Homebrew PCBs

I have no shear.   I have no vise.   What can I use to cut PCB material?   I'll start with 6" X 12" X 0.062" SINGLE SIDED PC BOARD.
Is there a hack for cutting straight lines on this material
without buying a shear?

One hack is to score it with a utility knife.  Go over both front and back
several times with a great deal of pressure.  Then lay the score line over
the edge of a table and bend it.  It's not nice, but it does work.

Although, for 15 bucks, you can buy some nice aviation snips that'll do the
job in a quarter of the time with a tiny fraction of the effort.

Sent from my iPad

On 2011-11-16, at 5:36 PM, alan00463 <alan00463@...> wrote:



I have no shear. I have no vise. What can I use to cut PCB material? I'll
start with 6" X 12" X 0.062" SINGLE SIDED PC BOARD.
Is there a hack for cutting straight lines on this material
without buying a shear?

 


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

This stuff is TOUGH! I scored with a utility knife, through the 
copper and well into the fiberglass. When I bent it over the edge of 
a table, it bowed a lot before finally breaking.

If you know of anybody in the printing business (offset presses and 
such) or at a copy shop, some of these places have big guillotine 
paper cutters. I have access to such a shop and worked it out with 
the operator that when it comes time to change the knife blade (over 
time it gets nicked and leaves rough edges in the stacks of paper) I 
get to cut a few boards. The cutters have a minimum cut size (usually 
the size of a business card), but generally can do a good job. It 
takes 2 or 3 tries (sometimes it helps to flip the board over) but 
the cuts are clean.

Be careful of the glass fibers that are thrown around when breaking a 
board. It gets into your skin and itches a lot. Be sure you're not 
doing this on the kitchen table or next to the bed (!) (for those of 
us in small apartments, or such...)

Cheers,
Dave

-=-=-=-

>One hack is to score it with a utility knife.  Go over both front and back
>several times with a great deal of pressure.  Then lay the score line over
>the edge of a table and bend it.  It's not nice, but it does work.
>
>Although, for 15 bucks, you can buy some nice aviation snips that'll do the
>job in a quarter of the time with a tiny fraction of the effort.
>
>Sent from my iPad
>
>On 2011-11-16, at 5:36 PM, alan00463 <alan00463@...> wrote:
>
>
>
>I have no shear. I have no vise. What can I use to cut PCB material? I'll
>start with 6" X 12" X 0.062" SINGLE SIDED PC BOARD.
>Is there a hack for cutting straight lines on this material
>without buying a shear?

I have used a paper cutter from the office supply store. It doesn't do it a lot of good cutting the abrasive glass fiber board, but the cost is not too bad. I would not recommend using an expensive sheet metal shear since it will dull it quite quickly. I sometimes use a bandsaw, but the dust is very abrasive and not good for the equipment in the shop, or your eyes and lungs for that matter. A metal cutting wheel on an angle grinder works too, but same problems with the dust.


Bob


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

On 17/11/2011 15:43, DaveC wrote:
> This stuff is TOUGH! I scored with a utility knife, through the
> copper and well into the fiberglass. When I bent it over the edge of
> a table, it bowed a lot before finally breaking.

I use CEM-1 paper/fibre-glass laminate. It's *much* easier to cut and 
drill than FR4.

Leon
-- 
Leon Heller
G1HSM

I used to use the score and snap method (IMO score and mutilate) with different results.

If you score deep enough, the break is OK. However you must score almost right through the material.

If you don't score enough, some layers rip and some break, resulting in a really horrible edge, and a couple of mm of material which is useless as it's been quite damaged.

In all cases you can easily clean the edges up with a file and get them really nice.


However all this is a lot of trouble, the 2nd best thing in my opinion is a hacksaw. You may not get a really straight cut but it will go much faster and easier than the snapping method.

You can clean and straighten the edges with a file afterwards, and it's easier because there's less of a horrible edge to clean up.


I don't use either of these methods any more though. I came across an idea on a forum and I've been using it ever since.

It requires a drill press, but if you're making PCBs you probably already have one. You buy some of the cutter\router bits used for cutting boards on CNC machines. You set one up in your drill press and also set up some kind of fence to run your board along.

It's a little fiddly at the start, and if you do something wrong you will break the bit - but given some practice it's pretty good, and much faster than the score\snap idea.


