upright freezer.

So many un-identifiable lumps of ice we tossed when we cleaned up/out.

modern freezers are frostless... as in thaw/freeze. not the same as a deep freeze . they chill/thaw to not
create that wall of ice that old-ass or cheap-o fridges create. it results in freezer-burn,however...
so you'd better not put meats or fish or ice cream near the walls . spinach, kale, aguar ,beans etc don't
care....bulletproof.

 

[tnmgcarbide]

eating raul. best frying pan movie.

 

[thermite]

modern freezers are frostless... as in thaw/freeze. not the same as a deep freeze . they chill/thaw to not
create that wall of ice that old-ass or cheap-o fridges create. it results in freezer-burn,however...
so you'd better not put meats or fish or ice cream near the walls . spinach, kale, aguar ,beans etc don't
care....bulletproof.

"Freezer burn" is easily prevented with better bagging.

Wife is habituated to "many wraps" of ignorant "Stretch-Tite", Good stuff. Just not "perfect".

I don't argue. I just police 'em up and drop what WILL suffer into a Zip-Lock, label it....

and date it with a Sharpie. As I have learnt to do on ALL foodstuffs.
Periodically check the dates, queue-up older goods - use 'em or lose 'em.

To make safe and wise use of pickled, dried, smoked. tinned, and frozen?
One MUST be willing to throw some of it away now and then, and not be hesitant about it.

If G'Mothers and Aunts didn't train you up? Here's an easy-read starting point:

https://www.amazon.com/Putting-Food-Fifth-Ruth-Hertzberg/dp/0452296226

KNOWING HOW foodstuffs got INTO a container is useful even if you never even once DIY.

Might not want to read this in the same week, but it too, is core info we should all be more aware of:

https://www.amazon.com/Parasites-We-Humans-Harbor/dp/0525666931