ODP: AW: PCB making tips

[Roman Sowa]

I just want to add my $.02 on PCBs.

About laser printed PCB-film: i haven't tried this but few of my friends
have.
For one it worked well (he printed on thin paper - not film), as for
others...
I don't know if it depends on the printer, but they failed. Another guy
succeded with an inkjet.
And still i'd prefer to take it to one of the bureaus where they print
it
on big postscript printer - a film for medium size board would cost you
a hamburger+fries to print.
Maybe Poland is DIY paradise?

Making PCBs by myself is no longer the best way to do that. I tell you
why:
I used to print (on paper) hole layout in 1:1 scale, then stick the
paper
to copper-coatted epoxy and drill. Drilling through paper is easy and
precise
to some extent. After that i paint traces with a nice tool used years
ago
by hand-drawing architects and some kinda car-prottect paint. With this
method i made the other day a small board witch TSSOP package (25 mils
pin-pitch). "Develop" in ferrum-chloride and PCB ready.
It took me a whole day to make medium-complex board, but VCF/EG board
for my poly i painted for 3 days, and made few mistakes...
I've had it...
Now i give disk with PCB file to one small company, and two weeks later
(or sooner if i want - even next day if i really want) i get well done,
doublesided,
drilled and via-metalized, solder platted, with nice green soldermask
PCB.
And they are so crazy to make it cheap!

Good luck with your experiments!

Roman

> -----Oryginalna wiadomość-----
> Od:	jorgen.bergfors at idg.se [SMTP:jorgen.bergfors at idg.se]
> Wysłano:	1 września 1998 14:14
> Do:	Juergen.Haible at nbgm.siemens.de; synth-diy at mailhost.bpa.nl
> Temat:	Re: AW: PCB making tips
> 
> That's what I use, together with typesetter film and UV-lamp. Next
> time I'm 
> going to try transparency film printed on a laser printer instead of
> going to a 
> service bureau to have the films typeset. It ought to work.
> 
> /Jorgen
> 
> 
>  >I'll reproduce here the biggest tip of all in making PCB's - make
>  >yourself a drill microscope. Drilling is by far worse than imaging
> and
>  >etching.
> 
> I have a different method, which also works extremely well.
> 
> Use a layout program that doesn't fill the "eyes" where the
> holes will be, i.e. the copper must be etched away where the
> drill will go thru. This will give a perfect guide for the drill, and
> no drill press or microscope is needed. Drill free hand with
> 
> JH.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>