New to Cast Iron Collectors. Hello from London Ont.

[DouglasGrantham]

Hi all. I'm new to the CIC, but have been interested and have had many cast iron skillets and Dutch ovens in my life. Too many to name them all, but my current ones are an Un-marked Lodge 6 skillet that I use frequently ( looks great and not a wobbler ): a Smart Diamond G -8 skillet that I bought knowing that it was warped, but I('m a camper and it restored beautifully and will be a great camp skillet: And this interesting chromed piece> It is a Griswold Erie ( no EPA ) 9 ( no mark on the handle ) , Double pour spouts, with Heat ring. below the Erie is 710 Xl. It has been Lye restored, and only the inside has been lightly seasoned. it sits perfectly flat, and the inside is beautiful and smooth I believe it is from Roughly 1914, but I could be wrong. What got me into this interesting hobby of cast iron; Well my Grandfather was a Stationary Engineer. He worked at a small place called McClary/ General Steelwares, on Adelaide Street South in London On. ( Yes that GSW). My Grandmother was always using cast iron to cook and bake in. Grandpa passed in 1977, but as a young lad, we were very close my family having grown up on the same family farm. I remember well going to GSW and watching him work, and the tours of the factory / foundry that he gave to me. I am still looking to find some old GSW cast iron to restore and pass on to my son.

 

[JKress]

Welcome to the group GG. That's a great family history story. Hopefully you'll start finding some vintage GSW iron to pass on to your son. Our daughters, 8 and 14, usually start the "I get this one" fun when I walk in with another old dirty piece.

I haven't come across any nice Canadian cast iron yet, but definitely have been keeping my eyes peeled. Have fun and enjoy the hunt.

 

[DouglasGrantham]

Welcome to the group GG. That's a great family history story. Hopefully you'll start finding some vintage GSW iron to pass on to your son. Our daughters, 8 and 14, usually start the "I get this one" fun when I walk in with another old dirty piece.

I haven't come across any nice Canadian cast iron yet, but definitely have been keeping my eyes peeled. Have fun and enjoy the hunt.

Thank you JKress. I keep going to flea and Antique markets near me. You never know what will pop up. The Erie Griswold I posted was a throw -out by my brother in law. He sent my wife home with it, not knowing what he had as it was a real mess of crud and aging .Sure the chrome is wearing, but that's the beauty of aging and usage.

 

[SeanD]

Finding Iron is the best part of the hunt.........just usually come up empty handed lol.

 

[DouglasGrantham]

Finding Iron is the best part of the hunt.........just usually come up empty handed lol.

Hey Sean. Yeah I totally agree. I was at a major South western Ont. flea market on the weekend, lots of piles of no-named cast iron at prices too high to make sense. I dropped in to a antique shop in London and spied a McClary DripTop spider 0, in very rough condition, it sat flat, but looking at the center bottom, I was concerned about a possible crack by how the pan sounded. I made the lady at the counter a decent off on it considering the work that needed to go in to it, and the risk of a crack, but was declined. What's the saying when it comes to Gambling, "Know your limits, Stay within it"