The layout software I use has an X and Y adjustable fudge factor to take care of scaling issues.
I often place a sheet of tracing paper on top of my transfer just to keep the laminator clean. I've had a piece of transfer paper peel back on me once. What a mess! Frank warned me about that too. I'm not really worried about waste, I'm just having too much fun playing with this paper!
MadHatter
http://madhattermagicshop.com/magicshop/product_info.php?products_id=6614 sell Dissolvo for $36/100 sheets.
--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, Jan Kok <jan.kok.5y@...> wrote:
>
> On Sun, Feb 13, 2011 at 2:35 PM, leeleduc <leeleduc@...> wrote:
> > Dissolvo is sending me a sample pack of all their paper weights, including the 4-mil coated. I'm looking forward to trying them out. I'll post the results. The 3-mil paper does not curl in either the printer or laminator, stays nice and flat. The paper is a little slick so I had to fold it over the end of the copper clad to get a clean start into the laminator.
> >
> > When I tried my first run through the laminator I made 6 passes. This worked for the thick paper I was using but was too many passes for the dissolvo 3-mil. The 10-mil board outline was "squished" in a couple of spots. 2 passes works just right. This is what I used to get the clean 6-mil text on the 2nd try.
> >
> > When I get more paper I'm going to try printing and laminating an 8 by 10 inch board outline with a pad at each corner to check the dimensional stability.
>
> Note that some printers don't print accurately. For example, my HP
> LJ1100 prints about 0.5% larger than intended in the direction of
> paper travel. Maybe that's because there is some dust stuck on the
> surface of the paper rollers. I use PentaLogix ViewMate to adjust the
> Y scale (if I really care about accuracy), then print to a PDF file
> using CutePDF writer, then use Adobe Reader to print the PDF to the
> printer.
>
> > It also dawned on me that if I mess up a print, I should be able to simply print on the unused side and laminate that image instead. Sure would cut down on waste. I'll give that a try also.
>
> Frank Miller at PulsarProFx warned me that getting toner on the
> rollers of the laminator would make the rollers sticky, and I'd have
> to take the laminator apart and clean off the rollers. I've never done
> that (got toner on the rollers), but I put a note on the laminator to
> remind myself not to do that!
>
> At 60 cents per 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of Dissolvo paper (from
> http://www.kleargear.com/1815.html) I wouldn't worry too much about
> waste. Still, you can save on your special materials (transfer paper)
> by printing your pattern to plain letter paper, then taping an
> appropriate-sized piece of the transfer paper over the pattern, then
> running the assembly through the printer again. I use printable labels
> from OfficeMax as tape, to reduce the risk of gumming up the printer.
> (Using printable labels as tape was another of Frank's suggestions.
> Not sure if such paranoia is justified, but I'd rather be cautious
> than risk screwing up my printer!)
>