--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, Leon Heller <leon355@...> wrote:

>
> On 17/11/2011 15:43, DaveC wrote:
> > This stuff is TOUGH! I scored with a utility knife, through the
> > copper and well into the fiberglass. When I bent it over the edge of
> > a table, it bowed a lot before finally breaking.
> 
> I use CEM-1 paper/fibre-glass laminate. It's *much* easier to cut and 
> drill than FR4.
> 
> Leon
> -- 
> Leon Heller
> G1HSM
>

As much as I like the idea of the router bit in the drill press, 
depending on the quality of your drill press this could seriously wear 
the primary bearings on the drill shaft. I'm not sure I'd want to do too 
much of this with my cheapy GMC mini drill press, but if you trust the 
drill press (or know you can replace/upgrade the bearings easily enough) 
it'd work really well. Though really, as long as you go fairly slow with 
a sharp bit it should be fine, pcb isn't going to be a very heavy load.
Any wear at all though is going to result in the drill head wobbling 
slightly as it drills, which is bad for small drill sizes...

I don't do many pcb's these days, and my preferred method is the 
hacksaw, but I have a fairly unorthodox way of using it. I have my work 
jeans on, sit in a chair and hold the hacksaw upside down in between my 
legs, with the blade up. I guess holding it upside down in a vice would 
be better, but I don't have a decent vice at the moment. Then I hold the 
pcb in both hands almost flat against the blade (ie copper flat against 
blade, not the edge of the pcb), just with a slight angle to start the 
cut at the edge of the board. Then just move the board back and forth to 
cut it, this way I get a perfectly straight cut every time, and if the 
blade is decently sharp it's almost as clean a cut as a nicely routed 
board. Quite quick too.

Andrew

On 18/11/2011 10:20 AM, tda7000 wrote:
>
> I used to use the score and snap method (IMO score and mutilate) with 
> different results.
>
> If you score deep enough, the break is OK. However you must score 
> almost right through the material.
>
> If you don't score enough, some layers rip and some break, resulting 
> in a really horrible edge, and a couple of mm of material which is 
> useless as it's been quite damaged.
>
> In all cases you can easily clean the edges up with a file and get 
> them really nice.
>
> However all this is a lot of trouble, the 2nd best thing in my opinion 
> is a hacksaw. You may not get a really straight cut but it will go 
> much faster and easier than the snapping method.
>
> You can clean and straighten the edges with a file afterwards, and 
> it's easier because there's less of a horrible edge to clean up.
>
> I don't use either of these methods any more though. I came across an 
> idea on a forum and I've been using it ever since.
>
> It requires a drill press, but if you're making PCBs you probably 
> already have one. You buy some of the cutter\router bits used for 
> cutting boards on CNC machines. You set one up in your drill press and 
> also set up some kind of fence to run your board along.
>
> It's a little fiddly at the start, and if you do something wrong you 
> will break the bit - but given some practice it's pretty good, and 
> much faster than the score\snap idea.
>
> --- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com 
> <mailto:Homebrew_PCBs%40yahoogroups.com>, Leon Heller <leon355@...> wrote:
> >
> > On 17/11/2011 15:43, DaveC wrote:
> > > This stuff is TOUGH! I scored with a utility knife, through the
> > > copper and well into the fiberglass. When I bent it over the edge of
> > > a table, it bowed a lot before finally breaking.
> >
> > I use CEM-1 paper/fibre-glass laminate. It's *much* easier to cut and
> > drill than FR4.
> >
> > Leon
> > --
> > Leon Heller
> > G1HSM
> >
>
> 
>



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

Yeah!  I wanted to add that aviation shears are meant to cut heavy sheet
metal.  2oz copper and a bit of fiberglass should be no problem!

Benjamin Blumer


Sent from my iPad

On 2011-11-17, at 4:51 PM, Roland Harriston <rolohar@...> wrote:



I have been using aviation shears for a number of years.

They are made by Wiss, which is a well-known maker
of cutting tools. They are large, about 10 inches overall
with jaws that are about 3 inches. The long handles
provide good leverage for cutting thick material.
I have no problems cutting .0625 double-sided PC
2 oz. copper board stock.

