Archive of the former Yahoo!Groups mailing list: Homebrew PCBs

I don't mean to be contrary, but I have used a laser printer to print
directly on copper and on aluminum. I found that laser printers vary
tremendously in their ability to do this, but I cannot tell you why
this is. I believe it was a Lexmark E260 that I first used. I took a
piece of thin (.005) copperclad and just ran it through like a piece
of paper. It printed perfectly and even fused!

That said, I have experimented with a number of other laser printers
and they vary all over the place in this regard. Some won't print at
all, and many won't fuse. You can easily remove the fuser from most
laser printers, replacing it with a resistor to simulate the
temperature measuring thermistor in the fuser. That way you can
"fuse" the image on the copper in an oven or by using acetone vapor.

If you want to try it, be prepared for a lot of frustration and some
sparks. Be careful because there is a lot of voltage (at little
current) in these machines. I would suggest using printers with
easily replaced drums in case you damage the drum. Rounding and
smoothing the corners of the pcb help a lot.

Mark