Rough Cast Iron Or Sanded Smooth? Which Is Better?

When it comes to your cast iron cooking surface, the hotly debated subject of rough or smooth will always be on the top of the discussion list. But I think anyone experienced with maintaining the seasoning on cast iron skillets will agree, rough is better for holding the seasoning.
Here's a quick easy link to everything Lodge Cast Iron on Amazon - amzn.to/3G07EEq
Another point to consider when sanding or grinding down the surface of your cast iron pan is, you are removing material, thus reducing it's heat retention power. Not by much, I know, but isn't heat retention the main reason for cast iron?
A smooth cast iron skillet certainly is more pleasing to the eye. But unless you are just going to be hanging it on the wall for all to see, you'd be better off leaving it as-is.
What I like to do is sand down the flat cooking surface by hand, but just enough to knock down the peaks that can snag your spatula. When the cast iron is well seasoned, the surface will be slick enough to allow your utensils to easily glide across it's gritty surface.
For the best performance of your Lodge Cast Iron, leave it as-is. It will hold the seasoning for a long time, and you will see that it performs the same if not better than the smoothed down cast iron surface.

[@missionpreparedness1533]

Just a tip from an old U.S. Marine veteran...I've modified a number of rough cast iron pans and griddles with super success using only 80 grit sand paper. The result was a smooth surface, but the 80 grit sanding left a tiny micro-texture to allow the seasoning to get established and not be lifted off by use. Even the Stargazer company realized they had better results by having a tiny micro-texture allowing seasoning to hold. You will love the results...God Bless.

[@michaeledwards2605]

Used 80 grit also. Holds seasoning fine for about 3 uses. There's a VERY GOOD REASON Lodge does not mill their cookware smooth.

[@janstewart2041]

I had no problem using 80 grit,on my first generic pan, also my finex is just as smooth and it is almost all jet black

[@AsTheWheelsTurn]

@@michaeledwards2605 they do not mill it smooth because it takes more effort to do so..... I have a pan that is over 100 years old that is a smooth cast iron, it is an amazing pan , even if I burn the shit out of something the residue does not stick . I do not know what you are doing that your season would only hold for three uses. mine is going on for over 100 years man...

[@michaeledwards2605]

@@AsTheWheelsTurn yes, long ago they milled cast iron....until they discovered they hold seasoning longer when left rough. That's why modern cast iron is seldom milled smoth anymore. It's not because they got lazy and decided to leave the final step in the manufacturing process up to the customer. Think about it.

[@michaeledwards2605]

Nobody is saying you can't successfully sand a pan smooth. Sand it down to paper thin if you must. That's not the point. The point is sanding your cast iron smooth does nothing to make the pan more non stick or perform better in any way at all. It is just you doing utterly pointless and unnecessary work. Simply seasoning and using your rough pan will make it perform just as well, without all the iron dust and sandpaper and noise. And your pan will retain heat better because you didn't sand away half the pan.

[@ivermec-tin666]

The antique cast iron pans were cast in a finer grain of sand. This practice was abandoned because it damaged worker's lungs. Some of the antique pans were further machined after casting, on a lathe which would result in fine grooving of the cooking surface, a bit like an lp. Personally, I purchased a #12 Victoria pan, made in Colombia, on sale at Macy's. I sanded the side walls by hand, and the flat cooking surface with an orbital sander, 80 grit. My goal was to simply knock down the high points and to make the pan easier to clean. I hate having cotton or paper fluff stuck to my pan after washing, drying, lightly oiling, and wiping it down... Mission accomplished. It holds seasoning, and is easy to clean. Just don't get carried away in sanding. Leave the valleys alone. You need these for the seasoning to adhere to.

[@lodgecastirondude]

I think that is very practical advice if you must smooth your cast iron skillet. Thank you for your comment and engagement. I really enjoy reading them!

[@adriiPortillo]

Las victoria colombianas son de buena calidad! Yo Compre 3 !

[@aaronpalmer7425]

False the seasoning doesn't need the valleys to bond it is a chemical bond it's not like tape on a surface but a a bond similar to rust but instead of damaging it protects and closes the pores, cast iron is a very porous metal with lots of microscopic holes it will never truly be perfectly smooth even when polished enough to be a mirror. The ability to hold a seasoning has nothing to do with surface area but with the care and with how often the pan is used, more often the better and stronger the seasoning is, less often the weaker and more sticky the seasoning is

[@aaronpalmer7425]

Using cast iron dry is the number 1 cause of the seasoning becoming weak, also the fact many people don't reseason after every use

[@owlcricker-k7ulm]

Finer surfaces and less bulky castings. Nice to work with while cooking

[@paulgooding803]

I hate to be a wet blanket, but when it comes to swirling eggs in frypans .... this is the thing in my experience. I can, and have, taken a brand new cast iron pan, brand and surface smoothness notwithstanding ... get it to the right temp and add the right amount of oil or butter, crack an egg in it and ... whirly swirly first time on the stove. No big prep exercise, just cook. With or without extensive seasoning. The thing that makes the egg swirl is the oil and pan at the right temp. Eggs are mostly water, like most fresh natural foods, and the water in the food will stay "on top" of the oil or butter long enough for the egg to "set up" and swirl free. Sanding makes no difference. Smooth vs rough out of the box, no difference. It's all in the execution at cooking time. Of course YMMV but I have performed this experiment many dozens of times with all manner of pans, from expensive, to horrible things rescued from the junk box in the garage after years of abuse. Swirly eggs, easy peasy. Best wishes to all cooks everywhere.

