Copper Finex Experience

[Flavorsavor]

So I got a brand new Williams Sonoma limited edition Copper Finex for my birthday, completely unexpected and completely awesome. I'd looked at them for awhile but the price tag made it a pipe dream, until some very generous family members made it a reality.

HOWEVER....

That same night I decided to do it's inaugural bacon bake/seasoning. I heated it up, rubbed it down with oil, and put it in the oven at 425 with about a half pound of bacon to get a heads up on the morning's breakfast. Imagine my sadness when this came out of the oven...

See the bubbling on the lid cap and the HEAVY tarnishing on the handle? I had no idea what happened...I ran the oven up and checked it with my thermometer to make sure I wasn't overcooking it, everything was fine. I tried polishing it with no luck, the tarnished parts just came back black and flaky. It was like the copper was completely detaching.
So I called up Finex first thing Monday morning, and they were awesome. They called and e-mailed me within minutes, and were at least as upset and perplexed as I was. However, because it was a one time run for williams sonoma, they couldn't just ship me a new one (though they were willing), and advised me to contact W-S for an exchange or full refund. They asked I keep them up-to-date with every step of the process to make sure there was an agreeable outcome.
Full credit to W-S, I found one about an hour away with a copper pan in stock, and they exchanged it, no questions asked. They were likewise perplexed and sorry about the condition of the original pan. So, I happily let Finex know I had a new pan in my hands and headed home.
After my first experience I was pretty hesitant, but decided it was better to rip off the bandaid immediately and get the new pan in the oven. After all, what good was a beautiful cast iron pan if I couldn't cook with it? I warmed it up on the stove, rubbed it down with grape seed oil, and popped her in the oven at 450 for an hour......

.....and your eyes do not deceive you, it's now a brass-colored pan!
The finish is in perfect shape, it's still a great looking pan, but for some reason, the heat turned the copper finish to brass. I googled, and read that high-zinc content copper alloy can turn to brass under heat, and am thinking maybe that's the reason why? I informed Finex, but wasn't about to exchange again. I've cooked with it about six times since then, the brass finish seems locked in, at least for the time being.
There were no reviews on W-S when I got the pan, so I don't know if anyone has had a similar experience, but heads up to anybody looking to get their hands on this limited edition pan.
Strange things may happen when you put it in the oven....

[RonB]

It's still a great lookin' pan, and it's always great to hear of top notch customer service.

[Flavorsavor]

Oh yeah. It's awesome, and if anything I've come away with a better impression of Finex.

[IowaGirl]

My day job for the past 17 years is restoring antique sleigh bells for customers. They send the old bells and the the old strap to me and I send 'em back all pretty. The truly old antique bells are made from a high-copper brass or bronze alloy, depending on the maker.

The website wasn't real clear if the handles are copper or if they're a high-copper brass or bronze alloy. But assuming they're brass/bronze like my sleigh bells, I know acids and/or heat can change the surface color of the alloy by lowering the copper content in the surface layer of the metal. This change increases the % of tin or zinc in the surface metal and the result is the color changes from a "red" gold (basically a golden copper color) to a yellow gold (what most people think brass should look like.)

I don't heat my bells, but I do occasionally see ones that have been in acidic environments and I know they can be buffed to return them to their original color.

The website recommends seasoning at 400 F, and you seasoned at 450 F. I'm not sure if that's the reason for the issues you've had, but I do know the higher the temp, the more likely you are to see a color change like this.

Did you rub oil on the brass parts as well as the cast iron? If you did, the free fatty acids in the grapeseed might have also contributed to the color change.

I also wondered if beads of excess oil had carbonized and baked onto the handles to cause the black discoloration. A quick google search shows the smoke point of grapeseed is about 420 F.

Another thing that came to mind is whether the factory had applied a light lacquer coat to the handles to preserve the shine in the showroom. If so, it might have overheated and blackened.

I'm kinda guessing here, so take my ramblings with a big grain of salt.

[Flavorsavor]

No, that's all very interesting and I appreciate the feedback.

To answer your question, I was very careful to avoid getting oil on any of the "copper" bits on the first and second go-round for that very reason, I didn't want it baked on to the handles.

In the first picture, the black stuff on the pan lid didn't appear until I used some salt and vinegar to polish it after it came out heavily tarnished and bubbled, whatever the "tarnish" consisted of turned black, and was not easily removed.

[IowaGirl]

It does seem odd that you'd be having these problems. You can't be the only person who seasons a new cast iron pan. Nice present, by the way!

[Spinaker]

Well good to hear that they took care of you. To be honest, If I had this limited run pan, I would hang it! To pretty to be used.

That being said, if I get any oil from my hands on the brass know it will discolor under heat. It does polish out to be shiny and new again but it happens. If I use the Finex on the grill it darkens the stainless handle, which I also can clean up like knew. I really don't use my Finex pans over fire for that reason. Any oil you have on your hands will tarnish the metal once it is exposed to heat. The handle should buff out like new with the right compound though.