For what it’s worth, I’ve tested dozens of pans from multiple companies and product lines on my Control Freak and it has worked with all of them so far. It even works with my 16cm induction-compatible copper pans (whose bottoms are smaller in diameter than the minimum spec of the Control Freak).
My Demeyere Proline/Atlantis test pans are currently in transit; I should have some data on them by the end of next week. If the bottom layer of those pans is truly ferritic steel (i.e. not 300-series), I would expect it to work with the Control Freak.
Then again, and quite ironically–the smarter the induction cooktop, the greater the likelihood that pans that work on “dumb” induction stovetops might not work on the “smart” cooktop. Especially when engineers have done a lot of work in regards to safety and pan detection.
While I’m hoping the new pans will work with my Control Freak, I’m mostly curious to see how the pans perform in comparison to other pans and where they excel. I’m an eternal student of food science and physics–and cooking pans are oddly fascinating.
I believe that the coil on the Hestan Cue is also significantly smaller and/or lower-wattage than the Control Freak. And the Control Freak is commercial, so it’s basically designed for continual usage (or at least the kind of usage a cooktop gets in a busy commercial kitchen).
One of the popular pieces of constructive feedback that Cue users have given Hestan online is basically “please make the coil bigger and/or increase the power.” I look forward to seeing what they come up with in their next edition (if they’re not switching to a model of selling pans, etc. – ala the GE deal).
A quick update on Demeyere Proline/Atlantis pans and the Control Freak…
My Atlantis/Proline pans arrived. I tested out both a 24cm Proline frying pan and a ~24cm (3 qt) Atlantis sauté pan on my Control Freak (1800V, 120V US) cooktops. I made Thai curry for dinner.
I didn’t have any issues with the Control Freaks detecting or cooking with either pan. I even tried cooking off-center and that didn’t give me any issues. No cut-outs, etc.
This is a sample size of two pans, two Control Freaks and one power supply feeding the cooktops. YRMV.
I do have some technical questions about the TriplInduc outer layers on these pans. I hate to sacrifice a pan, but I’m tempted to delaminate one of these to figure out what material they’re using for the exterior layer (i.e. if the outermost layer is 400-series stainless steel or not).
BTW, I have access to at least a couple pans from each of seven families (All-Clad D3/D5/CC, Hestan Cue, Demeyere Industry 5, Demeyere Atlantis/Proline, and Falk Copper Coeur). If you guys have any specific questions about the pans in regards to the Control Freak cooktops, let me know.
Unless you have advanced microscopy equipment and skills, I’m not sure what sacrificing a pan would do. TriplInduc is 3 layers, but it’s not clear whether any of the three are the outside layer. Given the ovetall thickness, the 3 layers must be vey thin.
I was thinking about destructive (abrasion or chemical) testing, rather than microscopy–but microscopy is a good avenue to research as well, @kaleokahu. I appreciate your tips and good ideas.
I was hoping that at least one of these Proline/Atlantis would fail to register or be intermittent on at least one of these Control Freaks so I could help tease out why some folks had issues with the pairing. Unfortunately (and by that I mean fortunately), the pans and the machines work together happily. So at this point, I’m 50% on board with using the pans for test kitchen work and 50% on board with sacrificing one to learn something new about its metallurgical makeup.
In Demeyere’s illustrations, they do show that the outer 3 layers are the “TripleInduc” layers. They stamped the bottom of the pan as 18/10, austenitic (300-series, non-ferritic) steel. I don’t know if they’re indicating that the inner lining is 18/10 (which they advertise) or if they’re referring to the exterior the stamp is physically stamped on or both. I don’t know that it really matters what the thin exterior layer is made up of either–as it’s a combination of the composition, thickness and proximity of layers that makes something induction-compatible or incompatible with a given cooktop.
By the way, the Demeyere Atlantis have that same kind of futuristic steel look going for them as the Control Freak. They look quite nice together. And the Atlantis pans perform similarly to the Falk Copper Coeur pans in a lot of ways (which makes sense, given the weight of and the amount of copper inside the Atlantis pans). The two do behave differently in some ways (one being more heat-retentive and one being more responsive), so it’s going to be interesting to see where each construction excels the most in an induction setup.
Your challenge in grinding will be to recognize and identify extremely thin underlying layers of different steel alloys. It’s not like there’s going to be much contrast between them. And unless you have a very precise Blanchard grinder, you probably cant tell where the boundaries are.
I would cut through all layers, polish and electropolish the cut, and then find some selective etching agent to bring out some contrast.
Edit: Even though I’ve worked with Demeyere, I don’t know the exact layup. But I suspect what you’ll find is an exterior layer of 304, then a layer of 430 and then another layer of 304. I also suspect that TriplInduc originated as an attempt to prevent warpage, and the touted efficiency was a happy coincidence. BTW, my supposition about the layup is the same as Franz’s. The outer layer does not weather like 400 Series
Just got home today to see my CF sitting there waiting for me. Took it for a quick spin with a couple of my Demeyere pans (with zero issues) and I am already in love with it.
Obviously still a lot of learning curve ahead of me, but it’s a lot of fun. Plus that thing is pretty darn fast in the 2400w version.
Have you used this CF eough to have assessed the case exhaust venting? Most PICs have very low profiles and feet, and IME have fans that do not continue to run when the heat is killed. The only commercial 240V unit I own stands on tall feet, has a much larger case, and the fan operates even when the heat is off.
I’ve been thinking about getting another Control Freak lately. But thought it would be a great idea to ask around if there’s any new alternatives out there. BTW, I think Control Freak is fantastic. I use it everyday. It’s just it’s been around for sometime. And haven’t heard of anything for a 2nd gen.
Breville was developing something called the “Breville Prodigy” that looked like was a 2nd gen Control Freak, but they scrapped it. You can find the manual online (it’s not letting me post the link)
I dunno. If they could get the price down to $1200, with frequent sales of $800-$900, I think people could start to see value in it. $1500 when it launched several years ago was a huge price ticket. Not so much anymore with inflation, but I still think they need to get the price point down a bit more to appeal to the masses.
My dunno, either. There aren’t that many consumers who are willing to spend even $500 on a better PIC like the Vollrath Mirage Pro. MAYBE if Polyscience could figure out how to do a 110/220 version that could be counter mounted.
It’s a little like nonstick skillets–hard sell for a >$200 pan with 3% better evenness than a $39 model.
Nevermind that the aspiration has pretty much fallen out of the aspirational cookware market…
