Hi Andrew .. thanks for the reply.. apologies for not providing enough info up
front.
Using an iron .. though I do have a laminator ..
Have a piece of aluminum on my waffle maker..
I let that heat up .. reading the temp .. doesn't go over 350 ish ..
PCB ..I use steel wool .. acetone ..
I read something about wanting small scratches from like a
scotch scoring pad so the toner will attach better .. ??
First one I pressed down hard .. and worked the iron n forth..
Second one pressed down, but didn't work the iron back n forth ..
heated the PCB for several minutes... the board sizzled when I quenched it ..
The iron doesn't get hotter than about 400 degrees from what I can
tell with the laser thermometer.. I'm not at home and don't remember the
exact temp. I can try to record more exact temps if need. But the all the toner
does transfer, and is on the board good .. just spread out .. for example
the traces on a 8 PIN DIP are all touching after..
Again .. its like a copy of a copy to the final kind of thing ..
That may be bad news .. I will know later tonite..
When I get a chance to make fresh copies and compare.
I was looking at the copy I used to making the final version to transfer.
I can see where the gap between the traces is less ..
SO ... it may be an accumulation of errors stacked against me ..
I am going reprint the original images straight to the paper and compare
and try those .. is it possible that I have the darkness setting too high?
That HP laserjet copier / printer does put a lot of toner on the paper on the
darkest setting ..
That's about all I can think of ..
1. Should I try the laminator? Suggestions on multiple passes?
2. Lighter setting on the printer / copier?
3. Less pressure, heat or time?
all ideas appreciated .. was wondering if anyone was going to reply .. ;)
Thanks ..
Randy
________________________________
From: Andrew <
a_wake@...>
To:
Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.comSent: Wed, February 16, 2011 3:05:35 PM
Subject: [Homebrew_PCBs] Re: traces running together
Randy,
Are you using a laminator or an iron to transfer the image to the board? How are
you prepping the board?
If using an iron, how hot, how long, how hard are you pressing, using the flat
or an edge, etc.?
If using a laminator, how hot, how many passes?
--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "Randy S." <rj3819@...> wrote:
>
> ok .. the glossy laser paper is working fine I think ..
> however, my pads and traces are running together..
> Am I pressing too hard ? Is it a product of that
> toner perhaps? Now.. It is a copy of a copy kind of a thing..
> Perhaps a fresh print directly to the paper is better ?
> Help please ?
>
> Thanks
>
> Randy - N2CUA
>
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