[sdiy] Press and Peel circuit boards

[Samppa Tolvanen]

> > Any thoughts or alternatives?

Yup ;)

On 1/29/06, John Speth <johnspeth at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Key things to remember:
> 1. Copper board must be very clean and shiny prior to
> ironing.  Use steel wool.
> 2. Pressure, temperature, and time of heating are all
> variables that must be accurately balanced.  You must
> experiment.
> 3. Older laser printers are known to work better
> because they use more toner.
> 4. If you dno't get good results, clean the board and
> try again.  A good "print" will result in a a good
> etch.
> 5. You can always fix your mistakes in toner transfer
> with a sharpie pen.
>

These are good tips too for the "toner transfer" method I'm
preferring. I use laser transparencies, which are under 10cents per
sheet.

BUT! I have different opinion on one thing - this might only apply to
toner transfer method:

I have found the "correct" settings for my setup. (that's fiberglass
boards (dunno copper thickness), old iron in a cotton setting (market
with 3 points) and one sheet of normal paper between the iron and the
transparency sheet)

But I've found that it's better to first polish the board with fine
sandpaper, clean the board and then PRE-ECTH it and then wash it
before doint the actual transfer.

Pre-ecthing the board slightly for dull, corroded surface seems to
help toner to stick to it.

---

This TCO of printers is a funny thing - I think LJ 1100 started the
trend of affordable personal laserprinters. Before that, I just had to
try rationalize the fact that If you mostly print out B/W letters -
GET A 2nd hand laser. It's an investment you don't have to regret.

I'm waitin' to receive a transfer belt for my Laserjet 5M, total cost
for the printer and  transfer belt (with shipping) 105 euros and now
it's good for next 20000 prints before next part to be replaced, both
A3 B/W and A4 Color.

If you think toner cartridges are expensive, you can always try to
refill yourself, I've been told the bulk toner for copymachines might
work. (and I'm currently using toner from a broken LJIII on Canon
LBP-8IV, no problem)

Samppa