Aviation shears come in two configurations
for straight cuts and circular cuts. I have the ones
that are designed to make straight cuts.

Cutting epoxy-glass material has not dulled the
cutting edges over the years.

Roland F. Harriston, P.D.
*******************

DaveC wrote:
>
>
> This stuff is TOUGH! I scored with a utility knife, through the
> copper and well into the fiberglass. When I bent it over the edge of
> a table, it bowed a lot before finally breaking.
>
> If you know of anybody in the printing business (offset presses and
> such) or at a copy shop, some of these places have big guillotine
> paper cutters. I have access to such a shop and worked it out with
> the operator that when it comes time to change the knife blade (over
> time it gets nicked and leaves rough edges in the stacks of paper) I
> get to cut a few boards. The cutters have a minimum cut size (usually
> the size of a business card), but generally can do a good job. It
> takes 2 or 3 tries (sometimes it helps to flip the board over) but
> the cuts are clean.
>
> Be careful of the glass fibers that are thrown around when breaking a
> board. It gets into your skin and itches a lot. Be sure you're not
> doing this on the kitchen table or next to the bed (!) (for those of
> us in small apartments, or such...)
>
> Cheers,
> Dave
>
> -=-=-=-
>
> >One hack is to score it with a utility knife. Go over both front and back
> >several times with a great deal of pressure. Then lay the score line over
> >the edge of a table and bend it. It's not nice, but it does work.
> >
> >Although, for 15 bucks, you can buy some nice aviation snips that'll
> do the
> >job in a quarter of the time with a tiny fraction of the effort.
> >
> >Sent from my iPad
> >
> >On 2011-11-16, at 5:36 PM, alan00463 <alan00463@yahoo.com
> <mailto:alan00463%40yahoo.com>> wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> >I have no shear. I have no vise. What can I use to cut PCB material? I'll
> >start with 6" X 12" X 0.062" SINGLE SIDED PC BOARD.
> >Is there a hack for cutting straight lines on this material
> >without buying a shear?
>
>

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

 


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

I have been using aviation shears for a number of years.

They are made by Wiss, which is a well-known maker
of cutting tools. They are large, about 10 inches overall
with jaws that are about 3 inches. The long handles
provide good leverage for cutting thick material.
I have no problems cutting .0625 double-sided PC
2 oz. copper board stock.

Aviation shears come in two configurations
for straight cuts and circular cuts. I have the ones
that are designed to make straight cuts.

Cutting epoxy-glass material has not dulled the
cutting edges over the years.

Roland F. Harriston, P.D.
*******************



DaveC wrote:
>  
>
> This stuff is TOUGH! I scored with a utility knife, through the
> copper and well into the fiberglass. When I bent it over the edge of
> a table, it bowed a lot before finally breaking.
>
> If you know of anybody in the printing business (offset presses and
> such) or at a copy shop, some of these places have big guillotine
> paper cutters. I have access to such a shop and worked it out with
> the operator that when it comes time to change the knife blade (over
> time it gets nicked and leaves rough edges in the stacks of paper) I
> get to cut a few boards. The cutters have a minimum cut size (usually
> the size of a business card), but generally can do a good job. It
> takes 2 or 3 tries (sometimes it helps to flip the board over) but
> the cuts are clean.
>
> Be careful of the glass fibers that are thrown around when breaking a
> board. It gets into your skin and itches a lot. Be sure you're not
> doing this on the kitchen table or next to the bed (!) (for those of
> us in small apartments, or such...)
>
> Cheers,
> Dave
>
> -=-=-=-
>
> >One hack is to score it with a utility knife. Go over both front and back
> >several times with a great deal of pressure. Then lay the score line over
> >the edge of a table and bend it. It's not nice, but it does work.
> >
> >Although, for 15 bucks, you can buy some nice aviation snips that'll 
> do the
> >job in a quarter of the time with a tiny fraction of the effort.
> >
> >Sent from my iPad
> >
> >On 2011-11-16, at 5:36 PM, alan00463 <alan00463@... 
> <mailto:alan00463%40yahoo.com>> wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> >I have no shear. I have no vise. What can I use to cut PCB material? I'll
> >start with 6" X 12" X 0.062" SINGLE SIDED PC BOARD.
> >Is there a hack for cutting straight lines on this material
> >without buying a shear?
>
> 




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

Alan,

I have used a tile saw with a slicing blade for a couple of years. It 
does a good job. Be careful of your fingers. You can run it wet to keep 
the dust under control, but it slings water. Or run it dry and put up 
with the dust. I got the idea from someone on this list, although I 
don't find the related emails at the moment.

