cast iron dutch oven
- Thread starter Hearse95
- Start date
While a lot of people don't care for the pre-seasoning on the Lodge CI, I still think it's infinitely better than any of the Made in China stuff, which is going to be EVERYTHING else.
You might want to check ebay. Look under Collectibles>Cookware>Cast Iron. There are always a pretty wide variety of Griswold and Wagner on there. I bought a Vollrath #8 (4.5 quarts) for $50 plus shipping. The equivalent new Lodge would have been $62 plus tax. You'll also find a good variety of no-name brands (often it's old Lodge) that can be had for around 25 or 30 dollars. Price will depend on condition and collectability.
You might want to check ebay. Look under Collectibles>Cookware>Cast Iron. There are always a pretty wide variety of Griswold and Wagner on there. I bought a Vollrath #8 (4.5 quarts) for $50 plus shipping. The equivalent new Lodge would have been $62 plus tax. You'll also find a good variety of no-name brands (often it's old Lodge) that can be had for around 25 or 30 dollars. Price will depend on condition and collectability.
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I have some Lodge products (skillets not Dutch Ovens) that have served me well. I think that the unseasoned ones are cheaper than seasoned ones and seasoning them is part of the fun especially for scouts.
If you have antique stores in the area, you might find some old ones, but I doubt they will be cheaper.
You might try E-Bay.
If you have antique stores in the area, you might find some old ones, but I doubt they will be cheaper.
You might try E-Bay.
Skillets are one thing, but for a Dutch oven I'd recommend something enamelled, say a Staub or Le Creuset. The knockoffs aren't too bad, either, and will save you a ton.
I think since it's for Scouting, it will be used over an open flame.
I'm sold on Le Creuset and Chasseur.
Oops. Scratch my previous suggestion.
I have a Lodge Logic 7 qt. I picked up at Amazon several years ago. It's a great pot, weighs a ton, and will last forever.
Here's a couple of extremes of what you can find on ebay. The first is a user in need of a good clean up and reseasoning--might make a good project for the kids. The second is a more collectible example, and one that might become a nice heirloom for your troop if it's maintained and cared for well.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-8-c...ultDomain_0&hash=item2ebf914b51#ht_500wt_1413
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Cas...ultDomain_0&hash=item4ab91fde95#ht_500wt_1413
The large block logo places its production between 1930 and 1939.
I'm unsure if the current ebay auction prohibition is applicable to cookware. If so mods, please accept my apology and delete this post. Thanks.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-8-c...ultDomain_0&hash=item2ebf914b51#ht_500wt_1413
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Cas...ultDomain_0&hash=item4ab91fde95#ht_500wt_1413
The large block logo places its production between 1930 and 1939.
I'm unsure if the current ebay auction prohibition is applicable to cookware. If so mods, please accept my apology and delete this post. Thanks.
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I got my grandma's and found out it was her Mothers and she got it as a present in 1908.
- Thread starter
- #11
I think that you should be OK with Lodge. Some griping can easily be due to mistreatment.
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I'd vote for Lodge as well...once seasoned they performed great. I've had a skillet and dutch oven for I don't know how many years and it still looks like it did day 1.
+1 for Lodge. I have about eight cast-iron pieces, including a dutch oven, from them and have had great results once they get going. As others have said, I think most of the complaints are coming from people that don't know how to treat cast-iron.
I got an unmarked, unbranded cast iron dutch oven. It is pretty good. If you are using it as an oven (cooking in round pans dropped inside) then just season it and use it, but if it will be a bean pot you will want sand it out with some coarse sandpaper then season it. I want to say it is a Lodge, but it is unmarked. I bought it new for about $20 a few years ago.
I have a bunch of Lodge cast iron (that is marked Lodge), and the factory seasoning it a joke. It works good for getting the pans to the customer looking good, but that's about it. I strip it, sand some with coarse sandpaper, and re-season. The goal with sanding it to reduce the peaks, but not completely eliminate the valleys. Have a small, sharp cold chisel handy in case of booggers stuck on the casting. A tap of the hammer with the chisel saves hours of sanding (no walloping, tap).
