Well, on my stainless Tikka I had the action cerakoted, so the barrel was pulled and reinstalled. I'm going to put a 243 barrel from another stainless Tikka on that action, so I pulled both barrels. From the factory a grey anti seize compound is used. The gunsmith that cerakated my action clearly used copper anti seize. This got me curious as to what anti seize I should use (rather than grabbing whatever is on the shelf).
Turns out, copper and stainless steel do not play well together, and most anti seizes on the shelf are a mix of aluminum, copper, and graphite.
Henkel has this to say about it "However, it is important to remember that while many compounds exist for stainless steel, copper anti-seize on stainless steel will create inter-crystalline corrosion which can cause parts to crack or break when under heavy loads." https://www.henkel-adhesives.com/at/en/products/industrial-lubricants/anti-seize-compounds.html
Sounds like a potential problem using copper on a stainless pressure vessel designed to contain over 65,000 psi. Granted, until today I did not know this, but it is one more reason I do work myself whenever possible. Only thing worse than screwing up a job myself is paying someone else to do it wrong.
Anyway, aluminum only anti seize is safe for stainless, so is nickel. I was able to track down a tube of nickel anti seize after going to three stores, and the third one only had it in the back, not on the shelf.
Turns out, copper and stainless steel do not play well together, and most anti seizes on the shelf are a mix of aluminum, copper, and graphite.
Henkel has this to say about it "However, it is important to remember that while many compounds exist for stainless steel, copper anti-seize on stainless steel will create inter-crystalline corrosion which can cause parts to crack or break when under heavy loads." https://www.henkel-adhesives.com/at/en/products/industrial-lubricants/anti-seize-compounds.html
Sounds like a potential problem using copper on a stainless pressure vessel designed to contain over 65,000 psi. Granted, until today I did not know this, but it is one more reason I do work myself whenever possible. Only thing worse than screwing up a job myself is paying someone else to do it wrong.
Anyway, aluminum only anti seize is safe for stainless, so is nickel. I was able to track down a tube of nickel anti seize after going to three stores, and the third one only had it in the back, not on the shelf.
Last edited:
