I think a common misconception about cast iron is that it's the oil that eventually makes the pan non-stick. You do have to oil it when seasoning and after each use and cleaning, but only a light coat of oil. Of course you have to use oil when cooking, but what makes it "non-stick" is the build of of carbon molecules in surface of the cast iron.

http://www.scienceofcooking.com/cast_iron_cooking.htm

My GF does this. I don't. Mine stays in better shape than hers.

Awesome man, glad to hear it's working better for you now!!

I've got one pan that we've had for 20+ years that has one 2" spot right in the center that sticks the cornbread every dang time. I've seasoned it over and over again, multiple ways, tired and true methods, and that thing still sticks. I've fried chicken, bacon, fish, you name it....fine until I cook cornbread. 3 stoves over the years all different types----still a 2" circle that sticks. I've even sanded it down and reseasoned well.

Y'all have any ideas on what to try next.

Do you put any oil in the bottom of the pan when you heat the pan up? I put oil in my batter and maybe 1/8" in the pan when I heat it up. If your pan is good and hot when you pour batter in it shouldn't stick.

This ^^^^

Oh yeah. Lots of oil, oven at 400, heat up for 7-8 minutes, pour in batter.

I did this both nights that I cooked the cornbread. I have no idea why it stuck so bad the first night. I was thinking it may have just been because it was the first time.

I heat the oil in the pan and pour the hot oil in the batter and stir it in. Them pour batter into hot skillet. Never sticks.

Yes to all that. I usually have even more oil than that, nice and hot because I like the sides of the pone to get really crispy. I still have a 2" place that sticks practically every time. My other 3 skillets....no issues. Just this one. It's my medium size pan that I use when having bigger meals and needing more cornbread.

My favorite is the small skillet....perfect portion for my wife and I. I've never had that pan stick ever.

Dang that is a mystery Straycat.

Straycat,

Random thought, do you always pour your batter straight in the middle...could this somehow be causing your issue? I don't know how it could, but it's the only idea I had...

Probably so. I think I'm going to strip it, grind it, and re-season completely. It's nice and black from 20+ year of cooking, but just sticks in that one spot.

I'm thinking that maybe somehow the batter is displacing the oil in that location and you're getting batter to skillet contact with no oil barrier. I would try pouring the batter in a circular motion and maybe see if that helps before I stripped it.

Maybe. I just dump it in like all the other skillets. I'll change it up and report back.

i think so too, Parker243 ... i'm not a cast iron expert, but i've noticed sometimes when you're breaking in a new/newly seasoned skillet, stuff just sticks the first few times you use it ... i'm getting a new Lodge 12" skillet tonite that i plan to strip the factory seasoning off of it, wire cup brush it & re-season it w/Crisco ... most people/articles recommend that you cook fatty stuff (ie bacon) in your skillet the first few times before moving on ...

now that you've done a few cooks w/yours, you ought to be good to go ... my roughest skillet (in terms of cooking surface) is an old Birmingham Stove & Range 10" skillet & i'm cooking stuff in it that *should* stick but doesn't ... it's also starting to get that nice, black patina on the cooking surface & it's becoming slicker & slicker the more i cook on it (the carbon layer Irishguy spoke of is forming) ... i used it to make deer tacos last night, and voila - no stick ...