Do you often find out a piece is plated only after a lye bath?

[EdC]

Last year, I bought a couple of cast iron skillets... a Wagner #8 (no heat ring) and a Griswold #8 Large Logo. They both seemed in good condition, but were very dirty and covered in seasoning/crud/ashes.

After I lye bath, both of them turned out to be plated. The Griswold was definitely plated, whereas the Wagner had the plating so worn off that only some areas around the handle and back still had plating.

Since then, I have been hesitant to look for pieces to restore as I feel like it is very hard to know if pieces are plated or not. For instance, I was looking into making an offer on this Ebay listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/325609122969

But I think it's impossible to be sure that they are not plated? Any tips on how to tell from pictures?

Thank you very much!

 

[Doug D.]

With heavily encrusted pans, it's a crapshoot. In this case, a seller offering unrestored pans also means risk of concealed cracks and/or pitting, and warping.

 

[EdC]

With heavily encrusted pans, it's a crapshoot. In this case, a seller offering unrestored pans also means risk of concealed cracks and/or pitting, and warping.

Yea, I was planning to make an offer a fair bit below, and have no idea if the seller would accept. I do love these old Wagners, but they have been getting more and more expensive so I was interested in this listing... but I would hate to clean it off and find out they are plated or have damage.