Lead pot

[Shreckmeister]

I came across an old lead pot in the junk shop 5 inches across and 3 1/2 inches tall.  Did every family have one?  Can they be dated?  Not light dinner and a movie but like the year they were made.

[Hungry Horse]

 Cast iron is pretty hard to date, (and it ain't because she has some mean brothers) but the general rule of thumb is the thinner the older. Modern cast iron is mostly made over seas, and is quite thick by 18th century standards.


    HungryHorse

[Clark Badgett]

Another common feature of older cast iron is the bottom gating that was used then. Look for the sprue to be on the bottom.

They are thin and often slightly warped.

I'm not sure when the spider legs started to disappear, but outside of common small griddles and skillets most of the older iron pots I've ever located have had the legs, and sometimes the skillets did too.

[Hungry Horse]

Later pots will have a recessed ring around the bottom to fit in the eye of a wood burning cook stove, while really old ones will not.

  Hungry Horse