The saw I use is a QEP 60084A 4-Inch Portable Wet Saw that I bought at 
Lowe's for (as I recall) about $53. You can get a slicing blade (0.008 
inches) for about $8.00 from http://www.lopacki.com/sawblades/#f.

The rip guide on my saw is not precisely parallel to the blade and thus 
is not a satisfactory method to produce square cuts. I mark the PCB and 
manually guide it. Again, be careful of your fingers!

Steve

On 11/16/2011 7:36 PM, alan00463 wrote:
> I have no shear.   I have no vise.   What can I use to cut PCB material?   I'll start with 6" X 12" X 0.062" SINGLE SIDED PC BOARD.
> Is there a hack for cutting straight lines on this material
> without buying a shear?
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> Be sure to visit the group home and check for new Links, Files, and Photos:
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Homebrew_PCBsYahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>

-- 
Read The Patriot Post    Vertitas vos Liberabit
http://patriotpost.us/subscription/

Thank you for all the ideas.

I guess I ought to have mentioned that I also do not have access to
- a tile saw
- a band saw, or
- a drill press

Too bad, a router bit on a drill press sounds like a neat trick.  Or better yet, a router in a router mounted in a router table.    No, unfortunately, I don't have access to a router either.

Maybe I ought to just buy a pair of the Wiss 10" aviation shears.   It would be easier to operate since it doesn't need power, and doesn't require me to purchase another cutting blade.   Where would I go to get such a tool?  If you find a hosted picture of this tool, please post it. Benjamin and Roland, thank you for your advice regarding this tool.   It ought to work, if I don't want to make any round edges on my PCB.   (I happened to be looking for switches in Radio Shack yesterday, and saw a package of round PCB material.  Yes, circular.  Amazing.)

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, Steve <steve65@...> wrote:
>
> Alan,
> 
> I have used a tile saw with a slicing blade for a couple of years. It 
> does a good job. Be careful of your fingers. You can run it wet to keep 
> the dust under control, but it slings water. Or run it dry and put up 
> with the dust. I got the idea from someone on this list, although I 
> don't find the related emails at the moment.
> 
> The saw I use is a QEP 60084A 4-Inch Portable Wet Saw that I bought at 
> Lowe's for (as I recall) about $53. You can get a slicing blade (0.008 
> inches) for about $8.00 from http://www.lopacki.com/sawblades/#f.
> 
> The rip guide on my saw is not precisely parallel to the blade and thus 
> is not a satisfactory method to produce square cuts. I mark the PCB and 


Steve, thanks for posting this.

Is there a way you can align the rip guide (fence) with the saw blade, using a straight edge?     Is there a way to change the angle
of the saw blade?    Maybe take it to a machine shop & see if the fence can be adjusted, or maybe add another piece of steel edge attached to it that has just the right taper to make it parallel to the saw blade.

Or, if you have access to a table saw or band saw, you could cut a taper on a piece of wood that has just the right angle so you could use it a fence, maybe in conjunction with a piece of straight metal.   Then you could attach it to the bed (or whatever it's called) in some fashion.

Also:
I have other methods of cutting PCB material, including various power tools.
But cutting epoxy-glass material creates a lot of toxic dust, so I don't 
do it that way.
One can learn to cut fairly accurately with the shears, and there is no 
harmful dust.

BTW: The term "snips" and "shears" seem to be used interchangeable nowadays.
"Shears" will do the job.........."Snips" will not.

The "shears" with the red handles that I use are described in the Lowe's 
image as "snips"
They are shears.

