Actually, we are trying to avoid anything made in China. Kinda hard to do, but we try. And, since the US companies that contract thru China should be paying better attention to what they are getting, whenever one of the "lead from China" things comes up, we tend to avoid that company as well...

Okay guys, seeing as I'm a bit of an expert on Dutch Oven and Cast Iron cooking, let me share some insight with you...

Chinese cast iron comes from a whole host of different foundrys all over the country. There's little, if any quality control. Much of the cast iron cookware is recycled steel and iron, with the addition of carbon agents (coal, charcoal, etc) added during the smelting process. Obviously there are going to be contaminants in the metal, but most of it will slag out or cook off, except for the stronger metallic components. Unfortunately, the foundries aren't what you'd call well regulated, and as a result, some of the contaminants that would normally cook off or flux out don't always make it out before the casting. This flaw is what concerns me more. I've seen Chinese cast iron that seemed initially to be sound for use, but after using it a few times noticed that the surface develops large, sometimes huge, pores in it. Obviously something was in the pores prior to use, and not likely the wax that is used to coat the metal for shipping and storage protection. Whatever is being used to plug those pores up with, I am guessing it can't be too good for cooking with if it ablates out into the food. Maybe it's lead, maybe it's some other hard filler, but whatever it is, it is definitely a sign of poor quality.

Except for Lodge, Maca, and Camp Chef (the latter two both have overseas manufacturing plants, but with high enough quality control systems they might as well be made in the USA), I don't buy any cast iron cookware sight unseen. In fact, I still prefer to open the box, pull out the unit, and check it for fit, finish, and defects. I once opened a whole palletful of boxes of dutch ovens that Eureka had contracted mfr from China on, I found two out of maybe twenty units that were acceptable for my uses. The rest either had warped or out of round lid to pot fit, or inconsistent wall thickness, or some other undesirable quality. I've done the same with Lodge and Camp Chef, but seldom if ever find a reject. That said, when Lodge brought back their big 16" DO a few years back, I was one of the first to buy one. Unfortunately I got one with a crack in the lid. I ended up sending the lid back and Lodge replaced it FOC, and the new lid fit the old pot just fine, which is pretty surprising.

Last time I counted I had over 30 pieces of cast iron cookware. I just ordered a new Maca 17" DO last week, which is going to be the biggest pot I own now. At 67 lbs empty, it is going to be pretty much my load limit without any assistance. Their 21" would be awful nice, but I can't always count on having help lifting, and it is definitely a two person job. That and the mule that would have to carry it to elk camp would object.

I'm not saying that a twenty dollar DO is no good, just that you have to exercise a little scrutiny in your purchase if you expect to get a pot that will work as intended. I have a number of DOs in my collection that cost about that much or less, and they are all good pots, but were hand-picked by me and after a number were rejected. Some of them are even Frankensteined (an old armorer's term where you take pieces from several different units and eventually come up with a complete system that has the fit and finish you desire).

For something that should be intended to last a lifetime of constant use, I would think a modest investment to be a prudent notion. Frugality is always a goal, but not at the cost of too much quality I think. If you are happy with what you bought and can make it work, then congratulations on a great find.

As a rule, I generally don't buy off brand cast iron cookware anymore, for precisely the same concerns mentioned in this thread. You just don't know what's been done to them, and I wouldn't put it past them to start plugging holes with whatever is convenient, lead being a likely culprit. Probably the best price going out there for the quality is Camp Chef, but that's just my opinion. Lodge is hard to beat, but Camp Chef sure is trying.

....over 30 pieces of cast iron.....

And your in Florida? Your house must be sinking into the ground:)

Just the pad under the shelves they are all sitting on, and the 1,200 lb gun safe.

I'm new to dutch ovens. A couple months ago at a "truckload sale," I bought several dutch ovens they offered. They say "American Camper" on the lids, and they were $10 for the 10-inch model and $20 for the 15-inch model. The smaller ones have the rimmed lid but no legs (that wasn't made clear in the flier for the sale), while the larger ones have legs. I figured for the price, I couldn't go wrong. I will say that the walls seem to be a bit thinner than other brands I've handled.

