Homebrew_PCBs

I'm a bit curious. I've read online about Photo Etch setups, and one
thing that seems popular is an acid solution that grows as you use
it, basically it uses chemicals that will combine with the copper to
create more acid each time you etch.

What I'm curious is if there is a similiar etching solution that
could be used for Brass? Since I'm interested in photo etching from
a modellers perspective, I'd rather use cheaper brass. :-)

TIA
-Gary

sir_tancred wrote:

> I'm a bit curious. I've read online about Photo Etch setups, and one
> thing that seems popular is an acid solution that grows as you use
> it, basically it uses chemicals that will combine with the copper to
> create more acid each time you etch.
>
> What I'm curious is if there is a similiar etching solution that
> could be used for Brass? Since I'm interested in photo etching from
> a modellers perspective, I'd rather use cheaper brass. :-)

I've tried etching thin copper and brass shim with ferric chloride and
found it's a *lot* harder than the copper on pcb. Think its got something
to do with the phosphorous content in pcb copper.