If you have a "bean pot" they don't have the trivet legs. Make some trivets out of steel, cold bend some 1/4 inch round. Other than the trivet legs, the lid is the only difference. You can make a ring of flat steel to hold coals on the lid of a bean pot, just bend it into a hoop cold and don't worry about fastening the ends. (alternatively you can cut the legs off a dutch oven to use in the oven at home, then you need a trivet for camping...)
Phil
I have a bunch of Lodge cast iron (that is marked Lodge), and the factory seasoning it a joke. It works good for getting the pans to the customer looking good, but that's about it. I strip it, sand some with coarse sandpaper, and re-season. The goal with sanding it to reduce the peaks, but not completely eliminate the valleys. Have a small, sharp cold chisel handy in case of booggers stuck on the casting. A tap of the hammer with the chisel saves hours of sanding (no walloping, tap).
If you have a "bean pot" they don't have the trivet legs. Make some trivets out of steel, cold bend some 1/4 inch round. Other than the trivet legs, the lid is the only difference. You can make a ring of flat steel to hold coals on the lid of a bean pot, just bend it into a hoop cold and don't worry about fastening the ends. (alternatively you can cut the legs off a dutch oven to use in the oven at home, then you need a trivet for camping...)
Phil
I'm guessing that for a scout troup they are looking for a "camp oven" with legs to straddle the coals and a flat, rimmed lid so they can put coals on top of it.
Le Creuset for me all the way
http://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Logic-8...TF8&qid=1341269505&sr=8-3&keywords=dutch+oven
Pretty pricey, but worth the money, they last. If you find one at a garage sale or thrift store, grab it! There was a run of these at Salvation Army and Goodwill a year or so ago around here, they turn over quickly!
This is a bean pot. You cannot put coals on the lid without a ring to contain them, and there is no built in trivet. The handles are short so you cannot hook the bail to remove it from the fire. You can bend a bail from 1/4 or 1/8 inch rod, bend a trivet from 1/4 or 3/8 rod, and bend a hoop from 1x1/4 flat stock to make it "work" as a dutch oven for out door cooking.
http://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Logic-2...=UTF8&qid=1341269807&sr=8-9&keywords=bean+pot
I think I bought my no-name dutch oven at Meijer, for what it is worth.
Phil
Pretty pricey, but worth the money, they last. If you find one at a garage sale or thrift store, grab it! There was a run of these at Salvation Army and Goodwill a year or so ago around here, they turn over quickly!
This is a bean pot. You cannot put coals on the lid without a ring to contain them, and there is no built in trivet. The handles are short so you cannot hook the bail to remove it from the fire. You can bend a bail from 1/4 or 1/8 inch rod, bend a trivet from 1/4 or 3/8 rod, and bend a hoop from 1x1/4 flat stock to make it "work" as a dutch oven for out door cooking.
http://www.amazon.com/Lodge-Logic-2...=UTF8&qid=1341269807&sr=8-9&keywords=bean+pot
I think I bought my no-name dutch oven at Meijer, for what it is worth.
Phil
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How is the factory seasoning a joke? I have a 7 inch Lodge skillet that I pick up almost a year ago that has performed flawlessly since the first time I used it. Fried a couple eggs as the first thing cooked in it and they slid right out. And the eggs I cooked in it a couple of days ago slid right out to. So I don't see what's wrong with the factory seasoning.
I am surprised the eggs didn't stick the first time. Compared to seasoning with shortening or lard in the oven the thin factory seasoning is not exactly helpful. Yes, it is a start. If you cook bacon or other greasy foods the first few times you would start building a solid seasoning.
I find that Lodge does not clean up the cast finish at all, and it should be abraded smoother with coarse sandpaper. Older, no longer in production brands of cast iron, sanded or otherwise machined the insides of their pans. True doing this cost money, and probably is part of why they are not in business anymore. This does make a difference in how the cast iron preforms, and how easy it is to clean and keep clean.
Grick management does come to mind, using a rigid steel scraper while cooking to prevent buildup over the peaks, and eventually the valleys fill in so after some time the pan has a flat bottom, till the seasoning peels out of the valleys. If the valleys are shallow this becomes less of an issue, and corrects itself in a couple cookings.
I would caution against trying to polish the iron, it creates a situation where the pan will not take a layer of seasoning, as it will peel having no texture to grip into. 60 or 80 grit sandpaper is fine enough.
Phil
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