Opinions on Anti-sieze compound on bolts

[Vince Coshenet]

Hey Guys...Whenever I work on something under the truck I spray any nuts and bolts in the work area with some sort of liquid penetrant to hopefully make them easier to undo should I have to work on them.



On the bolts that I do take off for the project, I gob them up with an anti-sieze compound so the threads and bolt head don't rust to the surface they're mounted to. Did it to bolts on the shocks, brakes and yesterday on the hub I replaced. It makes sense to me to try to keep the most commonly removed bolts easier to take off. Could there be a negative to this that I am not thinking of? Could it cause the bolts to loosen up easier due to vehicle vibration? Does loctite work as an anti-sieze as well as holding the bolts tight?



:driving:

 

[Todd Z]

I am a firm believer in anti seize and locktight.......



Stainless steel gets anti seize due to heat and gauling...



It all depends on the bolt and what it does and how often i may remove.....



Heck I antiseize my lug nuts and the face of the hub of the drum or rotor to prevent the rims from sticking.



The Head of the bolt against the object is actually doing the locking power of most bolts, not the threads.....



I anti-seize almost every bolt I take out and re install....



heck, I already took the tie down bolts, bed bolts, hood bolts, fender bolts grill, front and rear bumper, doors and other misc bolts OUT on my 2010 Adren and anti seized them..... Saves a ton of headache down the line !!!



Call me crazy.....



Todd Z

 

[EddieS'04]

No problem with anti-seize on any bolt, IMO. As long asthe bolt is properly torqued.

It wont work as anti seize though. If you have any that call for anti-seize, use it.

 

[Richard L]

Anti-Sieze compounds are not to prevent bolts from rusting tight. Plain oil/thread lube will do that. What anti-sieze compounds are designed for is when dis-similar metals are bolted together like steel bolts in aluminum, stainless bolts in regular steel, etc. The thermal expansion and contraction rates of the different metals can cause the bolts to nearly fuse together. Anti-sieze compound puts a very thin layer between the two metals which is enough to prevent the different expansion and contraction rates of the two metals from locking the components together.



Regular steel bolts threaded into steel nuts or threaded parts can sieze from rust. A small dab of oil can prevent or reduce the rust build up, but anti-sieze compounds do not do much to prevent siezing from rust.



...Rich

 

[Brad Schultz 2]

Use NO anti-seize on disc brake pistons or any other places where it may come in contact with rubber. Seems to swell and solidify rubber seals.

 

[Mike S 3]

Anti seize acts as a lubricant when you are torquing bolts down, and can cause you to break or over tighten fasteners. torque values that are specified from the factory are always dry thread torque values.



If you use anti seize on your wheel lugs, and then torque to 90ft lbs, this can happen



[Broken External Image]:



because the actual fastener clamping force is much higher! torque values are a rotational resistance, and an indirect way to measure how much force the fastener is exerting. when you lubricate the threads, you really have no way of determining how tight to get them to exert the same fastening force as with dry threads...



anti seize is appropriate for some fasteners such as between dissimilar metals, spark plugs in aluminum heads for example..

 

[user 64972]

I've used anti seize on spark plugs since aluminum head became the norm. I use it in some instances.



I also used it when I assembled my Solar Panel mount so someday I'll still be able to unbolt everything for mainteneance.



'07 ST

 

[scott degroot]

Unless called for I never use anti seize, as was stated earlier it messes with the actual torque acheived on the bolt. For all you people who like to use anti seize on spark plugs....don't overdue it as the anti seize can actually cause the the spark plug to misfire because it insulates the plug to head contact and therefore the ground is compromised.

 

[EddieS'04]

Richard L said,

Anti-Sieze compounds are not to prevent bolts from rusting tight. Plain oil/thread lube will do that

Not exactly true. I worked 36yrs in a very corrosive chemical plant. Almost everything that had a bolt needed never seize. Oil disapated in the chemical atmosphere. I have seen bolts of almost anysize and material. If they wernt never siezed. 6 months later, you had to use a cutting torch or a nut spliter.

 

[A K]

What's your manufacturer of choice? Permatex?

 

[Richard L]

Eddie,

Your experience in a chemical plant is not the same eviironment that a vehicle operates. Oil is not an issue with contaminating other chemicals on a vehicle like it is in a chemical factory. Anti-sieze compounds can work to preven rust and corrosion from siezing up a bolt, but a simple dab of oil can do that.



Most of us on this forum are talking about vehicles, not an extreme caustic chemical environment. Anti-sieze compounds are used primarily in automotive applications where you are using bolts that are a different kind of metal than the part they are threaded into. This is especiall true where the different metals have very different thermal expansion and contraction rates which cause the siezing.



...Rich