Roland F. Harriston, P.D.
********************

Roland Harriston wrote:
> If you have a Lowe's Hardware nearby, you can get Wiss products there.
> Please note that there is a difference between "snips" and "shears"
> Snips will not do the job for you. I have both, so I speak from 
> experience.
>
> Roland F. Harriston, P.D.
> *********************
>
> http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=3348636&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr|0||p_product_quantity_sold|1&pl=1�tURL=%2Fpl_Wiss_4294936478%2B4294962173_40_%3FNs%3Dp_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&facetInfo=Wiss 
> <http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=3348636&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&pl=1�tURL=%2Fpl_Wiss_4294936478%2B4294962173_40_%3FNs%3Dp_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&facetInfo=Wiss>
>
>
> alan00463 wrote:
>>  
>>
>>
>>
>> Thank you for all the ideas.
>>
>> I guess I ought to have mentioned that I also do not have access to
>> - a tile saw
>> - a band saw, or
>> - a drill press
>>
>> Too bad, a router bit on a drill press sounds like a neat trick. Or 
>> better yet, a router in a router mounted in a router table. No, 
>> unfortunately, I don't have access to a router either.
>>
>> Maybe I ought to just buy a pair of the Wiss 10" aviation shears. It 
>> would be easier to operate since it doesn't need power, and doesn't 
>> require me to purchase another cutting blade. Where would I go to get 
>> such a tool? If you find a hosted picture of this tool, please post 
>> it. Benjamin and Roland, thank you for your advice regarding this 
>> tool. It ought to work, if I don't want to make any round edges on my 
>> PCB. (I happened to be looking for switches in Radio Shack yesterday, 
>> and saw a package of round PCB material. Yes, circular. Amazing.)
>>
>> 
>



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

On Fri, Nov 18, 2011 at 6:48 AM, alan00463 <alan00463@...> wrote:
>
> Steve, thanks for posting this.
>
> Is there a way you can align the rip guide (fence) with the saw blade, using a straight edge?     Is there a way to change the angle
> of the saw blade?    Maybe take it to a machine shop & see if the fence can be adjusted, or maybe add another piece of steel edge attached to it that has just the right taper to make it parallel to the saw blade.
>
> Or, if you have access to a table saw or band saw, you could cut a taper on a piece of wood that has just the right angle so you could use it a fence, maybe in conjunction with a piece of straight metal.   Then you could attach it to the bed (or whatever it's called) in some fashion.

Alan,

The biggest issue with the wet saw is that the fence doesn't go all
the way down to the table.  They are made for thicker objects like
tile.  I've had problems cutting thin stuff on my table saw which is
why I usually use a piece of MDF clamped to my fence so I can ensure
there is no gap for the board to get stuck in.  With the wet saw I
would recommend clamping a piece of bar stock or angle iron to the saw
to use as a fence.  You can then position it perfectly before cutting.
 The saw I have is only 8" deep so I would probably use some bar
clamps.

-- 
Erik L. Knise
Seattle, WA

Roland -
 
Just to be clear, the Wiss model A9N is a shear and the model M3R is a ship.
Correct?  You are recommending the A9N.
 
Regards,
Andrew Volk

  _____  

From: Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com [mailto:Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com]
On Behalf Of Roland Harriston
Sent: Friday, November 18, 2011 9:04 AM
To: rolohar@...; Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Re: Cutter selection and/or hacks


  

Also:
I have other methods of cutting PCB material, including various power tools.
But cutting epoxy-glass material creates a lot of toxic dust, so I don't 
do it that way.
One can learn to cut fairly accurately with the shears, and there is no 
harmful dust.

BTW: The term "snips" and "shears" seem to be used interchangeable nowadays.
"Shears" will do the job.........."Snips" will not.

The "shears" with the red handles that I use are described in the Lowe's 
image as "snips"
They are shears.