[@michaeledwards2605]

And who wants to go through making all those conditions perfect every time you want to cook? Season your pans and not worry about all that.

[@russlehman2070]

A seasoned pan is a bit more forgiving of imporper temperatures than a bare metal pan. Teflon lets you get away with doing something stupid like starting with a cold pan and no oil. But if you really want to learn to fry properly, use a bare stainless pan. With proper temperature control, you can cook eggs in it (but it would not be my first choice for cooking eggs). Do it wrong and you may have to sandblast the pan to get it clean. The key is to start with a hot pan and hot oil. Get the pan hot enough to make a drop of water dance on it, add your oil, give the oil a bit of time to heat up, then add your eggs (or whatever food you are cooking). Then, for eggs, reduce the temperature. If you start correctly and food starts sticking, you're cooking too hot.

[@jerrym3261]

Nobody's going to believe what you're saying because it's too easy. I'm 68 years old, been cooking in cast iron 60+ years and I've never baked a skillet to season it or actually seen anybody bake a skillet. I can have the seasoning people chase after and I will put my skillet on a little bit of firewood, start that small fire and come back when that fire has burned out and the skillet is cold. I've heard people say I've ruined my skillet but, I've never seen it happen. That aside, I'm starting with a bare metal surface, put enough heat on it to get the water out of the pores, add some oil and let it heat to fill the pores and I can flip eggs with no spatula. I don't see how you can get easier than putting your skillet on the heat where the pan is hot enough to cook, gather your stuff and cook your eggs. It's just the order you do things.

[@russlehman2070]

@@jerrym3261 Baking a skillet is useful (but by no means essential) for initial seasoning of new pan, or an old pan that you've had to remove crud or rust from. But you can season or re-season the bottom inside of a pan (the part that you really want to season), on the stove top, or just by cooking stuff (especially fatty stuff, like bacon) in it, and not scouring it down to bare metal when you wash it.

[@jerrym3261]

@@russlehman2070 Most of my skillets are not black on the cooking surface. Those are the ones I use if there is a chance I'm cooking something that might stick. The ones that are black will stick and to fix them, I will fry some slightly soapy water and scour them down to bare metal with a stainless steel scouring pad (not a Brillo pad or steel wool pad). The only problem I have other than storing all of these pans is seasoning build up. It was the same with my mom and my grandma. Edit- I just happened to think, I usually make my cornbread from scratch and fry it, diabetic so less flour and no sugar. A store had Jiffy mix on sale for 25 cents. I made the first box baked in a black on the bottom, small logo, #6 Griswold and it stuck. I made the second box in not at all black #5 new Lodge, it didn't stick on the bottom at all.

[@toomanybears_]

Try doing some surface prep on the metal after sanding it. Etch it with dilute acid such as hydrochoric acid or even vinegar. The process is called "pickling" the metal and will make coatings including seasoning adher much better.

[@TheCharleseye]

Sounds like a ridiculous amount of steps to get a smooth pan that performs the same as a stock pan. Either food sticks or it doesn't. The egg didn't stick to the stock pan. No extra steps needed.

[@begoodbebetterbeblessedix3766]

Your video has just made Lodge tons of more customers. They should have you as a sponsor and spokesman in any upcoming ads n such. TY for taking the time and hard work for us sir. Makes me feel a little foolish for not thinking out of the box but sure did learn tons. PS. From one animal lover to another, your pure class by saving this cat. Alll animals deserve a home and love. Am sure as a daddy to ur lil one, your fur family knows you just saved its life❣️

[@lodgecastirondude]

Thank you very much sir. All I know is that every Lodge pan I've sanded smooth, (only 2), I've always regretted doing it. Just constant struggle keeping it seasoned.

[@laurievanbruggen3705]

Thanks a million just bought a preseason cast iron flat top griddle and have spent the last week researching whether to sand it down and re season it or use as it Rough!!!! very happy with seeing your take on the two pans. All i can say is Thanks and what a example you have set .

[@entropy11]

wire wheel level of polish seems to work really well on mine. It's not super smooth but it's smooth enough that using tools on it doesn't feel like dragging a spatula against concrete.

[@larryschmidt3594]

I have an Old Griswold pan that is glass smooth and I have no problem with it losing it's seasoning. Granted it is 80 yrs old and beautifully seasoned with age. My favorite pan, but I also have new pans with the rough surface that work wonderfully also. Nice video.

[@owlcricker-k7ulm]

Some of the best cast wear ever!

[@mjc4942]

I received my grandma's #6 Griswold. Love it!

[@keithalank2447]

Thanks for adding to my limited knowledge. We used a Lodge comal for 15 years and it had gotten flaky and gross, so I took it down to bare metal with an angle grinder sporting a weird beveled flap-sander attachment that made short work of the job and left it far smoother than it was when new. Seasoned only once with Crisco and it was astounding how much better it performed. I agree with missionprep1533 that a coarser grit is key when smoothing, as the tool I used was also 80 grit. There's a big difference in the user experience between a smooth surface with scratches in it, and the raised bumps of a new Lodge pan. Have done three cycles with Crisco so far on my new larger Lodge comal and was considering starting over by smoothing it, but now I'll just do a few more and see how it goes.

