Cast Iron Classic Cast Iron Skillets vs Restoration SMITHEY: which is safer?
Lodge Cast Iron Classic Cast Iron Skillets is the clear pick. Restoration SMITHEY carries a failing PFAS grade, and we never recommend buying a failing product.
Our pick
Lodge
Cast Iron Classic Cast Iron Skillets
PFAS grade
Overall grade
Verdict
Hazard flags
Material
Confidence
PossibleIron leaching into food
PossibleRust formation and corrosion
PossibleThermal shock and cracking
Smithey
Restoration SMITHEY
PFAS grade
Overall grade
Verdict
Hazard flags
Material
Confidence
PossibleTeflon-type coating (or unknown Teflon-family coating) fume risk
PossibleCoating degradation and microparticle release
PossibleOff-gassing of volatile organics during manufacturing or cure
Where these two actually differ
- We flag Iron leaching into food, Rust formation and corrosion and Thermal shock and cracking on the Lodge and not on the Smithey.
- We flag PTFE (or unknown fluoropolymer) fume risk, Coating degradation and microparticle release and Off-gassing of volatile organics during manufacturing or cure on the Smithey and not on the Lodge.
- The Lodge is cast iron (bare or seasoned with oil) where the Smithey is Carbon steel with unspecified nonstick coating, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
- The gap is 75 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Lodge is the one to buy.
- We are less certain about the Smithey grade, at 45% confidence against 95%, because it discloses less.
Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →
More cast iron skillets: see the full ranking