Sorry it wasn't a 11 it is a 9 from 1905-1906.. Beat up like Rocky after the first Apollo fight but still flat.
Good deal! Great pics, too. Thanks for posting. As long as they're flat, the coal damage doesn't really matter, right? Awesome score!
Feels weird to quote my own post. Anyways, turns out, this pan came back to me. I asked mom how she liked cooking with it, and she said the food turns out good, but it's pretty heavy for her (arthritis). And a bit more maintenance than normal cook ware. So, she told me to take it, because I appreciate cast iron. Otherwise it will just sit under her stove for years.
Anyone know the era of this Wagner pan/logo? For $26 I'm getting it either way! Update - I guess it's most likely from the teens, or 1920 at the latest. Not the highest priced pan on eBay, and I'm kinda surprised they aren't sold for more because it seems like a mint pan. Nice smooth cooking surface and a classic lightweight design. For $26 I'm happy with it and this will settle my cast iron hunting for a while....sadly.
Now there savemoney I happen to know a couple where she actually used the fry pan of him one evening, per reason number 13! The cops were called and took the pan into custody!
I'm staying busy, which is good! I'm waiting for the weather to break so I can get some new windows installed and "Much needed" house repairs going.
Cooking surface looks great, no real wobble to it. I cleaned out a few tiny rust spots inside and have commenced the seasoning process...trying the flax oil treatment on this one. Still can't figure out why the antique dealer, who's clearly a cast iron collector who has all his Griswolds priced at a premium, marked this so low. This pic is prior to any of the cleaning/re-seasoning.
Woody, have you checked it for "micro cracks"? It's easy. Hang it from a coat hanger by the handle or any piece of wire will do and tap the center of the pan with a wooden spoon or something as such. It should give you a nice clear ring. then, tap around the top edges lightly the same way around the pan. If you hear no "dull" or drastic change of pitch then the pan is just fine. You'll know it if you have a crack, even a small one, It's noticeable. My other thought with your pan is some folks only want Griswolds! It's kinda like only wanting a Winchester rifle when a Remington will do just fine... I like'm all!
As interesting as it is to collect and read about cast iron pans, it is also interesting to read and try recipes that are good for cooking in our loved cast iron. It might be good if we had a place to compile recipes and cookbooks specific to the cooking with cast iron. I have Kindle unlimited. with that I have free access or discounted prices for books. Here is a good one I have been reading: MY LODGE CAST IRON SKILLET COOKBOOK: 101 Popular & Delicious Cast Iron Skillet Recipes
Haven't tried this, but from what I can see the pan has no cracks and I've looked it over just about every time I've walked by it in the kitchen lol. One of those stop and stare and admire kind of things. It's down to bare metal so no carbon built up on it to cover anything up. But, good idea regardless and I will give it a try and certainly hope there's no hidden cracks. I'd much rather have just stumbled on a good deal! A close friend of mine has recently started to geek out a bit over cast iron since he acquired a few nice pieces from his Grandma. He called the Lodge headquarters and talked to a guy there who suggested sandblasting being the best way to restore old pans. Another place in town suggested throwing them into a fire because these pans are "completely indestructible"...I explained to him there's no reason to sandblast and that I'd plastic media blast them for him. Also explained that anyone claiming the pans are indestructible probably has little experience with them, and different types of metal in general. Cast iron anything, especially vintage, can be especially brittle if not treated right. Anyway, just got a bit of a kick outta all the different theories out there. I will always revert back to this thread when in need of GOOD advice.
Tried out two new cast iron pans this morning when cooking breakfast. (gas stove) They came "seasoned" both cheap pans from china. I wiped them out good. The first item I tried was bacon. I figured that bacon would give the fat needed to really bring the pans up to being what they need to be. After that, I cooked pan fries, the shredded kind. I used a lot of butter. I don't like the taste of oil on potato. Then I let the pans cool a bit, then put in more butter then fried eggs. The first eggs had that "pan too hot look" but the rest came out good. I wish I had some of my old pans back that I gave away but not feeling too bad about it because I gave them to my son who really likes them.