[@awalton9024]

Thanks for clearing this up. I never noticed much difference in sticking between rough and smooth, this confirms it. Haven't had much problem with seasoning coming off though, except when I did something really bad like accidentally leaving water in the pan over night. Some oils seem to give a harder, less brittle seasoned surface. I've gotten very nice results with good old Crisco.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Yeah I used Crisco for a while. I wasn't unsatisfied. It's a common choice for many. Thanks for commenting! I do appreciate it!

[@denisthek]

I found that Grape seed oil works really well. 425 degrees 1 hour in the oven - 3 times very light coats.

[@tonymemory2279]

Okay go make some pancakes at 400° on smooth and rough and come back

[@lennynnnnnn]

I smoothed a carbon steel pan with similar flaking results THE FIRST TIME. I kept using it and it doesn't have any issues holding seasoning. The carbon steel pan doesn't have the pores that cast iron pans have so if the surface without pores can hold, I believe your smoothed cast iron pan can as well. Separately, I would recommend to deburr your spatula if any corners are particularly point and sharp.

[@foodfantasy9]

Excellent production on this video. Loved being shown the diff between smooth and regular, and the on-screen labels you added (like 400 degrees) are very user-friendly. 👍

[@johncassani4610]

I agree with you all my lodge cast iron pans get smoother as you cook with them and they are all non stick. Great video!

[@lodgecastirondude]

Thank you! But hey, if people want to ruin their beautiful new Lodge pan by sanding it, it's their prerogative. Do you think they realize that when they brought their new pan home, they could have just slapped a couple more coats of seasoning on it and it's good to go? Nope, sand that puppy down then struggle for the rest of the pan's life to keep it seasoned. Mindboggling.

[@tracycastleberry9040]

Just ran across your video. I love cast iron pots and pans and have a fair number of them. Some I got from my mother others from friends that hated handling heavy pots and pans and I bought a few. I've watched on you tube cast iron aficionados extol the virtues of expensive fancy pots and pans but like you the majority of mine are lodge and I love them. Back before Lodge started preseasoning them I just followed their instructions on how to season my new pots. It worked then it works now without getting all fancy. The patina comes with use. The more you use it the darker and smoother it will get. I cook in mine all the time. I have some that have a mirror finish from being used all the time. Here's for the haters. I use soap and water to clean mine, it cuts the grease out just great and if you do have stuff sticking to the bottom that 's hard to get out just put some water in the pan and bring it to a boil. That usually will break it loose. Just make sure you rinse it well wipe it dry put it on the stove on low heat till it's dry then add a little oil wipe away all excess. Don't leave standing oil or a heavy coating in your pots and pans when storing it will turn to a sticky gunk in the bottom. Learned that lesson when I let someone else clean my pans. To everyone out there that loves to cook in cast iron enjoy and god bless

[@keithtauber4153]

I agree. I use dawn in mine too. It is crazy how some people think you can't use soap and water. Mine are super non stick too. God bless you.

[@thebigcoorslight]

Great video! I recently bought a few Lodge CI pans and was going to sand them down. But you totally changed my mind on that topic.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Glad I could help!

[@asswadish]

Thank you for this! You saved me a lot of time by not wasting it sanding my pans. Excellent video.

[@jdweld44]

You have verified my cast iron theory. I’ve always felt the rougher surface would fortify the carbon buildup better. My cast iron pans now look like ice skating rink after continuous use and perform flawlessly. Great video!

[@lodgecastirondude]

Glad I could help! Thank you for putting in your view!

[@gizzyguzzi]

Have you ever used vintage cast iron?

[@GilaMonster971]

@@gizzyguzziI have antique and new rough cast iron. A seasoned rough pan will cook just as well as a smooth antique pan.

[@michaeledwards2605]

@GilaMonster971 and that, my friends, IS THE WHOLE POINT OF THE VIDEO which triggered antique smooth pan users obviously can't stomach.

[@gizzyguzzi]

@@michaeledwards2605 haha. Why bother with new rough cast iron, trying to make it smooth with gunk, when you can buy a vintage skillet that is smooth already?

[@johnnywalker4857]

That's great news. Now I don't have to worry about sanding down my cast iron. Thanks for the awesome video! Adorable cat!

[@brettnipps7205]

Great comparisons I've had to restore 1 of my cast skillets and used sand paper for the rust, 220G and it was wet paper that I used veg oil for the wet. Time will tell if I can keep it seasoned.

[@squigglyline2813]

Update, please.

[@brianj7639]

Thank you very much. You just saved me a ton of work.

[@eddielittleii8919]

Dude, great video. I was curious about that. I'm convinced

[@maxwellhouseranch1004]

Great video, thanks, I was debating sanding a brand new cast iron pizza skillet, but I think I'll keep it rough.

[@lodgecastirondude]

You'll save a lot of time! hehehe Thanks for your comment! Peace.

[@irishrose89775]

Thanks for a great video! Always wondered if it was a good thing to smooth, now I know!

[@harrygmarshall5157]

Thanks for all your work , needed to know 👍🏻🙏🏻❤️

[@thematey3592]

Your results surprised me. I just got a cast iron griddle to replace the stock aluminum one that came with my stove. I was thinking of sanding it smooth but now I think I will just season it the way you did your pans and see how it works out 🙂. Thanks for the very instructive video.

[@lodgecastirondude]

That is awesome! Thanks for chiming in!

[@mousevision661]

Wow. Thank you for the EXTREMELY in depth review!

[@jcbenson01]

Thanks for the video. The comments section did not disappoint either.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@1f1fan]

Great informational video! Thank you!

