Our arch wire products are proudly made in the USA.

Highland Metals Frequently Asked Questions

Is your NiTi SuperElastic?
Yes, we have regular SuperElastic (austinetic) and Heat Activated (martinsetic) NiTi

Why can you bend the NiTi arches if they're SuperElastic?
The way that Highland makes our NiTI SuperElastic allows you to put bends in the wire with your instruments - but won't take a set in the mouth because the instruments will put a higher strain on the wire.

Is this Chinese NiTi
No. All of our NiTi products are made in the USA

What wire sizes do you have?
Check our website or call us for specific sizes and availability.

Do you have Austenetic NiTi?
Yes, that's our SuperElastic NiTi.

Do you have Martensetic NiTi?
Yes, that's our Heat Activated NiTi

Do you have Copper NiTi?
Highland uses a different technology to make our NiTi alloy heat activated. Copper isn't needed. Many doctors are learning that our Heat Activated NiTi is a high quality and economical substitute for Copper NiTi.

What's the difference between regular NiTi and Heat Activated NiTi?
Regular NiTi is SuperElastic at room temperature. Heat Activated NiTi is soft at room temperature. The patient's body heat activates the wire so it becomes SuperElastic in the mouth.

What is the advantage of using Heat Activated NiTi vs. SuperElastic (Aregular) NiTi arches?
Heat activated NiTi has a gentler force than regular SuperElastic NiTi. For example, a .016x.022 Heat Activated wire has about the same force as a regular SuperElastic .016 round NiTi wire. Some doctores are able to start patients on the .016x.022 wire because it has the gentle force, but offers the control of a rectangular arch.

What's the temperature of your Heat Activated NiTi?
The transition temperature is 86°F or 30°C.

I want a wide shape.
Please check our Natural or Broad arch form.

Can I combine the round and rectangular sizes of NiTi to get the quantity discount?
Yes, you can combine wire sizes within each product type. For example, 5 packs of round NiTi and 8 packs of rectangular NiTi will give you a quantity discount price for 12 packs of NiTi. This is true for all of our wires; NiTi, SS, NicoBlueTM, BetaBlueTM, etc.

Can I mix the Reverse Curve NiTi arches with the regular NiTi to get the quantity discount?
No, they are two different product types.

Can I mix the NiTi Bulk Packs and the Mix-N-Match 10 packs for a quantity discount?
No, they are two different product types.

Can I break up the bulk packs into 50 uppers and 50 lowers?
The bulk packs are 100 arches of the same size and type. If you would only like 50 of each type, we recommend the Mix-N-Match 10 packs of NiTi arches.

What's High Torque Wire?
Highland's High Torque NiTi has torque built in all the way around the arch. You can use it to torque specific teeth or areas. Where ever you don't want the torque, you can use 2 bird beak pliers to twist the arch flat.

How many arches can you get from one spool of NiTi?
Highland's NiTi on a Spool is 15 feet. If you estimate about 6 inches (2 foot) per arch, you can get up to 30 arches per spool.

How much expansion should we expect from .014 Regular Force NiTi on a Spool?
.014 has a light force so you shouldn't see much expansion. However, if you want to assure less expansion, you can form the wire into an arch.

What's the difference between Regular Force and High Force NiTi on a Spool?
High Force NiTi is a little stiffer, giving you about 7% more force.

Why would I use the Heat Activated NiTi on a Spool?
Heat Activated NiTi has a gentler force that Regular NiTi. Some doctors use this wire for leveling and expansion because the wire wants to return to it's original straight form.

What's Ultimate Control NiTi?
Ultimate Control is a super-bendable non-SuperElastic NiTi. You can form it easier that our Regular Force NiTi. Its force levels are between Regular Force NiTi and Stainless Steel. You might find it to be a good substitute for Titanium alloy straight lengths.

Do you have Molar Distilization springs?
Yes, they're our NiTi Stop Wound Springs.

Do you have the coil springs with they little eyelets?
Yes, they're our NiTi Closed Coil Eyelet Springs.

These Natural Stainless Steel lower arches are too small. What would you recommend?
We also have our Natural MidSize arch form. It's in-between the upper and lower arch form size.

What's the difference between Regular Silver and Heat Treated Stainless Steel arches?
Heat treated arches are stiffer and therefore have more force than the Regular Silver.

Why are the legs on some of the Stainless Steel arches so long?
Many doctors like to use the extra length for loops and steps. You can just cut off what you don't want. The extra length is on the Progressive, Broad and Standard forms.

Do you have twist wire?
Yes, we have 3-Strand on a spool or in arch forms. We have 6-Strand arches and 7-Strand on a spool. We also have 8-Strand braided (rectangular) Stainless Steel arches.

What can you use if your patient is allergic to Nickel?
Our Beta BlueTM arches and straight lengths are nickel free.

Do the colors on the molded ligature ties match the chain colors?
Yes

Do the colors on your ties and chain fade?
There will be some fading with all polyurethane products. We have found that the darker colors fade less than the lighter ones.

Why is your wire so inexpensive?
Highland Metals Inc. is a manufacturer of NiTi and other alloy wires. We sell direct to doctors through mail order so we don't have the overhead of big company sales staff.

Are your products FDA approved?
We are an FDA registerd manufacturer of orthodontic products. We also meet ISO, European and Canadian Medical Device Standards and we are audited for our quality standards twice a year by the British Standards Institute.

How will you send my order to Germany? I don't want to have to go to the airport to get my products.
We ship our International orders by FedEx. They clear customs for you and deliver your order directly to your office. You can pre-pay your duties/taxes on your invoice (DDP) or FedEx will give you a bill (or collect them) for them when your products are delivered (DDU).

Do I have to pay sales tax when my order is shipped to me?
If you live outside of California, we will not charge sales tax for your order. However, you need to check with your local government to see if other taxes or duties will be owed for your products.

Where is Highland Metals?
Our sales staff and factory are located in San Jose, California, USA; about 60 miles south of San Francisco.