Homebrew PCBs

In a message dated 11/7/2006 3:20:44 P.M. Central Standard Time,  
scp2000@... writes:

I  tried to build my own PCB with the radio shack kit but the traces are  
terrible. They aren't smooth, they are jagged. The traces are thick then too  
thin. I used a sharpie, didn't work well. Used the radio shack black traces  that 
you press on to the copper clad board. Very cumbersome and results  weren't 
good.<<
A little patience and experience will enable you do to do  quite fine PCB's 
with the RS stuff!  Their pressure-sensitive resist  patters work FINE!  You 
must clean the board of all goop and film and  boogers and water, and then rub 
the patterns down good, and use the wax-paper  like stuff between the sheets of 
patterns over the pattern on the copper as a  shield, and rub down hard with 
a ball-point pen, so there are NO lifted corners,  etc.  
 
Drill your holes FIRST so you can do double-sided!   You must de-burr and 
clean after drilling!  Use only carbide PCB drill-bits  in a DRILL-PRESS (a good 
one!).  Those bits ALL have 1/8" shanks.   There are places you can buy boxes 
of 50 of a size reasonably  ("re-grinds").  Look in the "want-ad pages" of 
magazines like  Radio-Electronics or Popular Electronics or catalogs of Jameco 
and JDR  Microdevices, etc.  NEVER attempt to use a carbide PCB drill-bit in a  
Dremel in your hand!  It just will NOT work!  And busted carbide bits  cost 
$money very, very fast!    If you need to know a "size" when  thinking about 
ordering a box of fifty, #56 is a good size.  (one or two  numbers smaller or 
larger would be useful).  Some vendors offer assortments  of sizes, but you WILL 
bust the one or two "most needed" diameters the first  day, so only buy those 
assortments after you become a skilled  expert!              Jan  Rowland

 


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]