[sdiy] Home Made Ali Panels

[rob at emulatorarchive.com]

Hi list,
With the price of Schaeffer panels (FracRac) reaching 40 - 50 Euros, it 
is time I made my own.
Having given up on using spray painted PCB material with Safmat (edges 
peel) and Lazertrans (need colour laser printer)...
I plan to make panels from anodised 1.5mm aluminium (GEDAKOP).
http://www.megauk.com/gedakop.php
But before I experiment I thought I would seek some learned advice from 
the list.

Cutting
I might be able to have the panels laser cut, but there is a plastic 
coating to protect the panels from light.
I have had quotes for laser cutting but also quotes for using shears at 
a much lower cost.
So are high quality metal shears an option that will provide sufficient 
accuracy?
Do they leave a clean edge with no burr or bending?

Milling
I like using slide switches which need rectangular holes.
Will a hand milling machine provide sufficient accuracy?
I can buy 0.5mm diameter cutters so the inside corners are ok.
Or do I forget rectangles....as they will be too wobbly

Drilling
I need to buy a good bench drill, and a stepped drill.
The panels will have the holes laid out for drilling as they are printed 
onto the panel using GEDAKOP.

GEDAKOP
Very few people in SDIY seemed to have used this approach. Here is one 
example:
http://www.oszillator.ch/music/modular/modules.jpg

Does anyone have any positive or negative experience?
Does the lettering stand out enough, do I need a vacuum UV exposure to 
get fine lines.

In summary I have to spend more hours making the panels, but they would 
cost 10 Euros each.
I need a UV exposure unit and mill/drill, but thats it.

Regards - rob
www.amsynths.co.uk