Roland F. Harriston, P.D.
********************

Roland Harriston wrote:
> If you have a Lowe's Hardware nearby, you can get Wiss products there.
> Please note that there is a difference between "snips" and "shears"
> Snips will not do the job for you. I have both, so I speak from 
> experience.
>
> Roland F. Harriston, P.D.
> *********************
>
>
http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=3
348636
<http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=
3348636&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr>
&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr|0||p_product_quantity_sold|1&pl=1�tURL=%
2Fpl_Wiss_4294936478%2B4294962173_40_%3FNs%3Dp_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7
C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&facetInfo=Wiss 
>
<http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=
3348636
<http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=
3348636&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&pl
=1�tURL=%2Fpl_Wiss_4294936478%2B4294962173_40_%3FNs%3Dp_product_prd_li
s_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&facetInfo=Wiss>
&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&pl=1&curr
entURL=%2Fpl_Wiss_4294936478%2B4294962173_40_%3FNs%3Dp_product_prd_lis_ord_n
br%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&facetInfo=Wiss>
>
>
> alan00463 wrote:
>> 
>>
>>
>>
>> Thank you for all the ideas.
>>
>> I guess I ought to have mentioned that I also do not have access to
>> - a tile saw
>> - a band saw, or
>> - a drill press
>>
>> Too bad, a router bit on a drill press sounds like a neat trick. Or 
>> better yet, a router in a router mounted in a router table. No, 
>> unfortunately, I don't have access to a router either.
>>
>> Maybe I ought to just buy a pair of the Wiss 10" aviation shears. It 
>> would be easier to operate since it doesn't need power, and doesn't 
>> require me to purchase another cutting blade. Where would I go to get 
>> such a tool? If you find a hosted picture of this tool, please post 
>> it. Benjamin and Roland, thank you for your advice regarding this 
>> tool. It ought to work, if I don't want to make any round edges on my 
>> PCB. (I happened to be looking for switches in Radio Shack yesterday, 
>> and saw a package of round PCB material. Yes, circular. Amazing.)
>>
>> 
>

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






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

I actually use both.  The snips give great leverage for small boards. The
shears give me better "reach" for wider boards.

Sent from my iPad

On 2011-11-18, at 5:07 PM, "Andrew Volk" <amvweb@...> wrote:



Roland -

Just to be clear, the Wiss model A9N is a shear and the model M3R is a ship.
Correct? You are recommending the A9N.

Regards,
Andrew Volk

_____

From: Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com [mailto:Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com]
On Behalf Of Roland Harriston
Sent: Friday, November 18, 2011 9:04 AM
To: rolohar@...; Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [Homebrew_PCBs] Re: Cutter selection and/or hacks

Also:
I have other methods of cutting PCB material, including various power tools.
But cutting epoxy-glass material creates a lot of toxic dust, so I don't
do it that way.
One can learn to cut fairly accurately with the shears, and there is no
harmful dust.

BTW: The term "snips" and "shears" seem to be used interchangeable nowadays.
"Shears" will do the job.........."Snips" will not.

The "shears" with the red handles that I use are described in the Lowe's
image as "snips"
They are shears.

Roland F. Harriston, P.D.
********************

Roland Harriston wrote:
> If you have a Lowe's Hardware nearby, you can get Wiss products there.
> Please note that there is a difference between "snips" and "shears"
> Snips will not do the job for you. I have both, so I speak from
> experience.
>
> Roland F. Harriston, P.D.
> *********************
>
>
http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=3
348636
<http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=
3348636&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr>
&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr|0||p_product_quantity_sold|1&pl=1�tURL=%
2Fpl_Wiss_4294936478%2B4294962173_40_%3FNs%3Dp_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7
C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&facetInfo=Wiss
>
<http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=
3348636
<http://www.lowes.com/pd_105898-273-A9L_4294936478+4294962173_40_?productId=
3348636&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&pl
=1�tURL=%2Fpl_Wiss_4294936478%2B4294962173_40_%3FNs%3Dp_product_prd_li
s_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&facetInfo=Wiss>
&Ns=p_product_prd_lis_ord_nbr%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&pl=1&curr
entURL=%2Fpl_Wiss_4294936478%2B4294962173_40_%3FNs%3Dp_product_prd_lis_ord_n
br%7C0%7C%7Cp_product_quantity_sold%7C1&facetInfo=Wiss>
>
>
> alan00463 wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Thank you for all the ideas.
>>
>> I guess I ought to have mentioned that I also do not have access to
>> - a tile saw
>> - a band saw, or
>> - a drill press
>>
>> Too bad, a router bit on a drill press sounds like a neat trick. Or
>> better yet, a router in a router mounted in a router table. No,
>> unfortunately, I don't have access to a router either.
>>
>> Maybe I ought to just buy a pair of the Wiss 10" aviation shears. It
>> would be easier to operate since it doesn't need power, and doesn't
>> require me to purchase another cutting blade. Where would I go to get
>> such a tool? If you find a hosted picture of this tool, please post
>> it. Benjamin and Roland, thank you for your advice regarding this
>> tool. It ought to work, if I don't want to make any round edges on my
>> PCB. (I happened to be looking for switches in Radio Shack yesterday,
>> and saw a package of round PCB material. Yes, circular. Amazing.)
>>
>>
>

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

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

Mine isn't really a drill press. It's a Proxxon rotary tool (think dremel) in the stand which can be used as a press.

