1006 Hammer Question - MIM?

[JKN]

I have a 1006 in the THB serial number range that has what appears to be a stainless MIM hammer. I have never seen one like this so I was wondering if this might be a replacement part from some service event or is it possible it actually was made this way. It works just fine but I have to say it completely ruins the look of the gun for me and after 10 yrs of going "Yuck!" when I take it out of the case I am considering replacing it with a forged one if I can find one for less than a small fortune.

Thanks,
John

 

[Sevens]

I have never seen a S&W MIM hammer in that color and I have also never seen a MIM hammer on a 1006, ever.

I have no doubt whatsoever that if S&W put that hammer in there, they did so years after the frame was manufactured, there were no MIM hammers back in 1990-93.

Intriguing!

 

[Sevens]

That hammer on that model is not MIM.

Did you even look at the picture?

Can you honestly look at the picture he attached to the post and try to claim that hammer is not MIM? With the mold cutouts and the seam?

 

[BMCM]

Hi John,

Yep that certainly is a MIM hammer. it clearly shows the characteristic hollowed areas on the flats and the mold parting line on the mid-line where the mold halves separate. Were one to take any MIM hammer and lightly glassbead blast it, the result would appear identical to what you have there. Perhaps someone grew tired of a gritty DA trigger and swapped it in while taking measures to try and match the finish.

In any event, the correct flash chromed wrought steel hammer is not unique to the M1006. A spurred (or spurless if you choose) hammer from any of the TDA 3rd gen guns will work as they are all identical. At most you might have to install the stirrup from your existing hammer onto the replacement. So a hammer from a 1006, 4006 or a 5906 or a 4566... All the same.

What to look for... Has there been any polishing, dremeling or whatnot of the the hammer notches. If this is the case the hammer is likely junk. There's a reason a lot of these parts show up on auction sites and many are not remotely useful.

The other thing to be mindful of is the surface finish on the radius above the full cock relief... Your sear bears against this radius under spring pressure during DA. A rough surface here yields a gritty crunchy feel to the DA pull.

This can be alleviated by careful stoning by hand with a fine india stone followed by polishing.

Looking at the two blued hammers on the right...you'll note two shiny tracks from about the middle of the radius down to the full cock relief. This is where the sear legs bear against the hammer and shows the area needing attention. So you stone from about the middle of the radius just down to the full cock relief and no further.

Just down to the relief and stay away from the notches.

Cheers
Bill

 

[Fastbolt]

The left 2 hammers are machined, and right 2 hammers are MIM. The recessed areas & tub-shaped spots indicate MIM. As does the thin line bisecting the hammer spur serrations (in the OP's pic).



Never heard of a MIM hammer coming in other than the black finish, though. I'd not be surprised to learn that someone had a MIM hammer refinished in some manner.

 

[surfgun]

Maybe the MIM hammer pictured was chromed?

 

[Frank Black]

Good gawd, ... just the thought of someone putting MIM parts on my all-steel, manly-man 1006 makes me want puke big chunks.

 

[Fastbolt]

Good gawd, ... just the thought of someone putting MIM parts on my all-steel, manly-man 1006 makes me want puke big chunks.

Joking aside ...

After having learned about MIM parts in my first S&W armorer class, the first thing I did when I got back to my agency was replace the machined hammer, sear & trigger in my duty weapon with new MIM parts. It felt like I'd given it a trigger job.

All of my own 3rd gen's now have MIM parts.

 

[BMCM]

replace the machined hammer, sear & trigger in my duty weapon with new MIM parts. It felt like I'd given it a trigger job.

All of my own 3rd gen's now have MIM parts.

Done the very same thing on many of mine. I'm certainly no fan of MIM parts nor am I particularly married to the carbon steel parts, however one cannot escape the facts... These MIM hammers & sears have perfectly accurate dimensions and a uniformly smooth finish. Where the carbon steel parts typically require a good deal of work to yield a nice trigger and a smooth DA, not so with the MIM components. Got a pistol with that gritty crunchy feel to the DA pull? Swap in a MIM hammer & sear...Instant trigger job.

Cheers
Bill

 

[JKN]

Thanks everyone for the education. Since the MIM hammer is likely contributing to the currently acceptable trigger quality I will probably keep it unless I trip over a cheap forged one in serviceable condition.

John

 

[TercGen]

I also prefer to have MIM components in my S&W 3rd Gens for the smoother trigger. Some of my forged-part guns do have nice triggers, but usually not as smooth as my MIM-part guns. I've found that the flash-chromed forged parts tend to be a little rougher than most of my black forged ones, though that may just be the advances in production quality, as many of the flash-chromed ones were earlier 3rd Gens.

Swapping in a plastic mainspring cup for the metal one can also help with a gritty trigger feel.