Sid

Also normal. A pan gets genuinely non-stick over months, not weeks, and eggs are the last thing to work. The order tends to be: fatty meat fine at week one, vegetables at a month, pancakes somewhere around three months, eggs last. Keep cooking bacon in it and be patient.

I was definitely leaving a visible sheen. Wiping it to 'looks dry' feels wrong but I'll try it.

Been using extra virgin olive oil because it's what was open. That's probably not helping.

That's the most common reason a pan doesn't get used. A pan that lives on the hob needs to be one you'll pick up without thinking.

For daily cooking the vintage one is genuinely better, and the reason is weight and surface, not romance. Old pans were sand cast then machined smooth, so the cooking surface starts nearly polished — food releases better from day one. They're also typically 20-30% lighter for the same size, which matters a lot when you're lifting it every evening.

Modern pans have a pebbly as-cast texture. It does smooth over with years of use, but you're doing the machining yourself with a spatula over a long time. £15 to skip that is fine.

Check before you buy: flat on a worktop with no rocking, no cracks especially where the handle meets the body, and no dome in the middle.

Also, don't over-season a wok in the first place. Two thin rounds is plenty and then you cook in it — high heat stir frying builds seasoning faster than any deliberate process. The bronze you're chasing arrives from use.

£6 for an old unmarked pan is a good buy regardless. Older castings are usually thinner and lighter than modern ones and heat more evenly. Check the bottom for a heat ring and any faint lettering — worth knowing what you've got even if it doesn't change how you cook on it.