Do MIM parts rust?

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I would think that MIM parts could rust. They are still made of "metal" and oxidation could occur. To be honest, stainless will rust if abused. I wouldn't worry about changing out parts. Just do the minimum to take care of your handgun and it should be fine.
 
Only very early model 60s had stainless hammers and triggers, the other stainless (pre-MIM) parts were forged standard steel and flash-chromed to make them silver in color.
 
I don't own any guns with MIM parts, but if in fact the MIM parts are made of steel, yes they can rust.
 
MIM parts will rust, and possibly will rust faster than the old forged parts due to the more porous molded metal.

As I recall, (note the qualifier) you can't interchange the old forged hammer and trigger with MIM parts since the design changed for MIM.

If you're worried about rust, either keep a coat of a good lube like CLP Breakfree on them, or send the parts out to a gun plater and have the hammer and trigger hard chrome plated.
APW/Cogan offers special prices for small parts, as do several of the other top plating services.
 
Wheel-er said:
Do MIM parts rust?

If you were putting a SS revolver in a very humid, warm environment, would you replace some perfectly good MIM parts w/ SS?

Are MIM and SS interchangeable between sub-models? ie - will 64-2 SS trigger be a drop in fit for 64-6 MIM trigger? Using correct trigger lever, etc.

MIM/SS Hammers?

MIM/SS Rebound slides?
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1. MIM parts will rust.
2. If you are talking about S&W revolvers, I do not know where you would get stainless internal parts. The hammers and triggers that previously looked like stainless steel were not. They were standard case hardened ones that were flash chromed to make them look like stainless.
3. I believe Ruger uses stainless on its traditional revolvers (SP, GP, Redhawk and Super Redhawk series - not sure about LCR). Thus, if you want stainless internals, probably should look elsewhere as I know of no S&W that has used stainless internals since the original stainless models in the sixties.
 
Stainless used on some guns will rust. It wasn't easy, my brother in law is a danger to crowbars, but I have seen rust on his stainless weapons before.
 
I learn something here every time I visit.
 
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All of them will rust (even stainless) given the right condition. I have seen some rust on the old style (forged and case hardened) hammers. It's possible the case hardening affects the surface composition of the stainless making it more likely to rust. At any rate, stainless guns do rust. Some rust very badly. In stainless autoloaders, some brands were notorious for rusting. There are (I recall) about a thousand different formulas for stainless. I think the ones that have better hardness and tensile strength tend to rust easier and the more rust resistant ones tend to be softer.
 
borntoraisehogs said:
Stainless used on some guns will rust. It wasn't easy, my brother in law is a danger to crowbars, but I have seen rust on his stainless weapons before.
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The ones carried inside the waistband in humid states will rust like boat anchors.
 
Thanks for the help, guys.

I pretty much have all the answers I need.
 
Bounty Hunter is correct about Stainless guns rusting. The first Model 60 I ever bought back in the early 80's was rusted under the wooden grips, RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX!!

It is stainLESS. NOT stain PROOF.

chief38
 
As has been mentioned several times- stainless will rust since it contains carbon steel like a blued gun is made from. How much of a percentage of carbon is what determines how rust restant it is.

(It is stainLESS. NOT stain PROOF.)
cheif38's line is right on.
 
To make it even more confusing, the German word for stainless steel is "Rostfrei" which literally translates into "rust free". But, it definitely isn't....
 
Another European term is "Inox".

The stainless steels used in firearms are no where near as rust resistant as the stainless used in other applications.
All stainless steel WILL rust, and stainless guns will rust easier than say, a true surgical grade stainless.
 
Wheel-er said:
...
OK ... a different question. This is a value revolver DAO used police trade in. 64-6.

IF one is in stock, I should be able to send it back for a swap w/ an earlier model 64.

That incurs 2 way shipping and probably FFL fee again. Which completely blows any VALUE in the revolver. In fact, it makes it more costly than the lesser branded .357s, probably.

And now that I know the flash plate steel trick, I'm thinking just keep it.
Click to expand...

Put a few hundred rounds through your DAO 64 and you'll wonder why you ever considered getting rid of it. And don't worry about MIM parts, it's not the 1960's anymore. They're not pot metal and will give you a lifetime of service.
 
Gun 4 Fun said:
As has been mentioned several times- stainless will rust since it contains carbon steel like a blued gun is made from. How much of a percentage of carbon is what determines how rust resistant it is.
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Nope. The amount of carbon has little effect on metal oxidation, and there isn't very much of it in the mix, even for high carbon steels. The (large) amounts of molybdenum, chrome, and nickel determine how rust resistant the steel is. And if you get enough of those alloying elements in the mix to make it effectively non-oxidizing, it will not be strong enough or hard enough to make a firearm from it, as DFW noted.

Consider stainless knives - really non-oxidizing knives are almost impossible to put a good edge on, and it doesn't last long. The best stainless knives rust less than carbon steel, but they still can rust.

Buck
 
The most common SS alloy used in knives is 440 and it's usually stamped on the blade somewhere. It's a fair tradeoff for rust resistance and strength, but it doesn't take an edge like a really good blade will.
 
Nothing wrong with MIM parts, like was said this isn't 1960 anymore. Manufacturing techniques change, you also can't go to your Pontiac dealer and order a 1968 model year GTO anymore.

It's pretty much all been said, stainless does not mean you can totally neglect a gun. I have a stainless steel Ruger Speed Six with rust pitting on the surfaces, it was an old cop gun and doesn't seem to have been cared for.

S&W used flash chroming on the hammer and trigger of SS guns to prevent galling. On early stainless 64's the stainless alloy wasn't "perfected" yet and the hammers and triggers were sticking or galling.S&W went to flash chroming and never changed back to SS for the parts. Ruger seems to have gotten it right with the stainless parts, probably due to looser tolerances in their revolvers. Early AMT guns, AMT who made the first stainless 1911's in the 80's, had the same issues, the slide rails had to be WELL lubed or they would gall up.
 
stantheman86 said:
Early AMT guns, AMT who made the first stainless 1911's in the 80's, had the same issues, the slide rails had to be WELL lubed or they would gall up.
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I have a Para 1640 I got in the 90's that also galled along the rails between the slide and frame. Rig +p makes a lube for stainless that is supposed to prevent it.
 
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