[@kristiankristiansen133]

Give it a vinegar etching for 1/2 half hour after sanding. This will remove what you have worked down into the surface and also open the polished surface in general. Then your seasoning will stick.

[@awalton9024]

I'm going to give this a try. Thanks.

[@michaelkennedy996]

Pure or diluted? I had a feeling I couldn’t get my sanded pan truly clean enough to season. Very interested

[@StephenRussell]

Clean with steel wool pads like grandma did. That rough gets knocked back a little and over the years a lot. After just running a 1-day workover with the pans, they did as expected. It is the 3-4-5-10th time using them that lets you know what is really happening.

[@TheWolfsnack]

I read all the stuff about seasoning and never using dish soap....and remembered my dad used to use a bit of dish soap and hot water, dry the pan well and reoil....never a problem....I do much like my carbon steel pans and clean with hot water and a plastic scrubbie....works great.

[@rstumbaugh43]

@@TheWolfsnack yup, since modern soaps, like DAWN, don’t have lye, like in grandma n great grandmas day, they are safe to use in cast and carbon.

[@keithtauber4153]

@@TheWolfsnack I use soap and water to clean mine, and I have no trouble. I don't understand the issue really.

[@owlcricker-k7ulm]

I like your seasoning process. All my Wagner and Griswold cast iron gear is not as rough as my Lodge gear and seems more nonstick to me. They are not polished by any standard but rather less pebble like surface. Perhaps a coarser grit final grid would be an interesting test. Great looking breakfast by the way.

[@neilnottingham6074]

Very interesting!!! Thank you 👌🏻

[@lodgecastirondude]

Glad you liked it!

[@lendldumadag]

Amazing video. Do you wipe on another layer of oil after every wash and bake them?

[@BrutishYetDelightful]

I have a Lodge 14" cast iron wok. In the words of Ferris Bueller, I highly recommend picking one up. It is a stir-fry MACHINE. You have to think ahead and strategize your cooking a bit, because the well-known trick of dropping the temperature sharply by lifting the wok from the stove does not work here. Not only that, but the damn thing weighs about 14 pounds. I had 25 years' worth of carbon-steel wok experience going, and I had to unlearn a couple of things. Now that I've adjusted to the cast iron wok, I shan't go back. It is AWESOME. It also fits an electric stove eye perfectly, with no ring stand required. And the best part - wok hei IS achievable on an electric stove after all! I had developed an array of tricks to replicate it, but now I can get it with no tricks. Cast iron is as good as cookware gets, IMHO. I agree with you on the smoothing deal, BTW. Anytime I acquire a new cast iron item, I spend a couple of days just cooking thin layer after thin layer of oil onto the surface. After a couple of days of this, I test my progress by frying an egg. If I can get the fried egg to slide around, I call it seasoned and ready to cook with.

[@ralphbernieri3362]

Got to agree with you on this one...I have left my cast iron rough and they work fine, and frankly sanding them down seems like too much work! LOL

[@lodgecastirondude]

Yeah, I wish I had the luck of some of these commenters with smooth. I really do. But all I have is my own experience with smoothing, and my own conclusion so far, is that I prefer rough. I seldom ever strip and reseason my rough pans, but I've always struggled with seasoning adhering to the smooth. But keep the comments and experiences coming. I'm no master. I'm a simple enthusiast who's been using and experimenting with cast iron for a couple of decades. I AM reading them as much as possible. More videos to come based on these discussions.

[@joemorton9217]

Thanks for the video and the food looks amazing 🔥🙏🔥.

[@sharonrehr]

I inherited some smooth old cast iron over the years. I gave away an old very smooth griddle to my sister since it was a family heirloom. I just purchased a new version as a replacement and it is very rough. I will try your sanding method, not to make it more nonstick but to make it look more like my mom's old griddle. Thanks!

[@EarlywineJC]

Thanks for vindication and the pro tip on the beeswax and grapeseed oil.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Any time!

[@gregduffy1512]

Thanks for your video. I was going to sand down my lodge pans and make them smooth, but now I know better and I won't bother.

[@MyCornerOnline]

I enjoyed the video and learned a lot. I only use cast iron but am never sure I’m doing it right.

[@gud2go50]

Very helpful! Thanks.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Glad it was helpful!

[@mencken8]

Our two main pieces of cast iron, a skillet and a chicken fryer, were gifted to us when we were married Lo! these 54 years ago. In that time, I have not put in as much work seasoning them as was done in the first 3:00 of this video. I of course have no idea how smooth they were when new, but the only marks on the bottom are “10 1/2”” and “Made in USA.” I can’t imagine how many different things have been cooked in them, but they work just fine, and seem to stay seasoned OK. Is this magic cast iron, or am I just lucky?

[@Omerfayyaz2001]

very insightful

[@kashperanto]

Hey, this makes a lot of sense, especially when you look at the modern disposable non-stick pans which are all not smooth. I do think a smooth surface makes it easier to slide things around, but that's about it. I have 8, 10.5, and 12 inch Lodge pans and all of them have great non-stick properties, and unlike the over-priced disposable non-stick pans they only get better. My 8-inch Lodge is actually more non-stick than an 8-inch Calphalon Select pan I got less than two years ago (at almost twice the cost). I think I'll be donating the calphalon and get myself a spare Lodge :) I have been feeling tempted to take a power sander to all of them to see what all the fuss is about, but now I think I will keep them as-is. Between this video and another one where the guy interviews the founder of Stargazer, it seems like a textured surface is the best. Stargazer actually machines their cooking surface flat, but they then bead blast it to intentionally add texture for the seasoning. The machining is more to achieve precise thickness than anything. My 8-inch Lodge has some flaking on the bottom of the pan, probably from using too much oil coating before I knew what I was doing, so I'll be re-seasoning it just to make it look nicer (the cooking surface is still great). Since I'm going to be re-seasoning it anyway I intend to give it some sanding with 50 or 80 grit to get rid of the high spots. We'll see if it gets any more non-stick. I bet it will improve the ease of sliding, but not much else. It's a shame that so many keep wasting money on non-stick pans that just end up in a landfill after a few years even if you baby them.

