What have you made/created today?

Working on a polished cast iron pan. It was a new 16", 2" deep pan I got for $64 online. I've never had a sanded cast iron pan before but I hear they are the beez knees.

Stared with a 60 grit flap disk then ocilating scanner with 80. I still have a few scratches from the flap disk but I'm almost there. Maybe 1 more hour of sanding before it's done.

 

Seriously hoping you're wearing a mask though!

Also, if anyone else considers this, you can get lodge Pans way cheaper at the WalMart. Especially if you're going to sand it down. HAHA Definitely want to try this now

 

@soggyBottom - what is the benefit of a polished cast iron pan over regular cast iron?

 

Also.. I'd curious how it's going to get "seasoned" and how it keeps from rusting like cast iron is dearly known for.


Also.. post the finished one up here too
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...on-or-dutch-ovens-go-here-post-them-up.97176/

 

This was halfway through my most recent one. I’ll likely avoid textured pans from here on out.

Edit: While this one is a Lodge, they’re pretty awful when it comes to uniform thickness. I had to dig pretty deep in some areas and finish smoothing everything back out

 

ok..but you forgot to tell us WHY

 

Holy hell! Was There a lot of dust. I was wearing a simple 3m mask with organic filters in it. I ended up needing to wash the prefilters because they were completely black.

 

Excuse me, Sassy.

Butter creates a better barrier between the cooking surface and the food, while oil cooks out from under it (relative to each other). The smooth surface works better for this reaction. Textures create pockets for food/seasonings to wedge into and cook unevenly - that isn’t to say there aren’t uses for it.

Seasoning the pan is the same as textured (process of polymerization), but maintaining it DOES take extra care because it does not have those “pockets” for better adhesion. After 5-6 cooks, rinsing/scrubbing, wiping with high temp oil, and bringing beyond the smoke point, I can get a solid seasoning worthy of metal utensils.

Again, there’s science arguments for both, but it all comes down to preferred cooking style/method.

 

Better non-stick properties than the rough stuff. How much better? Not much. But cast iron pans last a long time, and these make great gifts that don't cost too much time or money to make.


Way back like $100 years ago they didn't use sand casting to make cast iron. Pans were made by hand. The sand casted stuff we have today costs a lot less. You can find old sanded pans but they generally run about $600+ for a simply frying pan.

The down side to sanding is that it's a little harder to season. Too much material removal can cause a weak point and result in cracking over time.

 

So it would be similar to a carbon steel wok?

I so need to do this... any other tips from you two? Or anyone else for that matter?

oh and @Beef Nachos you could have just said because it works better and I would have bought it! HAHA

 

What did you use to sand it?

 

Get a whole bunch of sanding disks and a good ocilating sander. Don't bother with a cheap one like a Ryobi, they break too fast. If you've ever polished metal before, it's the same exact way. Staring with the roughest grit, sand u til uniform. Be sure to wipe the pan before moving up to a higher grit. 320grit is more than enough.

If you want a mirror finish, after 320, wet.sand to 600, and use jewelers rouge on a buffing wheel. The last part goes really fast a.s will make it look like chrome. This stuff rusts very fast so don't take too long. Cold temperatures slow the rate of oxidation.

There are lots of.youtube videos too.

 

I’ve only seen the carbon steel pans and they look neat. I’m curious how long that finish lasts. I’ve only ever used cast iron and stainless steel, so I have no opinion.

If you have multiple cast irons, I’d say smooth out one and see if you like it!

 

40/120/320 flap discs and then went 800/1000/2000 wet sand by hand. Polishing wheel to finish.

N95 mask, cotton shirt wrapped around my head twice, and a grinding shield

 

I've "restored" CI before.. but never polished as it never crossed my mind

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...here-post-them-up.97176/page-37#post-23653914

and https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...here-post-them-up.97176/page-37#post-23659262

 

Made from Alligator Blue Spruce Pine cut from my property in Crown King AZ. With 4.5” angle grinder

 

I suspect that a rusted pan would be easier than a new one to polish.

 

For some inspiration on your next/current one, I found this one online. 12" goes for $250 +shipping.

 

I bought a JD4044M 4x4 Tractor with out a cab so I made mine. I waned a Soft Top with Lexan Windshield and Side protectors for me from branches getting wacked. Side ABS protection on the engine from sticks too. I also wanted a Skid Plate and both of these are not offered. Needed some heat so I used a Oil Cooler at my feet with a fan to blow heat up. Skid Plate can hold up the tractor and was a fun build. Made a Brush Guard and Put a Winch on it too. Lots of LED Lights to see in the winter night plowing snow. They made a Hard top for the JD Tractor but way to high to me? Here are a few pictures of this project. A before picture when I got it.

 

Yikes