Thank you for commenting specially on the Laser III and how to soak
it. I did another try last night and can tell that it works really
well.
I got a 100% transfer but I did soak in cold water and it was tough
to remoe it-it was fused.. After etching it was awsome: I got easy 5
mills and some elements came out to 0.0001 mil- I am not making a
mistake. It's even, it's nice, it's great. I think we can pretty much
close this forum down as far as TT is concerned. Removal of toner
after etching required longer time because it is so beautifully fused.
On this experiment I used Lexmark Optra ($20 laser printer).
1200x1200 and well darkened. I know that Laser III ($5 from Salvation
Army, I had no idea why I picked it up...) has 300x300 and hopefully
it is not a negative.
I have another problem. While I have this TT process in 100% grip and
I am soooo happy with it (I was the guy who despised it a lot
before...) I happen to have great results printing on an inkjet
printer, so great that I hate to abondon this route. Remembering that
laser printer DISTORTS the image (up to half an inch) I don't know
what it does to that laser printed image: maybe it is longer than the
original?
Is inkjet printing of any value for making PCBs if one has good
results with laser TT? I mean, what good purpose can I use the
inkjet printer for since it prints with such a nice resolution and
obviously does not distort.
Mike
--- In
Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "mycroft2152"
<mycroft2152@y...> wrote:
> Mike,
>
> The Staples Picture paper comes off easily. I let it soak in hot
> soapy water for about 10 minutes. This paper is NOT like a film
> that peels off, rather it almost dissolves in water, then is rubbed
> or brushed off. Doesn't take long at all.
>
> I usually run half sheets of paper thru the laserjet. Just cheap I
> guess.
>
> The pcb was normal thickness, nothing special. It took me some
> experimenting to get the right number of passes thru the laminator
> for good adhesion. The GBC laminators are designed to laminate a
> paper in one pass. Laminiating a "heavy weight' pcb in a single
> pass is beyond the capacity of the heater. The GBC has a handy red
> temperature light. After the first pass, it takes a few seconds to
> get back up to temp. By running multiple passes, you can reach the
> fusing temp. I generally run a dozen passes, some face up, some
face
> down to even out the heat. The thickness (mass) of the paper and of
> the pcb is significant. Remember it is the temperature at the
> toner / copper interface that is critical.
>
> I use the release paper from the back of labels as a substrate for
> printing legends. It is extremely thin and worksd great. Fewer
> passes are needed and it peels off easily. I don't use it for the
> copper side because the toner is barely held on to the paper. I had
> had problems with the toner flaking off in the past. Though with a
> little effort, it would probably work very well.
>
> Good luck with your Laserjet III. Compared to today's laserjets, it
> is built and runs like a locomotive. I occasionally consider buying
> a new one, but ithe LJIII just keeps chugging along.
>
> Myc
>
> --- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "mikezcnc" <eemikez@c...>
> wrote:
> > How did you exactly remove that heavy paper off the PCB?
> > My try with that paper was using Lexmark Optra laser printer.
> > However, I conveniently picked up, God knows why, a Laser III the
> > other day...What was the thickness of your PCB?
> >
> > Mike
> >
> > --- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "mycroft2152"
> > <mycroft2152@y...> wrote:
> > > After reading the write up on Staples Picture paper SKU #
471861
> > for
> > > toner transfer, I decided to give it a try on my next boards.
> > >
> > > I've had success with a GBC 4" laminator, clay coated inkjet
> paper
> > > and a Laserjet III+. I also use label release paper for the
> legends
> > > on the front of the board. The boards were done on Eagle and
> were
> > > relativey simple with wide-ish traces. There were traces going
> > > between pads.
> > >
> > > The final boards were comparable to my regular setup.
> > >
> > > What I liked: The heavier paper was easier to handle and went
> thru
> > > my antique laser jet smoothly. After removing the paper,
> transfer
> > > was sharp and black. There was no white clay film in the toner
> and
> > > the holes in the pads cleaned out easily.
> > >
> > > What I didn't like: The heavier paper required more passes thru
> the
> > > laminator to get the same results. This was expected. Removal
> was a
> > > little slower than the clay coated paper, but did completely
> come
> > > off. The cost was about 3x (30 sheets for $10 vs 100 sheets for
> > $10).
> > >
> > > Overall, I thought the Staples picture paper was pretty good,
> > > reasonably cost effective and easy to use. The only
> consideration
> > > during changeover was allowing for the extra thickness of the
> paper
> > > in processing.
> > >
> > > Myc