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The Small Shop
"The Bug" |
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The Small Shop's claim to fame...deservedly so where modelbuilders are concerned...is a line of products specifically designed to take the pain out of folding those miniscule photoetch parts. The subject of this review is their SMS002 Photo Etch Bending Tool The Bug Hold And Fold. The one you see in the photo will probably handle 90% of your photoetch work...unless you start dealing with large scale ships or scratch projects. If you do, The Small Shop has Hold and Fold versions that’ll help you there as well. Machined from aircraft grade aluminum, The Bug is a 2” x 2 1/2” black anodized base with an aluminum tool head on top that contains various fingers on three sides and a straight edge on the other. Actually identified as an RTH...rotating tool head, it has a knob that allows the RTH to be loosened and rotated so that any of the four sides can be positioned against one of three outer straight edges. Due to the design, this results in virtually endless possibilities, particularly when you take note of the recesses and fingers machined into the top of the RTH. By the way, the RTH is designed in such a way that there is no need to take The Bug apart in order to rotate the tool head. Spring loaded, just a few turns of the knob releases the RTH from its indices, allowing you to rotate the head as desired. Then tighten the knob back down. When it comes to using The Bug, all you do is back off the knob far enough to allow the photoetch part to be slipped under the RTH, which is then tightened back down. Experience will quickly tell you when pressure is sufficient to keep the part from moving. The included single edge razor blade, which needs to be swiped over a piece of sandpaper to slightly dull it, is then used to lever up the exposed part of the photoetch component until you attain the desired angle. So what does it do? Pretty much whatever you can get it to do, but specifically boxes, all kinds of bends, ladders, even grab handles. Depending on what you’re doing, you can use it as a clamp or vise as well. Have a clamp or angle that incorporates a twist? Clamp one end in the Bug and use a small pair of pliers to twist the photoetch to the required angle or configuration. What you don’t normally see mentioned is that The Bug and its compadres can also be used to bend other thin metals and thin plastic. When I say thin plastic, I’m talking about .010 to .020. Any thicker than that, and you run the risk of snapping the plastic. There’s a lot more you can do with The Bug and other members of the Hold and Fold line, but rather than try to describe all the possibilities here, I’ll let you have the fun of discovery. The bottom line is this: If you plan on working with even a small amount of photoetch detail, any of the Hold and Fold products...but especially The Bug...will go a long way towards making your modelbuilding life easier. Price for The Bug? Given how much easier it'll make working with photoetch, it's an incredibly reasonable $39.99. |
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