Forgery or recast?

S

Scott B

New member
I was looking through ebay and came across this skillet-

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CLEANED-SEA...831529?hash=item488eb461e9:g:eK0AAOSwxfNXOEaR

To me it looks like a recast or forgery. I will just avoid the pan all together anyway, but I am curious if I am just being to skeptical or if this is a recast or forgery. I feel if anything seems like you need to question it then always walk away. If anyone can confirm my suspicions then it will help me for future reference. If it is a forgery then they did a good job with the interior of the pan but the exterior and handle are horrible.
 
Nooooo there's something really wrong there . There are many casting flaws that could well be from recasting . But the seller has it written up as "excellent collector condition" . NOT even close ! And that is a big red flag right there .

I'd stay clear of that one fore sure .
 
I agree with Kevin, it looks real to me. The seller is knowledgeable and has an excellent reputation on ebay. I don't think he's trying to pass off a fake. Those old slant logos were a shallow casting. I'm not sure what happened to the handle but the pan is over 100 years old so who knows.
 
The more I look at the pics, the more suspicious I become. I counted 5 things that I'm uncomfortable with which is more than enough to make me walk. It may be original, but there is a better one out there.

Hilditch
 
Yes, the old slant Erie marks were shallow and thin compared to later LBL pieces. But they weren't that shallow or indistinct. Genuine or fake? Who knows? There are a lot of things about it that look genuine, but just as many not. I'm not really buying the "weakly debossed" markings as being something Griswold would have accepted. And if the markings are just worn, why isn't the heat ring at all? That plus the bad casting on the handle is enough to make me think fake. But, real or not, it's in no way "outstanding, collector quality" worth paying a premium for. Don't be impressed by the "auction speak".
 
I have a slant logo #9 with the same #710, though mine is a 710D not an A My #'s and logo are deep like any block logo even though mine is a slant. Mine has different fonts for the #9 and the erie. My handle looks different as well, not to mention the casting flaw in the handle of the one for sale. My thought was that maybe it was a ghost mark from a different manufacturer who purchased some old griswold molds or an Iron mountain series with a ghost mark? I was not accusing the seller of trying to pass off a fraud, obviously they believe it to be real and genuine until some one tells them or proves them that it is not real, I am just interested for future reference when looking. Thank you for all the replies and the insight. Attached is a picture of my slant logo #9
 

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I'm not convinced that is a casting flaw on the handle. I used to have a #12 old slant logo that looked like someone left it sitting out in the weather upside down so that the outside of the pan rusted but the inside of the pan didn't. I think this pan is the same way. I sold mine for $60 because I didn't consider it collectible.
 
There is additional iron around the top inside of the handle hole and outside the heat ring at 1-3 o'clock that shouldn't be there and would not be the result of rust.
 
The smoke ring always seems to protect the inscription. This one did not as this ring seems full with no wear? I would pass
 
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I have several slant logo pieces. Some have deep logos, some thin. The thin ones are deeper than ghost marks for sure. One of the thin pieces is a #745 long griddle. The logo is bordered by ridges, so it was not wear that made it thin.

Perhaps it depended on how used the molds were at the time of production.
 
Thanks CJ and all the replies. Its very tough as a newer collector to decide if a piece if fake. Some fakes are very obvious and some are not so obvious. I am not interested in this particular piece that is for sale on ebay, I just thought it was a very good example of some red flags but also some things that may be genuine. The interior being very smooth is a good indicator that it is not a recast, because typically there is pitting on the interior on the recasts that I have seen. The handle is different from mine, but that doesn't mean everything as griswold probably changed handles over time, etc....Thank you for the comments from everyone. I think as most people have said if it doesn't seem right walk away and there will be another one that goes up for sale next week and next month. I have overpaid for pieces that I have purchased but, I don't think I have gotten a fake or copy.
 
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