[@williamfields7287]

I love Lodge cast iron but it is a little bumpy. Someone else on KZbin did the same thing but only on a Lodge. This guy is right. 🍳

[@michaeledwards2605]

Supposed to be bumpy. That is what holds the seasoning

[@ericmalmstrom9943]

I have three old cast iron pans, with at least 15 years age on each. I used flaxseed oil to touch up the old seasoning and it worked well. I wanted my 13 inch Lodge smooth so stripped it and I sanded it smooth. I had hard time getting any seasoning to stick. Seasoning with flaxseed oil just peeled up. Spent half a year trying different oils as a base then topped with flaxseed oil and it peeled up everytime. Re-sanding with 60-grit and acid etching with 10% vinegar helped, but still eventually peeled. Finally I cleaned and re-seasoned with Crisco and got a solid base. Then touched it up with avocodo oil and started cooking with avocado oil and the Lodge (and all the pans) have been working great for 3 yrs now. Repeated on 2 new pans and they came out great. The seasoning is super hard and smooth and cleans very easily with a plastic scraper. I threw away all the flaxseed oil!

[@lodgecastirondude]

Interesting!

[@CowboyTutt]

Yeah, I almost bought some flaxseed oil before I read the smoke point of the oil and that it was often peeling. I think Grapeseed oil is one of the best you can use. Not sure about the beeswax????

[@tlinrin887]

I did the exact same thing several years ago with the same results, a lot of time and energy with little to no gains. I will say keep using the pan it will take a seasoning and be a good pan but takes a long time to achieve.

[@WILRARN]

Wow! Good Point. Who would know till you see it with your own eyes? Super video!

[@craigiefconcert6493]

I have a nice cast iron pan and I just bought a cheap one for $24 from Canadian tire for my out of town work apartment. I noticed it is rougher. I figured the roughness probably also helps the food to make a crispy texture when trying ti do more of a dry-ish roast like potatoes since parts of the food can “float above” the cooking surface if that makes sense. I don’t like to use a lot of oils or butter because I want less fat and that’s to me an advantage of a well-seasoned cast iron pan. If I were to cook with a ton of fat I’d just use aluminum. Actually the one big difference I notice is in the way I season the pan after washing. I hear the pan to dry it and then apply oil. I hear the oil and then wipe it out with a paper towel. With my old pan that works great but with the new pan that shreds the paper towel a bit and leaves bits behind. That is super-annoying. I may do a light 80 or 40 grit hand-sanding just to flatten out any sharp spots but leave the ridges micro-structure in place. I just examined my nice older pan. It is a lagostina. It looks rough to the surface but the cooking surface feels smooth to the touch. The side walls are the original texture and feel much rougher. It is just years of use and care that improve the pan. Maybe a light, rough grit sanding can give a new pan a head start. I recommend a video on seasoning. Also, I recommend for smooth vs rough that you use a scanning electron microscope to examine the micro-structure 😉😂😂😂

[@th6252]

I forgot about this video after watching it when it first dropped. Super informative and have since delved deeper into the art of seasoning and finding other channels on the subject. Highly recommend you get in contact with the dude from Cook Culture and do some sort of collab, would be super interesting!

[@BenInSeattle]

Science! I love that you went to the trouble to strip both pans all the way down and season them exactly the same so you'd have a valid comparison. I have a question, though; Why do seemingly smooth pans like Finex not lose their seasoning like the smooth pan in your test? Do they go through a different seasoning process? Do they use a rougher grit? Do they etch a pattern in the surface? Thanks!

[@jmel81]

I use both a smooth Field and lodge cast iron griddle, they both work equally well. I seasoned both of them at the same time app. 1.5yrs ago, I never use soap on either one I just wipe them off after cooking, or if anything is left on, I will scrub with a brush and hot water then wipe some seasoning oil on them, when I first started to use them, every so often I would heat them on the burner after seasoning to 450 then just let them cool, just for maintenance. Both perform so well now I no longer need to do the heating step. I think the reason both pans stay seasoned so well, is that they have some roughness on them the lodge is as it comes from the factory with its cast finish, and the field although smooth, still has some very fine roughness (machining marks) to it, which I can feel if I scrape my fingernail across it. Hope that helps.

[@michaelc6092]

Thanks for making a video. I agree that you have made it far more difficult than it needs to be. The sound of a good dexter turner going over a new lodge skillet is like nails on a chalkboard. That is reason enough to fix it. I love lodge products, because they get you most of the way there at a phenomenal price. Everyone could have a better pan in less than 30 minutes! Take a sander with 60-120 grit. Sand for 7-8 minutes. Wash it, dry it. Heat it upside down over an electric range until it is about 220 deg. Wipe the cook surface with bacon grease. Wipe any excess off. Heat it to 500+ degrees and let it smoke off. Wipe it with bacon grease and wipe it dry again. Let it smoke off again. Wipe it and wipe dry a third time, let it smoke off and then cool. Done!!

