Back2Life Cast Iron Restoration

10/13/2026

This may look like your average griddle...it's not. Weighing in about 70 lbs, measuring 34" by 23" this was used by the military during WW2. Definitely my most challenging piece. And it would not fit in my buckets or e-tank so I had to rethink my process. I had to go old school. I used the same method I tell folks who have just one pan they want to try to clean up on their own. Spray it to death with Heavy Duty oven cleaner and tie it up in a bag for a couple days. I only had 5 days to finish it because the customer was taking it to Davenport to have it baked in an industrial sized oven to finish the seasoning process. So I put down plastic, sprayed one side, and covered with a garbage bag. The next day I wiped off the crud, flipped it over (thank goodness Chris Hubbs wasn't on a trip!) and sprayed it. Needed 2 days for that side. Plastic totes seem pretty big until you go looking for one reasonably priced that would fit at least half this sucker into the 50/50 vinegar bath. I finally found one that it fit all the way in when slanted and we spent the next 4-5 hours pulling it out, scrubbing with a stainless steel brush, and putting it back in until I couldn't leave it in any longer or it would have started to eat the metal. The worse thing about vinegar bath (vs e-tank) is that you have flash rust start to set in within minutes of removing. So the final time we took it out, it was scrubbing like mad on both sides, hosing it down, and then quickly getting it onto a table, drying it off with towels, and applying Crisco. I felt like a little kid doing finger painting since we just dipped our gloves hands into the Crisco (yes we have a designated CI Crisco container ;) and painted the griddle. The next day I applied more Crisco and then wiped it dry so it wasn't even greasy but would keep it from rusting until final seasoning process. Definitely a piece fun for the memories but not something I'd want to do again.

10/13/2026

I was fortunate enough to be given this after my sweet neighbor passed away. It had been used while the kids were still at home but ever since we knew them, it had decorated the kitchen wall. This pan was made in Piqua, Ohio during 1916-1935 and had the trademark smiley on it. Can't wait to spend the next couple decades cooking with this. Jeannie Biederman Groth

09/10/2026

All set up Kingston Steakhouse event building. Come shop about 20 vendors in the nice cool building. 😀 Here til 7:30.

09/04/2026

Do you know that when you leave a rubber spatula sitting on a hot pan for 10 hours that it melts enough to become one with the pan and hardens like plastic? One of my tricker pieces to clean up for a friend but lye and 800 grit sandpaper worked wonders so only a shadow remains.

09/04/2026

Next Thursday! Come hang out! All the vendors are being spotlighted on the FB page so check out who will be there.

https://www.facebook.com/events/953979820417719/?active_tab=discussion

Send a message to learn more

08/25/2026

I have a customer who for the last couple of weeks has brought me some gorgeous to strip and reseason. One was a gorgeous Griswold #20 skillet that barely fit into my oven. Fortunately it cleaned up nicely since it is rare and cost him $$$$.
Last week he brought me 4 more pans. I looked them over. Spotted some small amounts of rust on most of them which caused me to just shake my head since he had paid top dollar for these pans as well. Today I put them into my 50/50 vinegar bath and within no time 3 of the pans showed fire burn. The seller restored these and pretended like they were worth top dollar. Extremely frustrating and makes the rest of us restoration folks seem untrustworthy. Won’t call out the place in CR, but if you ever find a store that has a room and wall full of cast iron and it’s slick like machine oil was used to “season” the pans, don’t even consider purchasing anything. Not saying all the pans have issues but I’m having to clean up too many. Anyway, including some pics of the #20 and also what fire burn looks like.

08/25/2026

Let’s talk about buying cast iron. Yes, you can go into most stores and buy a Lodge and that suits many people. But sometimes you want an older pan that is lighter, smoother inside, and can be an heirloom to pass onto future generations. First place you might consider would be an antique store. And you might even luck out and find some that have already been restored. But always carefully examine the pan for cracks and a wobble. Just because it’s old and has a high price tag doesn’t mean it’s worth that amount. One of the hidden “flaws” can be rust or fire burn and though it might not have damaged the pan, it definitely makes a pan not worth as much. I have reseasoned pans with fire burn and they still work great and look very good because the reddish tint is no longer visible. But I always make sure to let buyers know the pan has had a rough past life. My next post will explain the issues one of my customers is experiencing.

08/07/2026

Got an update from a customer…The Griswold that I restored for him is working great for steaks and as shown here, frying up a batch of crappie.

07/14/2026

I'm one of the folks heading this up and hope some of my cast iron followers can make it. We have several tables full of fun prizes to give away during the bingo time, great raffle prizes, and a couple dozen items available to "purchase" with all proceeds going to Critter Crusaders of Cedar Rapids. And I have several pieces of cast iron available to win or "purchase for donation amount". Food, fun, and prizes! Save the date!

05/29/2026

If you’ve ever seen LeCreuset in a store, you know it’s not cheap. It’s hard to drop $$$ on cookware even when the quality is much better.
Here’s your chance to get a LeC skillet at a third of the new price. Is it in perfect condition? No. But the cooking surface is in excellent condition and there are no chips or cracks. I’ll have this available at the Newbo sale May 30th!