--- In
Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, Alessio Sangalli <alesan@...> wrote:
>
> Maybe I ended up having a very good printer/laminator combo?
>
Annoyingly this is often a case with toner transfer, the differences in otherwise compatible equipment does make a difference. I noticed a massive difference once when we got new toner for my printer, it just didn't stick well anymore - it just so happened that this was cheap refill toner which didn't print as heavily/evenly either. If you go the photo paper for transfer it can be very cheap but again the differences between brand/type of papers is enormous.
I was also using a bottom dollar laminator, which I'm sure wont have the heat output of a decent brand one, hence the extra heat gun application. The problem with too much heat however is that paper blackens and blue stuf warps as mentioned, and even the toner can squash and spread if it's too hot, so it's a balancing act of getting the process right for your equipment.
I do agree to an extent with the excessiveness of my cleaning process, but I find it best to overdo it for a start then try simplifying it from there. I found turps to work better than acetone because of the residue, and I prefer to limit my exposure to acetone! But yeah you certainly need to clean the board well afterwards to solder to it.
I used to keep a solder bath (camping oven, frypan, lots of plumbing solder bars) for tinning the board after etching; flux, dip, wipe with windscreen squeegie, but that was when I had a fumer cupboard to keep it in. Now I use cool-amp silver plating powder, it's amazing. Only catch is silver can tarnish just as bad as copper. Still worth it though I feel, and looks real nice.
speaking of soldering, I find supermarket ascorbic (citric) acid, the stuff for baking that comes in granules, works wonders as a water clean flux when mixed in water and used from a spray bottle, it's cheap and safer than most commercial ones. spray it onto dirty copper and it'll brighten before your eyes!
Andrew