Homebrew_PCBs

----- Original Message -----
From: Leon Heller
To: Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, March 21, 2007 7:55 AM
Subject: [Homebrew_PCBs] Velleman PCB Etching Tank ET-20


I've just bought one of the ET-20 Velleman etching tanks from Rapid
Electronics, it seemed good value at £34.95 + VAT. I've only tried it
with a small scrap of PCB material with a pattern scribbled on it
with a marker pen, but it seems to work very well, taking under 5
minutes to etch it using FeCl3. The tank includes an air pump and
heater. The bubbler is built-in to the base of the tank, and has the
orifices angled, so that the bubbles take a sort of circular path
rather than going straight up, which should help achieve even
etching. I managed to drop the board, clip and support wire into the
tank, but it was quite easy to fish it out with a long piece of
plastic.

It's a lot easier than the technique I've been using for years -
manual agitation of a plastic food container in a larger container
filled with hot water.

Here are the details:

<http://www.rapidonline.com/productinfo.aspx?tier1=Tools%
2c+Fasteners+%
26+Production+Equipment&tier2=PCB+Equipment&tier3=Etching&tier4=Etchin
g+tank+with+agitator+%26+heater&moduleno=77727>

Leon





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

> I've just etched a small board (ARM JTAG interface) using the new tank
> and it looks very nice. The instructions suggest two minutes to warm
> the solution after switching the heater on; I used about five minutes,
> and at least 20 minutes is probably about right. Because of the low
> temperature etching took about 15 minutes.
>
> I used my usual photo-etch technique with artwork produced on an HP
> DeskJet 5940 inkjet printer using Premium JetStar film. The text on
> this board had the default 5 mils line width, and came out perfectly.
> Narrowest track size was 12 mils, though.
>
> Here is a photo of the PCB:
>
> http://www.leonheller.com/pcb.jpg
>
>

----- Original Message -----
From: "Bryan Pope" <bryan.pope@...>
To: <Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, March 23, 2007 2:50 PM
Subject: Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Velleman PCB Etching Tank ET-20


> Leon Heller wrote:
>> I've just etched a small board (ARM JTAG interface) using the new tank
>> and it looks very nice. The instructions suggest two minutes to warm
>> the solution after switching the heater on; I used about five minutes,
>> and at least 20 minutes is probably about right. Because of the low
>> temperature etching took about 15 minutes.
>>
>> I used my usual photo-etch technique with artwork produced on an HP
>> DeskJet 5940 inkjet printer using Premium JetStar film. The text on
>> this board had the default 5 mils line width, and came out perfectly.
>> Narrowest track size was 12 mils, though.
>>
>> Here is a photo of the PCB:
>>
>> http://www.leonheller.com/pcb.jpg
>>
>>
> That looks *really* good! What process do you use for the photo-etch
> technique? I searched the web and found that UV is the conventional way
> to develop the resist but was looking through my Jameco catalog
> yesterday and they offer a positive photo-etch package from Datak that
> is supposed to only need a 100-watt incandescent to develop the
> resist.. Has anyone used this product before and if so, what were your
> results?

As I said in my earlier post, I use an HP 5940 printer and JetStar Premium
film to create the transparency. I then expose the PCB (precoated positive
resist) in a home-made UV unit, and develop in sodium hydroxide solution.

Leon

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ronald Ausloos" <ronald_ausloos@...>
To: <Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, March 23, 2007 5:27 AM
Subject: Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Velleman PCB Etching Tank ET-20


> Didn't you have any problems to fix that heating element in the tank? Here
> in Belgium , the heater is supplied with 2 big suckers. They even don't
> fit in that tank! So , I had to fix the heater with some rope .... Time to
> etch a pcb is the same like yours.

The heater hangs straight down in mine, the top assembly with the thermostat
control is a bit wider than the tank.

The suckers must be for an aquarium. I broke one of mine pushing it onto the
heater, I should have slid it on from the end. I don't need them, anyway.

Leon

> yesterday and they offer a positive photo-etch package from Datak that
> is supposed to only need a 100-watt incandescent to develop the
> resist.. Has anyone used this product before and if so, what were your
> results?

> Didn't you have any problems to fix that heating element in the tank? Here
> in Belgium , the heater is supplied with 2 big suckers. They even don't
> fit in that tank! So , I had to fix the heater with some rope .... Time to
> etch a pcb is the same like yours.

> Leon <leon355@...> wrote: ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Ronald Ausloos" <ronald_ausloos@...>
> To: <Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Friday, March 23, 2007 5:27 AM
> Subject: Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Velleman PCB Etching Tank ET-20
>
>
>> Didn't you have any problems to fix that heating element in the tank? Here
>> in Belgium , the heater is supplied with 2 big suckers. They even don't
>> fit in that tank! So , I had to fix the heater with some rope .... Time to
>> etch a pcb is the same like yours.
>>
>
> The heater hangs straight down in mine, the top assembly with the thermostat
> control is a bit wider than the tank.
>
> The suckers must be for an aquarium. I broke one of mine pushing it onto the
> heater, I should have slid it on from the end. I don't need them, anyway.
>
> Leon
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------
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