[@lodgecastirondude]

Fine and dandy, but without sanding it. You just don't need to. Over a couple months of cooking, it will be smooth naturally with seasoning. Why remove material from your pan? That's heat retention you're removing.

[@chuckmiller5763]

Correct, heating it to 500 degrees and letting it sit until the smoke is gone is key, this idea of 350 degrees for seasoning cast iron is a new phenomenon. 500 degrees is better, let it smoke until its done, repeat a few times, enjoy for life.

[@jackgatlin6852]

Good information and thanks for sharing. I love cooking on cast iron, but never scrub the surface with anything but coarse salt. Sometimes using salt is tedious, but I have never had the seasoning release, and I have both old smooth and new rough cast iron pans.

[@cerrem1]

I sand-blasted and then bead-blasted the inside of my Griswold pan... Works really good...

[@feline501]

Thank you for this video, and showing your sweet kitty, too! I was wondering if you knew what causes a cast iron skillet to be pitted? I noticed a few small pinholes in my Lodge skillet. I've had it for a year and never noticed it before. Not sure if I caused that or if it was always that way.

[@motorgearhead]

Will cast iron ever develop a layer of seasoning where oil or fat doesn't have to added to the pan before cooking an egg? I've got a pan that's probably 4 years old. I made mistake of cooking acid based foods in it early on. I've since stopped but the pan bottom is VERY rough and uneven. I'm guessing some restoration is going to be needed? I still use it all the time and with oil or fat added, it does fine and most foods don't stick. However, omit the fat or oil and I see sticking... Is this normal or will a well seasoned pan truly be non-stick without fat or oils?

[@CastIronBBQ]

Great job! I have a couple pieces of cast iron to test on.....

[@MakeitZUPER]

Great video to resolve the debate. I have to say though that a friend of mine uses a ceramic glazed platter for cooking pizza and it has a layer of seasoning on its smooth surface. The seasoning never lifts, cracks or fails in any way. Is that because of the oven temp? I have CI and vintage Visionware for my pots and pans, so I have options as far as texture goes and am looking into some stainless sets too. The Vision goes on the glass top stove while the CI is used on the gas stove to lessen the chance of any damage. I was going to try seasoning the Vision & stainless pans, but I don't want to waste my time if it's not going to help.

[@ToysForTheGods]

I polished my favorite cast iron pan and instantly regretted it. That pan has never been the same, though I still use it regularly for fried potatoes, I don't tend to use it for much more. It is impossible to keep it seasoned and I keep praying that one day it will just be right again but I feel like I need to sand blast it with some really rough medium to bring it back to its former self.

[@shawandrew]

Why don't you try sanding it with a rough grit, or as another user suggested, clean it with a steel wool pad? Other users have suggested soak in vinegar before the first seasoning to add roughening, but I would be careful to wash away with water immediately after the soak to remove acid and prevent rust.

[@spray_and_pray]

I have one like that, I stripped it of all seasoning and misted water on it to flash rust it, cleaned the rust with vinegar and seasoned it with grape seed oil. Never lost a bit after that.

[@curtismatsune3147]

I agree on the Lodge cast iron (and carbon steel) not needing to be smoothed out to perform just as well. That said, the smooth surfaces on my French carbon steel took seasoning quite well and perform wonderfully, although my method of seasoning differs quite a bit from the one described here -- no beeswax and I believe getting an ultra-thin coat of oil for the seasoning to the smoke point is a significant part of the polymerization process.

[@carolbssewing3328]

I have inherited a Griswold pan, and it was in horrible shape when I got it. I cleaned it up the best I could, but it's still shedding black flakes when I try cooking with it. As I started watching the video, I thought sanding was a great idea to get down to the bare metal, now I'm not so sure... I don't want to spoil the pan. It's really not a problem to season many times over to get a pan I can use eventually. Do you have an opinion on this?

[@bdickinson6751]

Try putting it in your oven set to self clean. After everything cools down, take it out and give it a good scrubbing with a stainless steel pad, then season as directed with a high smoke point cooking oil.

[@hebaosama4874]

Great video.. thanks

[@lodgecastirondude]

Glad you liked it!

[@kenstar1862]

Osama bin laden

[@tripillthreat]

Thumbs up for the kitty.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Awe thank you she is my world. It's just her and me. I spoil the hell outta her.

[@tripillthreat]

@@lodgecastirondude You’re good people, Cast Iron Dude. ❤️

[@josephwhite8495]

We have a 125 year old, it might be older,smooth pan that is incredible! I have or have reclaimed and gifted at least 15 pieces. The older slick pans can be incredible. Years of use is probably the secret.

[@scott4825]

I tend to agree with the 80 grit crowd, but I'd also add that it takes a while for seasoning layers to build up. I think one really should cook with a cast iron pan for a month or so (at least a couple of weeks) before making comparisons. With the way I cook, my pan gets seasoned a good amount. I lightly coat with grapeseed oil, turn on the heat, then cook my eggs, and the wipe down with a napkin for cleanup. Also, it seems to me that I get more of a metalic taste with some dishes with rough cast.

[@dustinadair7893]

I just did 2 pans one with 60 grit one with 120 grit. Didn’t take very long. Added 2-3 layers of seasoning and works great now. I’m gunna keep using a good amount of oil or butter until I build up a really nice seasoning.

