Topic: Stainless steel or Titanium (Read 510 times)

Titanium is not just a metal with a higher melting point - it is also way stronger and lighter than stainless steel.  With half the density, a titanium plate weighs half as much as a stainless steel one the same size and  so titanium gives you the strength of stainless steel without all the extra weight.  I guess that is why some folks go for titanium instead - it has that perfect combo of strong and light, better resistance to corrosion and can handle various chemicals that might react with steel. And, yeah, it also looks pretty darn cool too!  Not that you are going to brag about your backup seed or show it off to anyone, but still...

o_e_l_e_o gave the same answer. I researched about it and I found it to be true. It can shatter upon impact and not recommended despite the high melting point.

My problem is that I want to know more about it as only stainless steel has been what people are saying on this forum but I noticed recently that titanium has a higher melting point than stainless steel and can be better, but according to what I have seen from what people are posting, stainless steel is still highly recommended, while titanium is also good.

Tungsten is extremely brittle substance  when it is stressed  and this physical property would prevent  it from usage in seed phrase backup even if the cost were 1 cent for gram.

What is your problem, let's say,  with stainless steel washers? They are relatively cheep and easy to work with.

When trying to give reasons or factors that affect anything for it's relevance you always have to check it's affordability, stainless steel can be considered an averagely good option but in terms of it's price it has become the majority favorite.

Titanium has better quality than that of stainless steel but it's not easy to get one of the reasons why the new iphone is spectacular and it's price is up is because it's made of titanium a very light metal that is super durable.

Haha, I do not have a stainless steel backup solution and it is raising questions about my holdings  , seniors don't you think you've said much on that, What my point of view is even if it costs a few bucks, there's no need of it, I can do something better with just paper & lamination.

I'm sure this is just a random idea, but I'm sure there will be many fans who would love to secure their seed on the gold sheet, some may prefer Platinum as well but I'm a person who used to keep it simple like really. For the Questionnaire on something valuable I own or not as I'm a junior I can't compete with you still I'm happy with my holdings and even with my backup solution  .

Nice, but termites are actually one of the least things that crossed my mind, though this could be a problem if you live in an insect infested area. Among the shortcomings of paper storage, I could only think of children, water and fire.

Because of the cost acquiring a titanium or tungsten metal and paying someone to crest the letters on it, I would stick with writing my seed phrase on a piece of paper. Also, I have multiple backups stored in different locations incase one gets destroyed.

Printing over Titanium and Tungsten metal is highly challenging and requires special tools compared to Stainless steel but in terms of cost, both stainless steel and titanium can be in the same range while Tungsten will at least double the amount over the two.

The availability of the metal is the actual reason why many people recommend it but in my opinion, I will never prefer all of the above to print my seeds unless for experimental purposes.

Then you need to buy 2 sheets of titanium metal to check the quality on the first sheet. Then you need to buy a metal stamp tool, then also buy a cover for this sheet. If you try to calculate the time spent on checking and additional purchases, then I would purchase a tested product from a good manufacturer.

To write wallet phrase codes, I personally do not use steel or titanium. But I just use plain paper. Because if you use paper it will be easier to hide or tuck anywhere. Unlike steel or titanium, it is certain that hiding it also requires a slightly larger space. Because steel or titanium is definitely very hard.
Therefore, I personally prefer paper to write down the wallet phrase code that I have. Because basically if it is stored in a dry and safe place, the paper containing the wallet phrase code will definitely be safe.

But writing wallet code phrases on paper also has a bit of risk too, if kept for a very long time. Like the paper could be eaten by termites, or the writing could become blurry because it's been around for too long. Therefore I have a way to overcome it. Namely, when writing wallet phrase codes, I use a pen that contains very good quality ink so that the writing lasts longer. I learned this method from my teacher who showed me his writing which was more than 40 years old, but the writing was still very clear and not blurry in the slightest. Then he told me that when he made the writing, he used a pen that had very good ink content.

And to deal with termites that often eat paper, this method is certainly known by many people. That is only need to buy anti-termite medicine. So even though I use paper to write the wallet phrase code that I have. But I am very confident that it will be very safe and will last a very long time. Apart from that, I personally have made a plan, that every five years I will rewrite the wallet phrase code that I have just in case and minimize the slightest risk.

Anything can be used as long as it can be written on and the writing is durable. Choosing a place to store seed phrases depends on each individual. Steel, Titanium, Tungsten or paper both have the same function in maintaining writing that lasts a long time. Everyone certainly wants their seed phrase written down and stored in a safe place, writing the seed phrase on a metal plate is also not a bad choice, you can store it in a safe that can withstand high temperatures.