Getting the wax off was a patchy job - I tried soaking/scrubbing them, then got them hot over the grill (conflicting suggestions as I surfed the Web). After the cleaning, I had them stored in the basement for a while, and one of the small ones developed a 2-inch-long crack at the rim. I know I didn't drop it, handle it rough or "shock" it with cold water. So yes, even low-tech cast iron implements can be done poorly.

That said, I have tried out the intact smaller one in the back yard (a "dump cake" - pie filling, then cover with cake mix that you moisten with soda. Pretty tasty).

The next time I buy one, I think I'll splurge on Lodge.

Anyone ever try GSI brand of cast iron cookware? Just wondering how it rates?

GSI makes first rate aluminum and anodized aluminum DOs. I've used the regular aluminum ones before and was pleased with their performance, taking into consideration that aluminum will not cook at all like cast iron does. I prefer cast iron, but I would sure consider aluminum DOs were it my back that had to hod them up the hill.

I always cook the wax off over the grill or a fire. Really though, you don't need to worry about removing it all. The first seasoning will take care of that well enough, just make sure you do it outside. Also, best to either store them with the wax on or else season them up. Storing them in the raw will likely lead to unnecessary rusting. The crack was most likely there before you got it, and was concealed by the wax etc at the time of purchase. When in doubt, suspend it and hit it like a bell, if it has a crack it will sound like a cracked bell. If not, it will sound like it should. Do it with a known good one and you will know what to listen for from now on.

Dump cakes are pretty much a standard for me, though it's been a while since I made one. Not quite a cobbler, more than an upside down cake, they are fair tucker as my Brissy mates would say.

Each of the four DO's I bought took about three hours to clean/season each of them - using our Weber propane grill outdoors:

1. Washed each of them hard to "try" to remove the wax - it barely even dented it.

2. Baked each of them at highest temperature (all burners on hi) for about 45 minutes to burn off the wax. After the DO's got warm I did my best to wipe off the wax with a paper towel to speed the burn-off process, but it took about 45 minutes before the smoke & smell went away.

3. Covered them head-to-toe with good vegatable oil and then baked them for an hour about about 500F. After removing I added a second layer of oil as soon as my fingers could stand the heat.

4. After the DO cooled (while another was in burning or seasoning) I touched up the oil coating and then put it back into the grill for another hour. When done I again oiled it back up when it was cool enough to only hurt my fingers - and not burn.

They look really nice now. Four well-season DO's ready for the Scouts. I went through an entire 20# propane tank doing it (add that $$ to the total cost of getting non-pre-seasoned DO's).

I'm not too worried about them cracking if we get even a few months (years?) of use from them. Right now the troop is very cash-strapped. This spring we more than doubled the number of Scouts. We essentially have to gear up four patrols in one month. That includes dutch ovens, dining flies, propane tanks, propane trees/hoses, lanterns, cook kits, griddles, utentsils, water bottle, coolers, and patrol boxes. Four sets of all of the above!! Up until this point the troop has been using beat-up gear and cooking as one large group. The one huge dutch oven we used to this point wasn't even the camp type - it had no lip on the lid and no legs. We had to add roles of foil to keep coals from rolling off and set it on rocks so it didn't crush the bottom coals. Now we are trying to change things and do it right, but it is very hard on the budget.

Over time we can upgrade the DO's and other gear if needed, but right now we're having to watch every penny and buying some les than pefect gear - Harbor Freight rather than Lodge, and Texsport rather than Coleman, at least for right now.

I'm not a frequent poster on this site; but I usually read it daily - or at least scan it daily...

Anyway, I have a question... Anybody familiar with the "Tramontina" enameled cast iron - sold at WalMart and Target??? It got a real good review at cooksillustrated.com. Just wondering if it stands up to the real world of outdoor use??? I like the idea of enameled cast iron.

I looked at a couple of the at WM recently and the say "Made in China" - naturally...

Thanks,

I go camping a lot and in the past have used an aluminum pie iron in a campfire, it melted in a very short time. Since then I only use cast iron pie irons. Would an aluminum dutch oven melt like the pie iron did? I would hate to buy a $60.00 to $80.00 oven to only have it melt in a short time.


PS Pizza made in a pie iron while camping is a food from GOD. Nothing better!