Hi Alarash

I used Oregon Re-Tinners very recently. Here are the answers to your questions in relation to this company.

How recent was your experience?
Very recent. Within the last month.

What did they re-tin for you?
A 7 quart stock pot and lid. Lid was only polished, at my request, because re-tinning was not necessary

How did the interior of the pot look after they fixed it?
The interior of the pot was decent. Not great or terrible. It was vastly improved from the condition in which it was sent to them. It seemed like the old tin had not thoroughly been removed before the new tin was applied.

How did the exterior look after they returned it?
Very good.

How was the turnaround time?
They shipped the pot back to me about 2 1/2 weeks after they received it, which is what they had estimated.

Were they responsive by email/phone to your concerns?
They did not respond to emails at all. However, they were easy to reach by phone during business hours.

Overall I would say that they may be worth trying if you are local or have a minimal shipping distance. I am located on the east coast, so shipping a heavy pot back and forth across the country ate up most of the savings. The final pricing did not exactly work out to what their website says. It was a fair bit higher than what I had calculated from their stated specs. The work was decent, but not amazing. Taking all factors into account, I would say that Oregon Re-Tinners are just OK. If you can get your pans to them for little or nothing, they may be worth trying. I have two more pieces I need to have re-tinned and, after my experience I am going to try Rocky Mountain Re-Tinners. The consensus seems to be that their work is exceptional and their prices are not that much higher.

Hope this helps!!

Aaron

Since this conversation is over two years old, perhaps no one cares anymore, but.... perhaps they do! I saw Julia's mixing fork on her episode of the French Chef about Terrines and Patés. I was very excited because it was something I have never seen before and it looks to be very basic but multifunctional. Perhaps it is the same one she used for the mashed potatoes.

I went back through and looked at it frame by frame, googled again and again, with all the possible name variations, and looked at several local kitchen stores. What I came up with is that she is using this: http://www.amazon.com/RSVP-Endurance-... or something virtually identical to it. The tines on this fork have uniform length and curve, so it is not a Foley, Pastry, or Granny Fork. It has a black plastic handle that is the same size and shape as the one in the episode. The tines have a pretty severe curve (although a little difficult to see in the product photo) like the one she had, but it is posible that she bent them even further (this would be easy to do). It is entirely possible that she had different similar tools -- the one in the Letterman clip is totally different -- but this is definitely the one she used in the paté episode. I was able to find one at a local shop. It only cost a few dollars and I am anxious to try it out.

Good luck finding the tool you are looking for. Hope this helps!

He emailed me, too. He said that retinning is just a side business for them, that they charge $6 per inch (side+diameter+side), and that it takes 2-3 months to complete.

Despite the high shipping cost, I think I am going to try Oregon Retinners. Will report back.

Hi Mandymoo

No luck getting through to Hammersmith, yet. Two calls and two emails so far. Let me know if you have any success!

Has anyone dealt with Oregon Retinners? Their prices are substantially cheaper than everywhere else, but after some of the horror stories about other places, I am nervous. Or is it really just Atlantic tinning that is the problem? I am located in Brooklyn, so the shipping would be expensive, but Hammersmith and others have not returned phone calls -- which does nothing to instill confidence. The pot I am having redone is a medium size stew pan that is old and very heavy, possibly even 3mm thick. Any input would be greatly appreciated!!