Homebrew PCBs

I wanted to rekindle the discussion about using CNC for pcb fabrication. I
love the toner transfer method, but I hate the chemicals and the drilling. I
think a CNC would alleviate this.

What I have learned from this group and CNCzone forums is that CNC is a
whole other rabbit hole, but can be worth the time and effort. My questions
are:

1. Can I reasonably expect to get enough resolution to create designs that
use such things as SOIC and even TQFP IC packages from a CNC kit?
2. Is the fact that the FR4 is not flat (has peaks and valleys) going to
make it impossible to perform the CNC process of creating boards?


What do big board houses do? Do they etch chemically or use CNC techniques?
I would think they would load a 4 foot by 8 foot sheet of stock and etch it
all at once.

It would be really neat to just load in some double-side copper cladded FR4
and have the cad drawing etched and drilled. I remember someone saying that
small board houses were run out of business years ago because of
environmental concerns, but I am not sure this has anything to do with it.


Chris


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