Most new ones are preseasoned, check your paperwork. If not, I have coated with oil, put in the oven then wipe with a paper towel.

Predestined or not, steps are the same. Preheat oven to 400F. Wash pan in hot soapy water. Dry thoroughly. Using regular Crisco, wipe inside and outside with a thin coat of Crisco. Put in the oven upside down, with an empty cookie sheet below. Leave it in the oven for an hour. Turn off the oven and leave then pan in there until the pan is cool. Take pan out of oven and repeat the Crisco step. Usually 3 rounds will do.

When all done, fry some potatoes in a generous amount of oil. Bacon works too!

I HAD to wash my new one with soap and water first and dry it with a towel because I wash everything. After it also air dried for a while, I coated it with olive oil and put it in a warm oven for an hour and wiped that oil off.

I always put a thin layer of olive oil on them before storing.

We used a less expensive vegetable oil but followed the steps above mentioned by Dees and Elizabeth. After the initial soapy water wash and seasoning, we just clean with a brass brush and hot water after used, then dry on a hot burner (just to keep the pan hot) with a paper towel and a bit more of the oil every time until it repels water. If we happen to burn off the seasoning, we repeat the process of seasoning after scrubbing off the charred surface.

Olive oil has a low smoke point and develops off flavors when it gets too hot. Better to use any other kind of vegetable or nut/seed oil in skillets. Buy good olive oil for cold use in salads, on bread, or as a condiment to drizzle on veggies, soups, etc., right before serving. .

Crisco is unnecessary (and gross). Peanut or corn or canola oil work just fine and keep the oiling very light. Wipe out the excess.

In order for it to polymerize, it has to be a hot, hot oven. A warm oven does nothing except get the oil tacky and rancid.

450° or higher is best.

My Lodge are pre-seasoned, and I didn't do anything extra to them, just started using them. They're fine. I do wipe them with the thinnest coating of oil possible periodically and heat on a burner to a smoke point.

Weird: I answered this last night and my post isn't here? I re-seasoned my pans a few months ago. After scouring with a steel wood pad to get it back to bare metal, I lightly coated the entire pan with extra virgin olive oil. Then I wiped it off. You want it as thin as possible. Then I put the pans in the oven at 450F for an hour. Turn off the oven and let the pans cool on their own: don't open the door. After each use I clean with hot water and salt and a sponge. NO SOAP is needed. If food is stuck on, simply add water to the pan and heat it up a little. It'll pretty much slide off at that point. Dry with a towel, then set the pan on high heat until very dry. Then I put a bit of olive oil on the pan and using paper towel spread it all over paper thin, then wipe off. I let it sit until it starts to smoke. Remove from heat and cool off. It's gotten to the point where hardly anything will stick to the pan anymore. And they're so easy to clean now. Some say flax seed oil is better, but I have no problem with the olive oil

Elmer is right. It is beat to use oils such as lard, Crisco or an oil with a tolerance for high heat and smoke point. Coat the skillet well on all sides and put in a 200-225 degree oven for at least an hour. Two is better. Turn off heat and let cool in oven. Remove and wipe excess oil. You can use a small amount of soap and warm water to remove excess grease but best to gently remove tidbits of food with a nylon scrubber first. Or use coarse sea salt.

One thing I forgot. You should let your skillet dry completely before storing. I put mine on the stovetop or in the oven if it is still warm. Put a few drops of vegetable oil on a paper towel and rub inside the skillet first. Then wipe out the excess. I put a paper towel between mine before storing in the cabinet to absorb any excess oil or moisture.