MIM?

[yoonohoo]

Forgive my lack of knowledge, I'm just getting back into handgins and never had a revolver of my own. So that being said, I see alot of reference to MIM parts. What the heck is MIM parts? Thanks in advance for courteous answers.

 

[kungfuhippie]

MIM=Made in Mexico
soon there will be MIA=Made in Atzlan

 

[Spartacus451]

I believe kungfuhippie is being sarcastic. It is a method for manufacturing small parts with complex shapes that require little or no machining when finished. It is a controversial process that when done incorrectly creates brittle and subpar parts that break frequently and without advance notice. I have plenty of MIM in my guns and none have them have failed due to it. The blame has always lain with the monkeys they have assembling guns.

 

[McCall911]

MIM?

Metal injection molding. Read about it here:


http://manufacturing-fabrication.gl...Services/Metal_Injection_Molding_MIM_Services

 

[kungfuhippie]

you guys are no fun

MIM is a great process if done right, though forged is better...

It still works since alot of the MIM stuff is MIM

 

[McCall911]

Sorry, kungfuhippie.

But I thought this was significant out of that article:

Metal injection molding can provide a substantial cost savings over conventional metal machining options. MIM parts have high densities and mechanical properties approaching those of forged or machined components.

Notice that it says "approaching" instead of "equaling." So I remain somewhat skeptical about it myself, like kungfuhippie.

 

[yoonohoo]

Thaks guys. Now I know "the rest of the story"

 

[Confederate]

You don't know the half of it.

When Smith & Wesson began using MIM parts to cut corners, they naturally passed on the savings to consumers by significantly reducing the prices we pay for their revolvers. Just a few years ago, their revolvers were significantly more expensive than they are today. Not so now, thanks to this new technology. They've also been able to reduce costs with their magic marker type bluing of guns that used to be much more beautiful.

Remember, if they hadn't found ways to significantly reduce costs, their revolvers would 1) be as expensive as Ruger revolvers are today, and 2) probably wouldn't have those handy internal locks and keys. So no complaining! Technology is our friend.