Homebrew PCBs

Dave <theschemer@...> writes:
> Thanks for the info. I am running Windows but I guess I can convert a 
> spare pc to run Linux as I wanted to one day anyhow.

If you want the adventure, you could still try gEDA/pcb ;-)

> I also have a Mac but it doesn't get used much.

If it's OS/X, you can run gEDA/PCB on that.

> So what is the best for Windows?

You could try Kicad; it is often recommended for beginners.

> Eagle by Cadsoft or Express PCB or something else?

Neither of these are free, unless you're willing to accept some (I
think unreasonable) limitations on what you can do with them.

> Isn't there 2 or 3 sizes of drills that are most often used so I
> could buy a bunch of those sizes?

I don't know what sizes *you* use, so I can't say.  I'd buy the random
selection and see what you use the most.  I use the 13, 25, and 35 the
most, but that's just because of the parts I use, and I eventually end
up using pretty much all the sizes anyway.

> I have a drill press so I am set there.

Beware that large drill presses may have too much runout (sideways
motion) for those small bits; they're quite brittle.  You'll have to
try and see.