Kevin Meares
New member
...and liking it (I think!).
A little more info will be required (like what is lurking under the crud and rust), but so far so good. I didn't know what a "Griswold" was yesterday, much less a slant logo, or what "Made in USA" signified to CI collectors, or what "CI" might have meant, for that matter, before I dropped $250 in a local thrift store for five grungy skillets and a muffin pan with spider webs (not the coveted logo, of course--the less sexy kind).
After scouring eBay for a couple hours (where did the time go?), I gained a general idea of what I had just purchased, and I filled in some of the gaps this morning after searching this site and a couple YouTube videos. So here is what I think I just bought:
1. Griswold slant logo, "9" that is crusty, worn, and a little rusty. I'm hoping it cleans up nicely, but the heat ring is pretty worn and a couple rust spots have tiny chips there, so I'm tempering my expectations, here. I paid $75 for it.
2. Wagner Ware, Sidney-O-, with stylized logo. It's a 10 inch "Chef Skillet" (1388). More rust on this one, but at least some of it is of the surface variety (hopefully all). I paid $55.
3. An "8" "Sidney" Hollow Ware (via Wagner--?) that looks mostly dirty though the bottom has a bit of rust and probably a bit of pitting...still the cleanest of the lot. I paid $55.
4. & 5. Two unnamed 8" skillets, both with "Made in USA" i.e. post-1960 designation. One might be a BSR, as it has the ridge on the back of the handle. It says "No. 5" at six o'clock with 8 1/8 IN. underneath (Made in USA is at 12 o'clock). The other says "8 Inch Skillet" at 6 o'clock with "Made in USA" underneath). There is also a "5" on the front of the handle at its base. I paid $25 and $15 for these, respectively.
6. Muffin(?) pan. Holds eleven, looks like Griswold ones, except the bottom is unmarked, except for an "A" on the lowest cup in the center row. $25.
I'm thinking I paid close to retail overall (since I had no shipping, tax, or gas into it), depending upon how they clean up, and feel pretty fortunate, having dropped that much without knowing anything. I'll try to have pictures this weekend.
What do you think?
I don't mind paying up for good stuff; I understand and actually value the perks that come with experience in the collecting world, and I am on the steep side of that curve. If I overpaid, that's okay, as long as they work well. The unmarked stuff has the potential to be good users for me as I make pancakes and muffins on a regular basis (I like the 8" for pancakes--I have never used CI, though, and am looking forward to it). I would like for the others to be "users" also and I plan to have this purchase spark a desire to cook more. I am a collector at heart, and recognize a bonding with special objects in my own experience that heightens my interest and gives me more "skin" in the activity, if that makes sense.
A new world has opened up for me, and this has been a rush. Thanks for reading!
A little more info will be required (like what is lurking under the crud and rust), but so far so good. I didn't know what a "Griswold" was yesterday, much less a slant logo, or what "Made in USA" signified to CI collectors, or what "CI" might have meant, for that matter, before I dropped $250 in a local thrift store for five grungy skillets and a muffin pan with spider webs (not the coveted logo, of course--the less sexy kind).
After scouring eBay for a couple hours (where did the time go?), I gained a general idea of what I had just purchased, and I filled in some of the gaps this morning after searching this site and a couple YouTube videos. So here is what I think I just bought:
1. Griswold slant logo, "9" that is crusty, worn, and a little rusty. I'm hoping it cleans up nicely, but the heat ring is pretty worn and a couple rust spots have tiny chips there, so I'm tempering my expectations, here. I paid $75 for it.
2. Wagner Ware, Sidney-O-, with stylized logo. It's a 10 inch "Chef Skillet" (1388). More rust on this one, but at least some of it is of the surface variety (hopefully all). I paid $55.
3. An "8" "Sidney" Hollow Ware (via Wagner--?) that looks mostly dirty though the bottom has a bit of rust and probably a bit of pitting...still the cleanest of the lot. I paid $55.
4. & 5. Two unnamed 8" skillets, both with "Made in USA" i.e. post-1960 designation. One might be a BSR, as it has the ridge on the back of the handle. It says "No. 5" at six o'clock with 8 1/8 IN. underneath (Made in USA is at 12 o'clock). The other says "8 Inch Skillet" at 6 o'clock with "Made in USA" underneath). There is also a "5" on the front of the handle at its base. I paid $25 and $15 for these, respectively.
6. Muffin(?) pan. Holds eleven, looks like Griswold ones, except the bottom is unmarked, except for an "A" on the lowest cup in the center row. $25.
I'm thinking I paid close to retail overall (since I had no shipping, tax, or gas into it), depending upon how they clean up, and feel pretty fortunate, having dropped that much without knowing anything. I'll try to have pictures this weekend.
What do you think?
I don't mind paying up for good stuff; I understand and actually value the perks that come with experience in the collecting world, and I am on the steep side of that curve. If I overpaid, that's okay, as long as they work well. The unmarked stuff has the potential to be good users for me as I make pancakes and muffins on a regular basis (I like the 8" for pancakes--I have never used CI, though, and am looking forward to it). I would like for the others to be "users" also and I plan to have this purchase spark a desire to cook more. I am a collector at heart, and recognize a bonding with special objects in my own experience that heightens my interest and gives me more "skin" in the activity, if that makes sense.
A new world has opened up for me, and this has been a rush. Thanks for reading!