Since the tool comes with grinding wheels, cutting wheels etc and is a multi-tool I assume it can handle the job OK.

In any case Proxxon sell spare parts, so if the bearings do wear out I can get a new set.

I use chipbreaker router bits rather than diamond cut as they are supposed to cut better and reduce radial load. Cutting slowly seems the best way, too fast and the bit would probably snap anyway. Not to be confused with RPM of course - I run it at maximum speed when doing the cutting.


I do like your idea with the hacksaw though - not something I had ever thought of. I might try it sometime and see what it's like. 

Do you hold the board on an angle at the end of the cutting process or only at the start?


--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, Andrew Leech <coronasensei@...> wrote:

>
> As much as I like the idea of the router bit in the drill press, 
> depending on the quality of your drill press this could seriously wear 
> the primary bearings on the drill shaft. I'm not sure I'd want to do too 
> much of this with my cheapy GMC mini drill press, but if you trust the 
> drill press (or know you can replace/upgrade the bearings easily enough) 
> it'd work really well. Though really, as long as you go fairly slow with 
> a sharp bit it should be fine, pcb isn't going to be a very heavy load.
> Any wear at all though is going to result in the drill head wobbling 
> slightly as it drills, which is bad for small drill sizes...
> 
> I don't do many pcb's these days, and my preferred method is the 
> hacksaw, but I have a fairly unorthodox way of using it. I have my work 
> jeans on, sit in a chair and hold the hacksaw upside down in between my 
> legs, with the blade up. I guess holding it upside down in a vice would 
> be better, but I don't have a decent vice at the moment. Then I hold the 
> pcb in both hands almost flat against the blade (ie copper flat against 
> blade, not the edge of the pcb), just with a slight angle to start the 
> cut at the edge of the board. Then just move the board back and forth to 
> cut it, this way I get a perfectly straight cut every time, and if the 
> blade is decently sharp it's almost as clean a cut as a nicely routed 
> board. Quite quick too.
> 
> Andrew
> 
> On 18/11/2011 10:20 AM, tda7000 wrote:
> >
> > I used to use the score and snap method (IMO score and mutilate) with 
> > different results.
> >
> > If you score deep enough, the break is OK. However you must score 
> > almost right through the material.
> >
> > If you don't score enough, some layers rip and some break, resulting 
> > in a really horrible edge, and a couple of mm of material which is 
> > useless as it's been quite damaged.
> >
> > In all cases you can easily clean the edges up with a file and get 
> > them really nice.
> >
> > However all this is a lot of trouble, the 2nd best thing in my opinion 
> > is a hacksaw. You may not get a really straight cut but it will go 
> > much faster and easier than the snapping method.
> >
> > You can clean and straighten the edges with a file afterwards, and 
> > it's easier because there's less of a horrible edge to clean up.
> >
> > I don't use either of these methods any more though. I came across an 
> > idea on a forum and I've been using it ever since.
> >
> > It requires a drill press, but if you're making PCBs you probably 
> > already have one. You buy some of the cutter\router bits used for 
> > cutting boards on CNC machines. You set one up in your drill press and 
> > also set up some kind of fence to run your board along.
> >
> > It's a little fiddly at the start, and if you do something wrong you 
> > will break the bit - but given some practice it's pretty good, and 
> > much faster than the score\snap idea.
> >
> > --- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com 
> > <mailto:Homebrew_PCBs%40yahoogroups.com>, Leon Heller <leon355@> wrote:
> > >
> > > On 17/11/2011 15:43, DaveC wrote:
> > > > This stuff is TOUGH! I scored with a utility knife, through the
> > > > copper and well into the fiberglass. When I bent it over the edge of
> > > > a table, it bowed a lot before finally breaking.
> > >
> > > I use CEM-1 paper/fibre-glass laminate. It's *much* easier to cut and
> > > drill than FR4.
> > >
> > > Leon
> > > --
> > > Leon Heller
> > > G1HSM
> > >
> >
> > 
> >
> 
> 
> 
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>