Found a 1970s cast iron skillet for $8 at a yard sale in Portland last month

I was digging through a pile of rusty baking pans and almost walked right past it. The thing was caked in crud but you could tell it was old school quality. Spent two days stripping and reseasoning it and now it's slicker than my modern pans. Anyone else still find good vintage cookware hiding under junk at estate sales?

2 comments

2 Comments

stella_lane8d ago

Oh man, "caked in crud" is the perfect way to describe the best finds lol. I swear people just toss old cast iron in the back of their garage and forget it exists for 40 years. I stumbled on a 1950s Wagner skillet at a church rummage sale last spring for like $5, and it was so rusted I thought it was a lost cause. But after a soak in vinegar and some elbow grease, it cooks better than anything from the store now. My mom laughs at me for spending a whole weekend stripping a pan, but she's the one asking to borrow it every time she makes cornbread. Vintage iron is just built different, man.

carter.gavin8d ago

Wait, did you soak it in plain vinegar or did you cut it with water? Pure vinegar is pretty strong and can actually pit the iron if you leave it too long, especially on older pieces like that Wagner. I usually do a 50/50 mix with water for a few hours and scrub with steel wool, then rinse real good. But yeah, that weekend of work is totally worth it when you see that first layer of seasoning come out dark and shiny like glass.