[sdiy] Fine pitch etching (was: For breadboard lovers...)

[Adam Schabtach]

I tried it and was not entirely impressed. I have acheived equally good
results using Epson glossy photo paper for the transfer with less hassle.
I'll describe what I mean by "hassle".

The drawback to the Pulsar system is that it doesn't work with all laser
printers. The green foil does not adhere to all types of toner. The Pulsar
site mentioned (or used to mention--I see that it has changed since I last
looked at it) trouble with Brother brand printers, but it did not work with
the toner in my Samsung printer either. After contacting the company it was
suggested that I photocopy the artwork onto the Pulsar paper and use that.
That method did work, but the photocopier reduced the image very slightly in
one dimension. (I believe that this is not uncommon in photocopiers and is
done as a simple anti-fraud mechanism, but I was unable to find confirmation
of this with a few minutes of googling.) So in order to produce usable
artwork I'd have to put my PCB image into Photoshop to stretch it in one
dimension to compensate for the reduction of the photocopier. Even when
using the photocopier toner I found that getting the green film to adhere
was somewhat unpredictable.

By contrast, I have successfully etched several PCBs by printing directly
onto Epson paper--no Photoshop, photocopying, or green film involved.

There is a Yahoo group devoted to DIY PCBs which has a wealth of information
about this technique, including a chart in the Files section in which people
have reported their success/failure with a number of kinds of paper and
printers.

--Adam

> Speaking of fine pitch etching has anyone had good success with :
> 
> http://www.pulsarprofx.com/pcbfx/main_site/pages/start_here/index.html
> 
> 
> His system seems to be well thought out (if not a bit 
> expensive) however his results are excellent.  My only 
> concern is his web site is a little over the top and comes 
> off as an infomercial.