Metal Injection Moulding Stainless Steel Watch Strap Buckle

Product Overview

Description

Metal Injection Moulding Stainless Steel Watch Strap Buckle

Contrast for Metal injecton moulding (MIM) and Traditional Process

Item	Metal Injection Mould(MIM)	PM	Precision Casting	Machining Operation	Stamping
Density	98%	86%	98%	100%	100%
Tensile Strength	High	Low	High	High	High
Surface Finish	High	Medium	Medium	High	High
Small size	High	Medium	Low	Medium	High
Thickness	High	Medium	Medium	Low	High
Complexity Level	High	Low	Medium	High	Low
Design Tolerance	High	Medium	Medium	Medium	Low
Capacity	High	High	Medium	Medium-High	High
Range of Applying Material	High	High	Medium-High	Medium	Medium
Supply Ability	High	High	Medium	Low	High

 

Contrast for MIM (Metal Injection Moulding) and Precision Casting Moulding  

Property	MIM	Precision Casting Molding
Minimum Thickness	0.4mm	2mm
Maximum Thickness	10mm	Unlimited
Minimum Diameter	0.4mm	2mm
Tolerance of Diameter 4mm	+/-0.06mm	+/-0.2mm
Surface Roughness	1μm	1μm

 

 

FAQs

1.  What is Metal injection moluding (MIM) technology?

MIM (Metal Injection Moulding) is a manufacturing technology that combines the shape making complexity of Plastic Injection Molding with the material flexibility of Powder Metallurgy.

 

2. Is the metal melted during the moulding process?
No, only the binders are melted allowing the powders to flow like a plastic material. Upon cooling the binders solidify giving the part strength for handling. The part must be subsequently sintered to high density to achieve the required mechanical properties.

 

3. How does MIM (metal injection moulding) differ from the Conventional PM process?
Conventional PM uses high, uniaxially applied pressure to coarse metal powders in a die set to produce moderately complex components. Typically, no further densification is gained during the sintering process. Densities achieved by this method are typically in the range of 80-90% of theoretical which limit the physical properties that can be achieved for the given alloy. MIM products are not limited in shape complexity due to the flexibility of the injection moulding process. The fine metal powders used - combine with higher sintering temperatures to allow MIM to achieve near full density in the final article. This allows MIM products to have similar properties as wrought materials. 

 

4. During producing, does the part shrink during removal of binders?
No, the part of stainless steel watch strap buckleon will not change size in the debinding phase of the process. However, since sintering achieves near full density of the powders, the part will undergo a size change of up to 20%.

 

5. Why should I use MIM (Metal Injection Moulding) on Watch Strap Buckle?
MIM excels in producing small, highly complex parts that are difficult or cost prohibitive to produce with conventional technologies such as machining or casting.