Can I get opinion on this #10 Gris ??

Way too much money. They do go for that high, but it's a bit silly to pay that much for one. I don't personally think you need a lid, unless you just want one. Save the lid for the deep fryer or dutch oven you want. Skillet lids are insanely priced right now.

I just got a second series Erie No. 10 with makers mark for $135 including shipping, and I probably overpaid. You should be able to find a small logo 10 for a good bit less than that. There is one sitting in an antique store right now at my hometown for $55. Has a minor warp in the bottom, but would still work well. With the exception of a grooved handle #10, paying anywhere near that much for a small logo skillet is just getting too hasty. Save your money for a truly nice piece and if you just need a user for now look to keep it at $75-$90 tops, I'd think.

Here is an Erie with 17 hours left on it at $76 + $13 currently.

Here is a Wagner, BIN at $65 + $20, still too much but way better than $300.

Here is a 60s Wagner #10 currently at $9 + $15 with less than two days left on it.

I don't endorse any of these auctions; these are just examples of 5 minutes worth of looking that would be better to keep any eye on than dropping that much money at a dedicated vintage cast iron store, IMO.

Also, where are you located? Finding a #10 with a day's worth of interstate antique store shopping with decent pricing is not THAT hard...
 
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If a #10 smooth bottom user is what you need, and you want a quality pan without spending a fortune, look for unmarked Wagners from the period they were still polishing them. They just say "11-3/4 Inch Skillet" on the bottom at 6 o'clock, and sometimes Made In USA under that. When you find them in the wild, they can often be had quite inexpensively, as they don't say Wagner on them, but are every bit as good as a marked one (or a SBL Griswold for that matter).
 
It's not just ebay that has crazy prices. Saw A Wagner 1891 11-3/4" at a thrift store yesterday for $45. Man was that thing heavy!!!

Went back after work today (trying to kill time while traffic cleared out a bit) The 1891 was gone, but there was a Lodge Wok (The one with assist & long handle) with flash rust for $15. I bought the Wok! Being cleaned as I type this. :icon_thumbsup:

Same thrift store a few months ago. Erie bulged 3-legged pot. $14.

Patience & persistence pays off. Visit a flea market once and don't find anything, the time you don't go someone will tell you the story about the cast iron guy trying to get rid of a lifelong collection for pennies on the dollar.
 
Many thanks all! I hear you on the lid, I think I'll pass on that. Otherwise, I'm really looking for an exceptionally intact piece. I'd really like a perfect inside finish with zero wobble Again, I'm buying it for performance and I like the Griswolds.

I'll have a look at those links. Thanks very much. I'm really very grateful
 
I have a Wagner unmarked Chicken Fryer with a Griswold lid that is displayed on the site you posted. I got it for $5.00 at a garage sale by merely asking if they had any cast iron for sale. That was like 10 years ago. I also got a #12 BSR unmarked the fellow just threw in because it was pretty grungy. That Wagner has the slightest amount of wobble and works like a champ. I've seen several like it on Ebay for 1/4 of the price posted on the site you offered. If I go to buy a piece off Ebay, you can bet the seller is going to get tired of answering my questions.
 
IMO....I like having the lid, kind of the "whole package", BUT I also agree that prices have skyrocketed in the last 6 months....and unless you can find a flee market bargain, it may not be worth it
 
I'm noticing the crazy ebay prices are now bleeding over into the flea market scene. What would have been $10-15 last year is more like $25-35 this year. :headpop:
 
Picked up am unmarked Wagner #12 for $10 last weekend. Ugly but a great used, They are still out there. Enjoy the hunt
 
ebay pans listed as "mint" or "near Mint" with large logos have been selling for $200-$275. Really insane.
 
$180 +$25 shipping for a small logo.... Nope....

Hard to tell from the photo on the $110 one, (Which is the one I would buy if I were you) It almost looks like there might be pitting on the left side cooking surface by the pour spout. I would send the seller a message asking for a better photo. If it's clean, that one is the one I would get.

If you're just looking for a cooker...

Unmarked Wagner: http://www.ebay.com/itm/271841195908 $36 shipped.
Marked Wagner: http://www.ebay.com/itm/281665062106 $70 shipped.
Small logo Griswold: http://www.ebay.com/itm/181720394921 $61 shipped.


This is the kind of skillet I usually buy, http://www.ebay.com/itm/281667288418 Right Jeffrey?
 
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http://www.ebay.com/itm/Griswold-10...496?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2ee0b7fb98

There is some pitting in this otherwise nice pan.

$_57.JPG


Seems like a bigger blemish than I would want, especially for $200
 
I'm going to throw this out FWIW. I have acquired 5 vintage name brand #10 skillets in just over the past two years, 4 within 30 miles of my house, all at antique stores or flea markets, for a total of $133. The most I paid for any one was $50, which was its asking price, and I was happy to pay it. They include a Griswold LBL HR, 2 WWSO smooth bottoms, a BSR Red Mountain, and a 1950s Lodge 3-notch. They are all perfect with no damage or defect.
 
If we forgot about the price for a moment, that pitting would make take that pan off my list.

The pitting is not too bad and would fill in pretty quickly with regular use.

Now to return to price, for $200 I would expect it to be absolutely pristine. Even then, I don't know that I would pay that much. It really depends on how much it means to you relative to someone else. If you're trying to complete a set of smooth-bottomed LBL skillets then it's probably worth more to you than someone just looking for a #10 to cook with.

For what it's worth, I have the same pan in comparable condition that I picked up at an antique mall a few months back for $70. For me that was a stretch on price, but I had received cash as a gift to use on CI purchase(s) so I went with it. It is the most I've ever paid for a piece, and it is my most frequently used pan. The blemishes on the cooking surface have filled in, and it is nice and smooth now. I'll try to remember later to take a picture of what it looks like now and post it for you. Here's what it looked like when I bought it and cleaned it up:



All that said, I also have a 1950s #10 Lodge with considerably more cooking surface pitting that I picked up for cheap, and it works just as well if not better than the Griswold. I just use the Griswold more often because it's prettier and I keep it on the stove top for display :)
 
Love the pics John. Thanks for that.

My other skillets are large logo Gris. I like the original machining marks, and that's what I'm looking for

---------- Post added at 01:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:28 AM ----------

So that bit of pitting seems OK... Hmmm...
 
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