How do you straighten the copper bottom of a 12 inch Revere Ware skillet The center of the bottom has a slight curve up toward the inside It was made in 1979 and is otherwise like new.?

Answer 1

If you want to risk it, try a bit of body work on it. Have a large piece of wood like a piece of plywood about the size of the pan or a bit bigger on a solid concrete slab. What is important is that it be as big as the bottom of the pan. No pieces. One piece. Any thickness is okay. Plywood. Borrow a scrap if you have to. Doesn't have to be new, just free of nails and big missing chips. Is your slab of concrete someplace like the back porch step? A walk way would be better. Be sure the slab is bigger than the bottom of the pan so your wood will sit nice and flat and solid on the slab. Wood and slab bigger than the bottom of the pan. And make sure you have room to work. If you have to get on your knees to work, be ready to do so. You won't have a free hand to hold the plywood. It must sit flat by itself. Get a piece of fir 4"x4" between half a foot and a foot long. Don't use redwood or cedar. They're too soft. Your 4x4 block will have to have at least one nice flat end and be pretty flat one on the opposite end. You'll need a big hammer. A sledge. Not a claw hammer. They're too light. You're gonna be "bumping" this thing, not driving a nail through it, okay? A long handled sledge is okay, just choke up on it. Put on your safety glasses and gloves and set all your equipment out on the back step or wherever you're going to work. Got your kit ready? Good. Heat the pan nice and hot on the stove. Nice and hot. Take it out back and put in on the wood that is flat on the concrete slab. Now pick up the 4x4 and hold it on the center of the bulge and bump it a moderate stroke with the hammer. Look at your results. Another bump. Be sure to hold the good end of the 4x4 nice and flat on the pan at each bump. Move the 4x4 around just a little bit with each bump. You are working wood onto metal onto wood. You should be able to affect a nice recovery of the bottom if you are patient and hold you block flat and steady. Remember, you can always hit it harder, so bump it a bit more gently at first. If you overdo it, things get tough, because then you'll have to fashion a block nearly as big as the bottom of the inside of the pan and taller than the sides so you can turn it over to work it the other way. Don't hit the thing too hard and you should not have to go this route to recover. Think "flat" and "solid contact" with "maximum surface area" in contact with the wood. No metal to metal blows, and no backing the pan on anything but wood. Try a few little practice bumps with just wood on wood to see how it feels before beginning. If any of this sounds beyond your abilities, by all means feel free to forget the idea. With the glasses and the gloves, you should be safe enough, but your safety is your responsibility. Oh, and if this wasn't something that had been observed and seen to have effected good results, it wouldn't be recommended. Good luck.