Unmarked Wagner Set

[Eric.M]

I recently finished a set of pre 1960's unmarked Wagner skillets. I have the 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, and 12. They are all in great shape with next to zero pitting and no warping. The #12 is the worst and I wouldn't even consider it truly warped.

My thought at this point is to sell them as a set and start a new series. What do you think these could fetch for price?

Closest reference I can find is an old ebay auction from May, 2016 that went for $545. This set was missing the #12 but included a #9 grill skillet and Griswold #4. Many of them were post 1960's and included the Made in USA marking.

 

[James M.]

O.K. I'll chime in. Have a decent amount of knowledge and it appears to me that unmarked skillets typically don't command as much as the marked ones. I think your market would be someone looking to buy cookware to use and having a complete set of your type in excellent shape would get you about $200, possibly more. Consider what it would cost to buy a new set that is probably not as nice. Having a couple of lids may help also, but they can cost more than the skillets themselves. Have found glass Pyrex lids in thrift stores and it can be tough getting an exact fit. Lids for the 8, 10 and 12 are more important than lids for the smaller ones. Don't think this is a good money making venture, but would love to see images of the set. I happen to have a unmarked #9 Wagner and I think its from the 1940's. I might get $30 for it on eBay or I could spend $80 and buy a brand new quality cast iron skillet. For me its a keeper that I will use.

For the amount of effort you put into these I'm sure it would not be worth your time and you would probably not get anywhere near that other eBay auction. I would keep and use them, but don't know what your entire collection consists of.

 

[James M.]

Have done a little more research and have found that my 1940's skillet is probably from the early 1930's. Which brings an interesting point to the value of things : The more specific the information about a product normally carries a higher value.

Have also checked eBay and it seems there are unmarked Wagner sets that have gone for about $200. If they were marked I would not be surprised if the price doubled. People like undeniable labels that provide proof of what something is.