I heard the other day that Tonic and Misti came to an agreement and Tonic will soon stop selling the Tim Holtz stamping platform in the USA. It sounded like they might collaborate in the future.
Anyhow, I have been seeing the platform for sale for as little as $24 on amazon, while supplies last, I guess...
I like my platform, but I do see that the grid being under your project on the Misti would help with some techniques.