Polishing cast iron?

[HoosierKettle]

I tried sanding. Jury is still out. I started with an inexpensive Martha Stewart skillet that I had been using for awhile and was decently seasoned. I found a set of various grit flap disks and stripping disk for the angle grinder for 9.99. I started with the stripping disk and then the 80 grit flap disk. Pan was smooth but not flat. I checked with a metal scraper. Not sure how this will affect cooking yet. I seasoned and cooked some eggs and bacon. I really like the smooth surface but it also makes it easier to scrape the seasoning.  Time will tell. Oddly enough, I stopped by my dad's house and he has the same cheap cast iron skillet but his is very smooth from just cooking in it I suppose.






As you can see the first egg was sliding around like teflon but when I started cooking bacon then the next eggs started to stick like any immature cast iron pan rough or not. Will have to build up some seasoning before I decide if sanding is the way to go on future cast iron.




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[HoosierKettle]

Also the main problem is getting the bottom flat. A quality piece of cast iron in the first place is probably the key. Either vintage or field. You can see that the bottom of the skillet is grossly not flat by the light seen under the scraper.



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[addicted-to-smoke]

Yeah get that pan nice and black from seasoning. Seems too gray still.

[HoosierKettle]

Yeah get that pan nice and black from seasoning. Seems too gray still.

yep, you already know.  It's driving me crazy.  it's in the oven now on it's second seasoning and will be cooked on daily until it's black.

[vwengguy]

This is how I did my Lodge CI pans.

If you have a gasser then this is super easy!

Ps. I don't grind or sand my pans to make them smooth.. just use them as primary cooking pans and it gets better with time.


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[kettlebb]

I agree with both. I don't polish them and I do use the grill when I've decided to reseason them.


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[mhiszem]

There is a new trend with machining of cast iron pans. Field, grizzly and stargazer all do this. They are trying to eliminate the sticking as much as possible. We machine stargazer pans now but I have not had a chance to cook with one. I believe lodge has the main cast iron market locked in so other companies are trying to differentiate themselves and provide a "premium" product.


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[HoosierKettle]

I did this one as a guinea pig. There was nothing wrong with the pan but curiosity and youtube got the better of me.


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[addicted-to-smoke]

There is a new trend with machining of cast iron pans. Field, grizzly and stargazer all do this. They are trying to eliminate the sticking as much as possible. We machine stargazer pans now but I have not had a chance to cook with one. I believe lodge has the main cast iron market locked in so other companies are trying to differentiate themselves and provide a "premium" product.

I'd place Grizzly in the "coated" category apart from Lodge, Field, Stargazer. It has an electroless nickel plating.

More like the enameled cookware from Le Creuset (and some Lodge) in that they don't expose (much) of the cast iron. That coating also probably makes it easier to make the surface smooth.

[mhiszem]

There is a new trend with machining of cast iron pans. Field, grizzly and stargazer all do this. They are trying to eliminate the sticking as much as possible. We machine stargazer pans now but I have not had a chance to cook with one. I believe lodge has the main cast iron market locked in so other companies are trying to differentiate themselves and provide a "premium" product.

I'd place Grizzly in the "coated" category apart from Lodge, Field, Stargazer. It has an electroless nickel plating.

More like the enameled cookware from Le Creuset (and some Lodge) in that they don't expose (much) of the cast iron. That coating also probably makes it easier to make the surface smooth.

Yeah I forgot about the grizzly. I would agree. Grizzly has a machined pan then has it coated. Grizzly might be making smaller size pans in the near future.


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[HoosierKettle]

In my continuing effort on the skillet, I mixed up partially fried bacon, hamburger, chopped gfs jarred jalapeños (very hot, and my favorite), and Tony's seasoning and topped with sharp cheddar. They were no grilled burger but very good. The skillet is starting to get color but has a long way. I like cleaning the slick skillet better but so far it's still less non stick than it was. I suspect it will get as non stick as before.





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[HoosierKettle]

Lard and 2 hours in the weber at 450-500 degrees made it black again. I couldn't stand that golden color from the first seasoning. Hopefully this will cook better too.

Update:  after a couple test eggs it's as good or better than it has ever been. That seasoning did the trick.





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[addicted-to-smoke]

Looks really nice, now.

[kettlebb]

Love my tri-ply stainless but it's really hard to beat a good piece of CI.


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[HoosierKettle]

Cooked bacon and eggs for breakfast and made fajitas for lunch. Now that it's seasoned properly and I've used it a few times I have decided that I like a sanded skillet better than a stock modern rough skillet. Is it necessary?  No, but it's so much nicer to use and clean imo. I would do it again or on future rough skillets I acquire.


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