Overview
Finding useful tools sometimes means looking outside our hobby. One of the most popular professions to find interesting tools is in the dental industry. While many find miniature drill bits at their local dental office, there are other potential tools hiding in the corner. One of these are Micro Stix, by Microbrush International, the same company that produces the Microbrush and Ultrabrush applicators.
The Micro Stix
The concept behind the Micro Stix is to provide a small disposable adhesive tip applicator to place fragile parts while gluing or holding parts for detail work. These are small sticks, roughly four inches long, with a small blob of sticky material on the end. There are two colors of sticks: green and blue. The green is labeled "Smart Hold", while the blue is "Original Hold". The difference is the amount of stickiness found in the blob at the end. The Original Hold Stix has a stronger hold, while the Smart Hold Stix has less stick. Each has its application, and both will be useful on the workbench.
As noted, these are disposable. The reason for this is that the sticky material on the end will wear out eventually. In fact, the packaging even comes with a use by date. With the package coming with eight each of the different types, one set will last a while. However, there is one small downside, and that is the lack of storage. Since these are sticky on one end, just laying them on the workbench will cause them to stick to the bench. Keeping them in the original package will work to an extent, but they do slide up and stick to the top of the packaging. This is a small issue, as it is easy enough to store them vertically in a small cup.
Conclusion
These little sticky sticks have some great potential, from holding parts for airbrushing to carefully applying small pieces of photoetch to a model. I would like to thank Alpha Abrasive for handing me the review copy at the iHobby Expo.