[@william38022]

Now that’s a meal brother👍❤️🙏👍

[@drewrobinson9120]

The cooking surface on my Lodge skillet is smooth and slick as any polished cast iron, yet has never been polished. It is all in how you create and maintain the seasoning on the cast iron. I have never understood the desire to polish or otherwise smooth cast iron pans before seasoning them. Yes some antique cast iron had smooth surfaces from the manufacturer, but not all. Shortly after I got married, my wife put a cast iron skillet from my grandmother in the dishwasher and almost completely stripped the seasoning off of it. Much to my surprise, under all those years of meticulously maintained seasoning, the cast iron itself had a sandy texture much like modern Lodge products (though the grain was finer) despite it being an 80+ year old Wagner 8 skillet. After many years of use and meticulous re-seasoning and maintenance of the new seasoning, it is right back to just as smooth and slick as when my grandmother gave to me. I think a bigger debate than smooth vs. rough, is the debate on the best oil/fat to season cast iron with. Personally, I prefer beef tallow or lard or even deer tallow to vegetable oils or vegetable oil/beeswax combos.

[@michaelfearn1936]

You ever try flax oil? It’s extremely good. Makes a hard Teflon like surface.

[@xskinyx]

​@@michaelfearn1936 flax oil only works for lower cooking temps (like eggs). It needs a lot of "tooth" to stay on otherwise it flakes off. lard, butter, peanut oil for coatings that last real heat and abuse.

[@selewachm]

One tablet of beeswax to how much oil? I'm going to strip my two lodge pieces and do what you show. They both have rought surfaces so should be great. Thanks for the info!

[@fayiznalu8411]

Good demonstration

[@jant4741]

Bought my cast iron pan, smooth, $3 @ goodwill, 27 years ago. No telling how old it is.😂

[@lodgecastirondude]

I've never owned an oldie but goodie. Many old smooth cast iron owners say they hold seasoning great.

[@jant4741]

@@lodgecastirondude can’t remember last time I seasoned it. Water & steel wool cleans it.

[@JohnGrove310]

As much as I like Kent Rollins, a smooth surface doesn't mean squat. My Lodge is just as good, if not better than my Field. I use both and love both.

[@jeremywoodall9800]

Not trying to be an ass or anything but what does Kent Rollins’s have to do with anything going on here?

[@JohnGrove310]

@@jeremywoodall9800 Well many people consider him to be a cast iron skillet expert. He asserts that in his opinion it must be sanded smooth. As much as I enjoy watching him and his videos, I just disagree with him on that..

[@jeffsherk7056]

WOW! What a great video! I was expecting the exact opposite result from the one you discovered. You have just saved me so much trouble. I also need to practice getting a fried egg to release from a cast iron surface. You know some technique that I do not know yet, and I want to learn. And it looks like you are one of the great Cat Dad's out there, just like I try to be. Thank you for showing us your beautiful baby girl.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Thank you!

[@onedayaway1297]

I never sanded a pan and most all of mine are older ones before the pebble finish. The only time I struggle with reseasoning is if I use high acid foods. I don’t know what I do differently.

[@azelkhntr4992]

I used to be a smooth is best cast iron skillet snob. I really came to appreciate the micro-texture of the Lodge pans. It just holds the oil or fat youre cooking with and that helps the end result.

[@577buttfan]

Love my stock lodge man

[@bonniecreevy2642]

What about scrambled or fried eggs in the lodge?

[@azelkhntr4992]

@@bonniecreevy2642 It's not a problem. Fried eggs are easy, you just need to add a bit more grease for the scrambled eggs. Use bacon, lard or duck fat as necessary for both. Stay away from the seed oils tho, kiss of an early death. Olive oil and avocado oil are good ones to use if you don't want the animal fats. I won't use anything below a canola oil, poisons.

[@fish0n2]

I sanded mine and had problems with the seasoning, I tried a few things what I found worked the best was I put in the oven and used the clean cycle then washed, then I sanded it again but used 60 grit only then washed it then put in in vinegar and water 50/50 for about 4 hours then cleaned off with soap and hot water then I started the seasoning process I used avocado oil with the oven set at 500 degrees. One thing I did that was different was I washed it off after each time in the oven I used soap and water and I also used steel wool ( I know don’t use steel wool on cast iron) but what I found was it only removes the seasoning the didn’t stick well and it was a light scrub anyway then I just started using it one other thing I found was use plane butter. In the end if you sand be prepared for the seasoning process to take longer and maybe just sand the high spots and not polish it all the way

[@JB_kind]

Best advice I ever got for using Lodge? Just use it. After a few (5 or 6) initially seasoning at high temp (30 minutes each) the permanent seasoning will eventually just happen. I used one of my skillets for six years before stripping and seasoning again. NOTE: if you want to strip and have a self cleaning oven, thrown it in and it will literally take everything off and it will be bare cast iron.

[@justincase5272]

I sanded down the machining ridges, but finished with a 200 grit sandpaper. The resulting fine scratches hold the seasoning better than a mirror-smooth surface.

[@eriklamothe616]

Smiling because of the cool calico cat...I have a tortoiseshell cat that I found in my yard as a kitten and she also is sassy...so much in fact that it is her unofficial nickname. Now, back to the video! I had some questions about smooth vs rough so this video is fun to watch.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Cats are awesome! Thanks for commenting and I'm glad you enjoyed the video.

[@neiloppa2620]

For a smoother pan, you could try the old matfer carbon steel pan seasoning technique with potato skins. Maybe rough pans need a different type of seasoning than smooth pans.

