# ID this skillet **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 19, 2017, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-skillet/780214 "2017-02-19T09:32:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2017, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-skillet/780214/1 "2017-02-19T09:32:18Z")
I have a small metal skillet in my kitchen cabinet that I mainly use to cook things like quesadillas or fried eggs or sausages. Here are [three](https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2366/32831527272_58517196dd_c.jpg) [pictures](https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2838/32945277926_02e7d2075d_c.jpg) of [it](https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2292/32861319841_fae9097a93_c.jpg). I don’t know how old it is. It came into my possession about 13 years ago when an old roommate moved out and left it behind. Compared to modern day skillets, it’s considerably heavier and the surface seems to get hotter much faster. It’s pretty non-stick if it’s oiled; if it’s dry it sticks more so than a Teflon pan would, but less so than a generic modern-day skillet. I don’t think it’s cast-iron; in all the years I’ve owned it I’ve never had to re-season it and I’ve never seen a trace of rust on it, and rather than being a single molded piece of metal, the handle (which may or may not be a different kind of metal) is bolted onto the pan. The underside of the handle is imprinted with three groups of letters and numbers; “GP”, “6”, and “C-20”. There appears to be an NSF mark on the underside center, but it and any accompanying text has been worn to to the point of illegibility. There are no other markings I can find on the skillet that indicate who made it or when. Does anyone possibly have any idea how old this skillet might be or what it’s made of? The “GP 6 C-20” seems to be the best clue to go by, but my Google-Fu hasn’t lead to anything. Just kinda curious as to how long this thing might have been tooling its way around the kitchens of America before I wound up with it. ---
**Author:** ![Ignotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecc23a/32.png) [@Ignotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignotus)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2017, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-skillet/780214/2 "2017-02-19T11:35:41Z")
It looks like it is made of copper, probably lined with tin, with an iron handle, a bit like [this](http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-COPPER-POT-skillet-LOW-SAUCEPAN-cookware-by-BONJOUR-made-in-FRANCE-nr-/332128210296). GP could possibly stand for [Gaillard Paris](http://francelorrainecollection.fr/history-brands/gaillard-paris/). ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2017, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-skillet/780214/3 "2017-02-19T14:44:25Z")
Looks like a [carbon steel skillet](http://amzn.to/2l9tnlp) to me. Many different brands exist. Properly seasoned, they can be as non-stick as Teflon. Folks like them a lot. [Here’s](http://bit.ly/2l9y0vC) even more info about them. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2017, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-skillet/780214/4 "2017-02-19T15:43:54Z")
Does a magnet stick to it? ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2017, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-skillet/780214/5 "2017-02-20T04:36:00Z")
It looks like my Calphalon skillet. Anodized aluminum, with the coating partially worn off. Mine is roughly 25 years old. As you say, get them hot, use a little grease and they’re fairly non-stick. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2017, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-skillet/780214/6 "2017-02-20T04:54:33Z")
I have a skillet marked C-20 on the handle that looks just like yours (but without the baked on grease). It is hard-anodized Calphalon Commercial grade that I purchased as part of a set in 1990. Never had any teflon or non-stick coating. eBay has lots of [them](http://www.ebay.com/itm/Calphalon-COMMERCIAL-ALUMINUM-USA-NSF-1308-8-Anodized-Skillet-NICE-CLEAN-/122360007973?hash=item1c7d398d25:g:ck0AAOSw4CFYnjRC) for sale. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2017, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-this-skillet/780214/7 "2017-02-20T04:59:59Z")
I third the thought that it looks like my aluminum calphalon omelet pan.