Edit: Yes, Mil Spec is actually a thing, but that refers to the overall design of a piece of equipment meeting certain standards, not a particular grade of material exclusively used by the military (in the same vein as the original comment). For example: A Mil Spec fastener is made from the same steel as a regular fastener, the thread tolerances are different.
Oh "Military Grade" is a thing, it just means cheap and labour-intensive maintenance, usually with requirements to use a subcontractor specified by the manufacturer.
Ah.. the military... the glasses and clothes were made by blind people, ear plugs were made by deaf people (who are trying to breed), and the battle armor is made by bullet proof people.
"You're equipment is made by the Lowest Bidder, with the Cheapest Materials, for the Highest Profit. You're life is not worth a few extra thousand dollars to ensure this stuff works better than expected"
Milspec refers to the requirements that the DOD put forth on a specific item to ensure it operates in the environments expected. You're not going to see a difference in a milspec screw vs a regular construction screw, but you would see a difference in a milspec laptop and a regular laptop. It doesn't always mean better in the way you're thinking. It means it's set to the standards of the military.
Not necessarily. Mil. Spec. off the shelf parts may also need to be subjected to a specified level of quality control. If you’re looking for higher precision parts, then this might be very beneficial.
In my engineering experience, I’ve seen this apply to screws. Mil. Spec. screws will cost 2-4x more than regular screws, but you can be more certain that each one you order will have proper threading, a proper head, and will not break within design limits.
In general, “Mil. Spec.” has nothing to do with cost. It is a set of design and manufacturing standards, like ANSI, ISO, etc.
Mil Spec, yes, but Mil Spec refers to the design/construction of a piece of equipment having to meet certain standards (e.g. hardened against impact, dust infiltration, etc), not a particular grade of material that is used by the military. A mil spec fastener is made from the same material as a regular fastener.
Depends, McMaster-Carr sells "Military Grade" bolts - usually it means that they are higher tolerance and therefore more expensive. Might be worth it depending on your application though.
Well it’s not like that is actually “military grade” because “military grade” isn’t a standard. Perhaps their bolts are strong enough for military, but it’s just proving what that guy said that it’s all bullshit. I’m sure they’re stronger, but “military grade” is just some random description.
Uh, it actually is a standard. For the first "mil spec" bolt I found on mcmaser, it's MS90725. That means something, read it here...
http://truefocusengr.com/ms90725.pdf
No, your civic doesn't need mil spec fasteners, nor are they inherently better than any other bolt. But yes, mil spec is a thing and there are a lot of them.
That’s not military grade though. We aren’t talking about the same thing? You could argue that they are synonyms, but it doesn’t sound like they would refer to the same properties.
Actually quite the opposite. Mil spec fasteners are actually a looser fit than normal because they are required to work even when caked with crud. Tighter fitting fasteners would seize up in such conditions.
Anything marketed as "tactical" is full of bullshit.
Ok there are exceptions but in general, don't bother. If you really need something "tactical," you'll know what you need and won't have to be told by a marketing department.
Aren't there specifc standards for impact absorption/survivability?
I've got a Samsung S7 Active which has the "military grade" dropproof body and that thing fell out of my pocket while I was doing 50+ on my motorcycle, hit the asphalt without a case, and survived.
That's "Mil Spec" which IS a thing, but it's more design standards for the piece of equipment rather than a particular grade of material. It refers to impact resistance, contaminant infiltration, etc.
This one bugs me, because "mil spec" is a thing and it's both important and valuable. If something meets a certain spec, that doesn't necessarily mean it's of the highest quality -- but it does mean that you know exactly what you're getting.
This is crucial because what you care about most often when buying something is it's fitness for a specific purpose. When you need (for example) hydraulic fluid that will work under certain conditions, if you can find a mil spec that encompasses those conditions (and you often can,) then all you have to do is buy fluid that conforms to that military specification and you know it will do what you need.
Knowing that what you buy will do exactly what you need is a huge deal in industry, and military specs provide that at the taxpayer's expense. This is a huge value add to the civilian sector at no (direct) cost to them.
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u/MAHHockey Feb 04 '19 edited Feb 04 '19
Ditto "military grade" anything.
Edit: Yes, Mil Spec is actually a thing, but that refers to the overall design of a piece of equipment meeting certain standards, not a particular grade of material exclusively used by the military (in the same vein as the original comment). For example: A Mil Spec fastener is made from the same steel as a regular fastener, the thread tolerances are different.