Yeah, I decided to forgo the speed control and reinstalled the motor. I can always add it later. BTW, my laminator has heaters inside both of the heated rollers.
I pre-heat under an iron already to make the paper stick before I trim the excess off. I usually put it in the laminator at 100C.
It will be only a small change in procedure to preheat up to say 150C, then run it through the laminator (with the rollers set maybe 40C cooler than I was running them, maybe 180C)
I will report progess and temps when I get the parts in and the laminator repaired.
Interestingly, I thought the laminator heaters would be halogen lights like the laser printer I disassembled. Instead they are regular nicrome wire coils held in some kind of clear tube. I suspect quarts.
--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, Slavko Kocjancic <eslavko@...> wrote:
>
> The speed controll is not right idea.
> They doesn't help. Even worse.
>
> When I put PCB in laminator I need aprox 6 times to repeat this to PCB
> get hot enought.
> If you observe laminator the roller inside does not have heater. The
> roller is heated by heater mounted by side of roller. So if we slow down
> the motor then roller will cool down quick as the rubber has smal
> thermal capacity. And the PCB radiate heat quick as it has big surface.
> So the beter way is to speed up that motor and make more passes. .. but
> I just live with original motor and speed 6 pass and modification in
> temperature regulation (180 centigrades) it's just work.
> If we want single pass work then the only way (with laminator) is to
> preheat board.
>
> Slavko.
>