OK, here's the deal:
I have a cast iron, round bottom pot, about 1 1/2 to 2 gallon size.
When i first got it (new) cooked pinto beans in it, it didn't work too well for that. Was ok for stews, etc.
Then, in a fit of brilliance i used it to melt some lead. Wheel weight i think. Made a neat round bottom ingot, kind of like a lead frisbee.
So now after a lot more years have gone by, i'm thinking about trying to use it for cooking again, but worried about the lead (don't want to get any crazier than i am already).
My mind says there might be some lead in some of the surface roughness in the cast iron, but then it's not visible. I'm tempted to just turn it upside down over a fire, heat it up plenty hot, and start using it again, after reseasoning with the usual cast iron seasonng procedures.
What do you think? I recognize the health issue possibility. But i don't think the metallurgy is any kind of rocket science, the lead probably didn't combine with the cast iron, just was a surface film if anything, so just get it hot enough to melt and drop out any lead residue.
Now i don't think i'd want to try his on something that had been used as a lead pot for a long time. This was a one time thing.
What do you think?
rayb
