There are several different kinds of copper anti-sieze out there.
I'm guessing that because Glock is in Austria they are probably using the German Henkle, but I could be wrong.
The MSDS for the Henkle LOCTITE C5-A is right here:
http://hybris.cms.henkel.com/henkel/msdspdf?country=US&language=EN&matnr=566703
Some of the companies that make the stuff (like VersaChem) flat out say that it's not a lubricant. It is more commonly called an anti-seize compound or anti-seize assembly compound - sometimes called anti-seize thread lubricant. It is something that you put on an assembly that enables it to be taken back apart at some future date - hence the name "anti-seize" - as in keeping a bolt from seizing up. But not the same connotation as a lubricant that keeps moving parts from seizing up. Some call it a lubricant...
So here's my opinion on the copper anti-seize.
One thing that it does better than almost any other grease its that it doesn't separate, dry out or become tacky.
So we all know that there are people who, when they buy a gun, they don't clean it, they don't lube it, they go straight to the range and start blasting away.
I think Glock puts the copper anti-seize in their Glocks to mitigate against the situation where a Glock sits for a long while - either in transport or at distributors and then in a gun shop etc... and then an owner doesn't clean or lube but just fires it. The anti-seize will provide
some lubrication and protection of the metal.
IMO the copper anti-seize is for a particular application: shipping it and trying to prepare for some knucklehead who is going to basically fire it right out of the box.
But I think it's completely useless for an owner to use the stuff. There are lubricants - oil and grease out there that are much better, and if an owner has his Glock in storage for a while he can always just clean and re-lube the pistol before firing. Are there that many situations where someone doesn't ever have an opportunity to do regular maintenance on their pistol - it just sits in storage, but they might need to shoot it at a moments notice?
Well if you really truly have that situation then maybe copper anti-seize is the right substance for that application.
Really though, the stuff is targeted for a particular application - to prevent bolts & fasters from welding with the materials they're holding together and to prevent them from corroding and for enabling bolts / fasteners to be backed out at some future time.
I have not been able to find NLGI ratings for most of the copper anti-seize compounds, but at least the Versachem I purchased seemed to be thicker than the Walmart Super Tech Extreme Pressure Multi-Duty Complex Hi-Temp grease - which is NLGI #2
It's gritty compared to other gun greases or even compared to general purpose packing grease.
The copper grease that came on my Glock was fairly thick, mostly came off after the third firing / cleaning. There is some trace of it left - which resembles copper fouling - which jibes with what another anti-seize manufacturer says about their product.
I was reading the tech sheet on Jet-Lube's copper anti-seize - and it states:
"will not separate, settle out, harden, or dry out in storage"
^ This IMO may be why Glock ships their pistols with copper anti-seize in them.