Also completely unnecessary. You can buy a sheet of titanium metal around 10cm x 10cm x 0.5cm for less than $30 online or at a hardware store, which is easily large and thick enough to securely store a seed phrase.

That's to do with its thermal conductivity being much lower than that of aluminum, which is not really relevant to our purposes here.

Anything that would destroy a paper back up will probably destroy an aluminum back up. It melts at temperatures well below an average house fire, is highly reactive and susceptible to corrosion, and is very weak and easily deformed. It is a very poor choice, not to mention not really any cheaper than stainless steel.

Reason why many people prefer the use aluminium or different kinds of metal is because it's price to acquire the metal. Well, it's a different story if you are rich orhave decent amount of money where you can spare some money to buy titanium since it's much better than other metal. Buying titanium will cost you much more money compared to buying aluminium. I would also prefer using aluminium myself since I can't afford to buy titanium to use it for writing your seed phrase.

Is this a good store?
https://cryptotag.io/shop/
They have a lot of titanium products, and I'm sure there are no problems with deliveries to Europe and the USA. Even in Russia, I checked trusted stores where I could buy these titanium plates. and prices are affordable even for novice users.

This. Good luck finding your metal plate in case something serious happens to your house/building like fire, earthquake or any other natural disaster.

Instead of that I opted for exactly what you mentioned, paper back ups in two separate locations that are very far away from each other.

Apples or orange.
We talked about titanium used instead of stainless steel, but you just didn't saw that.
Onekey is one brand that is making backup plates made only from titanoum metal, but I think I saw few others doing it also.
It is true that titanium have a higher melting point, but it is more expensive, and it is not so easy to find it in local shops like stainless steel.
I heard there are some temperature overheating issues with new iPhone because they used new titanium material for the first time.

If I have $2000 worth of coins in my wallet then I would use paper or encryption.
But if there are 100 times more coins, then it is better to buy the most reliable plate for storing the phrase.
The most expensive Cryptotag Odin 7 titanium plates I've seen are priced at $250, but that's not expensive for $200,000 worth of storage.

I have spent some time researching this and technically Titanium is better if you are worried about a house fire but the reality is that will never be a real threat to most people.

Stainless steel is a great option at a reasonable price point and much easier to find online because that's what most companies sell.

I personally like the Codl Co PunchPlate because they have a bunch of 304 stainless steel options and at a price point of around $30 (often less during a sale). Codl Co PunchPlates are made in the USA so it might cost a bit more to ship to where you live but imho, they provide the highest level of security/durability at one of the lowest prices.

Some seed phrase storage plates from other companies are thinner and cost like $50 - $70 + shipping. Imho, that's kind of absurd for a piece of steel with some laser etching on it.

For most people, paper stored somewhere safe is just fine. For added security, steel is the most accessible option. For the absolute highest level of durability, titanium is the best but you will pay for it.   

I also wrote a detailed article on how to securely write your seed phrase that you might find helpful. I hope you find the right balance of security for your own particular circumstances.   

I don't think there is anything inherently wrong with using paper instead of metal. The majority of my back ups are on paper.

Indeed, I think using metal can sometimes lead users astray. They create a single metal back up and assume that they are completely safe, even though they are still at risk of losing it, theft, natural disasters, and so on. I would much rather have two paper back ups in separate locations than one metal back up, especially if that one metal back up is stored in the same place as my wallets themselves (i.e. at home). As the old saying goes "Two is one, one is none".

I can’t even imagine where you will find a tungsten plate and whether you can put seed phrases on it. How much effort and money will it cost.

Stainless steel is ideal in terms of price and quality ratio, it is widely distributed and can be found in any shape, including even various alloys. But with titanium, some problems already arise with availability and price, although, in principle, this is also feasible, if desired. Yes, at least make seed phrase backup from kryptonite, if you find it or buy it and can engrave the necessary words on it..

The best metal or alloy for applying the seed phrase is not determined by the melting point alone. There are also other parameters, for example, how easy the material is to process. The stronger the metal, the more difficult it will be to do this.

I have securely stored my seed phrase in two separate places. The first copy is on a piece of strong paper, and the second backup is on my old laptop, which has been formatted and is not connected to the internet.

I have written down the seed phrase as a single .txt file with one text on each file for 12 times, with each of the words numbered sequentially from 1 to 12, following the order of the seed words.
like this [1.txt], [2.txt], [3,txt] [....].