Griswold #8 704X skillet

[EdP]

Hello all,
I was at a local flea market recently and found a Griswold #8 704X skillet. Except for being the nastiest skillet in terms of years of baked on grease ' lard I have ever found, it sits solidly flat, no cracks/welds/rust pits. However there appears to be a couple or so of small pits about the size of #6 birdshot which looks as if it was made by air bubble during molding process...just a best guess. There appears to be many cross section markings from knifemarks of baking a lot of cornbread! Once the lye bath is done, I can get a better view. It is soaking in a lye bath now. According to the resources here, it is a 3-1/4 in block logo, 1920-1940.

[Shawn R]

Are those pictures of your new skillet "as found"? Sure doesn't look very nasty.

As for the pits, I don't know the answer for sure. Air bubbles sound as good as anything to me. Sure will make a great user!

[Dan Farmer]

Originally Posted by Shawn R

Are those pictures of your new skillet "as found"? Sure doesn't look very nasty.

No kidding!!

[EdP]

Originally Posted by Shawn R

Are those pictures of your new skillet "as found"? Sure doesn't look very nasty.

As for the pits, I don't know the answer for sure. Air bubbles sound as good as anything to me. Sure will make a great user!

Shawn - Yea, they are. I should have taken some pictures around the outside near pouring spouts and handle. Trust me, the baked on grease 'n lard was thick 'n hard like dried Elmer's glue. I am sure there has been worse CI out there. I took it out of lye bath earlier and it was beginning to look pretty good. But honestly, a few inches out from inside center of skillet, the baked on grease was like the side of skillet; it had a hardened texture like dried Elmer's glue. So, I loosed it up a little with #400 grit sandpaper (I will probably get 50 lashes for this but...) and it turned out there was a bit of light rust under the baked on grease around the inside sidewalls as on the bottom. Loss of the patina was not bad at all. I could still see the circular machine marks on the inside walls, so I stayed with the grain, so to speak, as I scrubbed with the sandpaper. So I decided to stop the sandpaper, keep as much as the original patina as reasonably possible and stick it back in the lye bath. On the flip side of using sandpaper, it yielded a very, very, very, very smooth finish. So, the lesson I learned as far as using sandpaper is that it is a judgement call. The birdshot size holes are so worn from use, it is hard to tell if it was rust pits or bubble holes from molding process. I would like to think that Griswold did a better job in their manufacturing process than this, so I conclude that it is rust pits from long ago. Someone correct me if I am wrong on this, though. I'm beginning to think this pan has seen more than one family/kitchen then to storage maybe in a barn then back to another family/kitchen, and so on, as old as it is. Btw, I paid $50...a little steep but, oh well.

[Doug D.]

400 grit will not cause a problem as long as confined to already polish ground cooking surfaces. It is fine enough so as not to leave swirl marks on those areas. It is sometimes useful on stubborn stains on those areas. Going with the direction of the original polishing is still a good idea. Using sandpaper or other metal-removing abrasives on "as cast" surfaces, however, will burnish the high spots undesirably, causing a change in the original texture and also diminishing collectible value.

[EdP]

Originally Posted by Doug D.

400 grit will not cause a problem as long as confined to already polish ground cooking surfaces. It is fine enough so as not to leave swirl marks on those areas. It is sometimes useful on stubborn stains on those areas. Going with the direction of the original polishing is still a good idea. Using sandpaper or other metal-removing abrasives on "as cast" surfaces, however, will burnish the high spots undesirably, causing a change in the original texture and also diminishing collectible value.

Thanks, Doug. No, I wouldn't sandpaper anywhere on the outside. The bottom of pan was ok and around the outside are cleaning up ok.

[EdP]

Well, finally got this old pan cleaned and seasoned. Note the rust holes inside and knife marks. I couldn't see this many holes before. But still very functional. I like to fry bacon or sausage a few times after a cleaning and initial seasoning to help build seasoning. More knife marks can be seen at right angle of light, though. And I did have a pic of the exterior that shows some heavy crusty burnt grease on the outside. The bottom looks ok too. Overall, I'm happy with it.

[DSBradley]

It just looks well loved is all. Sometimes it's about the value, and sometimes it's about the love.

[EdP]

Originally Posted by DSBradley

It just looks well loved is all. Sometimes it's about the value, and sometimes it's about the love.

Yea, DSBradley, it has been well loved. Its a keeper.

[Shawn R]

Originally Posted by EC_Price

Yea, DSBradley, it has been well loved. Its a keeper.

Looks like a great pan for everyday use. Those spots will fill in over time and will only get better.