I can't comment on wht Dan Wesson or any other company uses.

But, I can tell you that the four Kimber pistols I have owned, and shot extensively, have never failed to go bang when I wanted them to.

I have also had the same experience with Colt, Para Ordnance, Springfield, STI, and Rock River Arms.

 

No MIM in Les Baer

 

I've probably owned 3 dozen different 1911s over the years consisting of most of the major brands - and I've never had a part fail. I think this is one of those interwebz buzz topics TBH...

 

I won't argue that a billet piece is better then MIM but how often do they actually fail and what caused that failure? I'd be willing to bet that the MIM parts in today's 1911s will last a lifetime if cared for correctly. I've put thousands of rounds thru the Kimber's I've owned and never had an issue with any of them.

I'm with NGIB, I think it's a lot of tacticool internet buzz.

 

Ive owned 3 1911's. 2 of witch i know have been built with a number of mim parts, never had a problem my self.

 

I don't see why molten metal cast into a mold would be less robust than a item made of a solid piece of stock that was carved into the same part.

This is assuming identical alloy, heat treatment and tolerances.

I might be open to that statement of forged being better than cast due to grain refinement, but alloy and proper heat treatment is usually the key.

MIM should give results very similar to investment casting. IC yields sme very fine close tolerance, ready to install pieces. Just not cheap for mass production, hence MIM.

 

MIM can be very good. When it's good, it's very good. When it's bad, it's worse than junk.

Dan Wesson claims no MIM. They forgot to mention investment castings. Sig claimed that no MIM would be used in their "Perfected" version of the 1911. They lied. They may have changed since they first jumped in, but an early one that I examined had some MIM parts in it. Can't remember exactly which ones they were offhand...but they were there. I saw some castings, too.

I took an MIM sear from a Colt after a guy came to me with a handful of parts and grave concern over the OEM innards in his pistol. Later, I laid the sear on an anvil and whacked it with a hammer a few times. It didn't shatter or even crack. When I installed it in a pistol, it functioned as intended, though the trigger pull was a bit rough.

I mounted the disconnect in a vise and whacked it with the same hammer. It bent, but it didn't break.

I've also seen MIM sears and disconnects crack and fail outright under normal use. I've seen thumb safeties snap off at the junction of the pad and the lug. I've also seen'em do like that rabbit that keeps on goin' and goin' and goin'.

If an MIM part is going to fail, it usually does it early on. If it holds up for 200 cycles, it'll likely last for 10,000...or more. I have an early 1991A1 Colt that I've used hard, and is approaching 200,000 rounds. Through one rebuild/refitting...three barrels...one broken machined slidestop...and more sets of springs that I care to think about...the OEM sear is still there. I replaced the disconnect at 75,000 rounds when I refitted the slide and frame and replaced the first barrel...not because it failed, but because it was getting a little worn.

The problem is that...unless there's a visible defect...you can't tell a bad MIM part from a good one without magnafluxing.

 

MIM parts are formed by molding the part with a mix of powdered metal and a plastic filler to help it flow into the mold. the filler is then removed and the part is stintered using heat and pressure to compress and bind the powdered metal into a solid part. the result is only 95% or so as dense as bar stock. MIM parts will never be as strong as parts machined from bar stock. That said, for most MIM small gun parts they are plenty strong enough. I have used MIM parts before when building on a budget. Never had a problem. I do tend to buy better quality whenever I can, just a personal choice. If I bought a gun that had a bunch of MIM stuff in it I would not change anything unless there were a real problem.

 

I stand corrected.

I had been involved in a project that involved molten metal injected into molds under pressure. After Phudd brought up the binder/green phase, I went and read up some more.

Still looks like it would yield a robust product for less money, but I can see where the additional void space might lead to cracking if QC was slack.

 

I have a Detonics 9-11-01. It is a full size, MIM free 1911. It is an excellent shooter, but at 43 oz of real steel, it has not been carried much. MIM also makes a gun lighter.

 

I had a Springer that the thumb safety snapped off clean at the junction of the stem and pad, maybe 200 rounds through the gun. Proceeded to change the guts promptly. No MIM in it after I got done.

 

Hey Brian! Taking a break from facebook?

 

No I'm still there Joe, I prefer to hide and watch though. LOL

 

My Para Ordnance has MIM parts apparently (made before they moved to NC) and its been through almost 1k rounds failure free. Ive taken the frame totally apart and havent seen any cracks and such on the sear or disconnect.