[@MultiLEGODOG]

potatoes are the only way, the meat strips the seasoning in the early stages after it gets built up well, it will stand the meats. takes months to get to that point though

[@cameronfrye5514]

I have to admit, until you shared your conclusions I was expecting this to end up advocating smoothing your pans! Yeah, I didn't read before watching. I ruined several pans before I learned this lesson. Thanks!

[@lodgecastirondude]

Thanks for sharing!

[@saltydog-xy4xk]

CID you got it keep that cast iron rough, grew up with wood stove and cast iron cooking. And great video.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Right on! Thanks for commenting and letting us know your experience with cast iron. I would love to have a wood stove.

[@jefftucker9225]

I just season mine rough, and after year of use it will fill in all the nooks and crannies with Carbon and eventually become smooth but have a substantial layer of carbon for non stick and durable surface

[@mvblitzyo]

Most excellent how too thanks ..

[@thecooky7744]

Thanks 👍 just saved me some time

[@lodgecastirondude]

Glad it helped

[@traylorkarttech4432]

The cast iron I have from my great great grandmother is super smooth and holds season perfectly. I’ve never seasoned them since I inherited them.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Seems the vintage pans hold their seasoning well. But in this instance, I'm referring to Lodge skillets.

[@chikinstories]

I had lodge pans but gave them away because I didn’t like the rough bottom. I bought an expensive Field pan that’s smooth as glass. The seasoning stayed very well except the time I cooked an acidic sauce in it. Last year my girlfriend’s mother gave me her griswold that’s been past down in her family. It’s a very smooth pan with great seasoning. I’m not sure hope your seasoning is only laying a couple uses. My carbon steel pans don’t hold seasoning as well but I can redo those quickly.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Thanks for sharing!

[@keithtauber4153]

Yeah be careful with tomato sauces in these pans. The acid level is high and breaks down the seasoning or the old layers.

[@boftx1]

The counter argument would be that provided by carbon steel pans which are basically seasoned the same way as cast iron and they are by far smoother than cast iron. Don't get me wrong, I love both my cast iron and carbon steel gear.

[@wngimageanddesign9546]

Results look impressive. I was considering sanding smooth two of my cast iron skillets. One has grooves from machining. It's a lightweight cast iron skillet. In hindsight, I don't recommend them. Burns too easily. It functions like a low carbon steel pan. Same thickness, but not as good heat consistency.

[@puddytat62]

I’ve been using cast iron pans for eons and never thought much about the pan smoothness. Limited non stick effectiveness. Then I inherited this teeny egg cast iron pan. Decades old and very smooth. I was shocked. Eggs slide around way easier than my real non stick pans. Non stick even with no butter. Bit of butter and it’s perfect. So now I’ll try to sand down the old ones I have to see if I can get it to be the same.

[@gizzyguzzi]

Vintage is the way.

[@felixmeow6221]

I have six or seven ninety-year-old plus pans all smooth bottom cook everything in them with no sticking at all. after using them i heat them up and run them under hot water dry season with spray with canola oil good to go. if i make something tomato based i use my stainless steel pans nice videos thanks

[@lodgecastirondude]

Thank you for commenting and engaging! I do appreciate it.

[@Adamant4160]

I actually found a trick to get the seasoning to stick by accident. I sanded mine smooth and it performed great, for a time or two. I still used it a lot and just seasoned it after every wash. But then I started to neglect it and left it dirty with a lid on. And it had started to rust. Only a little bit though. Once I reseasoned it it works wonderfully. The light rust caused micropitting, which helps the season stick. I can cook crepes in that pan now.

[@lodgecastirondude]

Very interesting! You may have created a new method of re-roughing your smoothed pan.

[@Adamant4160]

@@lodgecastirondude the best part is that the pan still looks and feels smooth. And it performs great

[@Jesuswillbeback]

When i clean and dry the pan than i oil it and when i use another time i leave the pan on mid/high burner about 10 min for oil to harden than i add fat or butter and i did this every time so before each use the oil polimerise a little bit... Hope the message can be understood

[@highnrising]

Funny, I always thought that smoothing out the pan was a waste, but when I saw you getting out the sander and multiple grades of sandpaper, etc., I figured that that was your thing and in the end, you'd tell us how great it is. No way in hail I'm going to do all that, especially if it's counterproductive, anyway. Thanks for demonstrating it.

[@guyjordan8201]

Been watching several KZbinrs refinish cast-iron and getting clues on what to do for my own. At this point, I intend to use rough sandpaper, no more than 80 grit and then do a vinegar acid etch before seasoning. Acid etching increased bond strength in industrial circuit board laminations… I’ll act on the premise that fine etching will help seasoning bond to an iron surface too.

[@KneadHondo]

Used mine out the box for about three years, just started having lots of buildup around the outside edges and the seasoning would flake off, making it harder to get a good layer of seasoning. But I sanded the surface bumps and smooth out the support handle, so much better

[@maxchartier]

I have an iron obsession as well. my results have favored 80 grit, on a flap disk - not random orbital. or polishing it up to 320 grit on the orbital. both options work great if "cleaned" only with water. never had good luck with the stock surface of lodge pans, always preferred the OLD used smoothed out ones.

[@mattedwards4533]

Like you I got the same results with either a smooth or rough finished pan. It surprised me when it happened. I do prefer the smooth pans mostly because they are the old ones.

[@craigosborne8667]

Thank you sir !