A great new, easy and cheap PCB design

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L. Daniel Rosa
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Re: A great new, easy and cheap PCB design

Post by L. Daniel Rosa »

Mike, how thoroughly did you clean your board immediately before ironing on the pattern? I use hot detergenty water with a scotch pad. Some recommend steel wool, but I've never used it. Some recommend an alcohol rinse as well. A hot rinse followed by baking it dry over low heat has served me well. Very important: do not use any oxidizers to clean the board.<p>As for the paper, the most important thing to wacth for is pinholes in the transfer. Aside from that, if the paper is too sturdy it won't soften enough in the soak.<p>But you should really see http://www.fullnet.com/u/tomg/gooteepc.htm .
Mike
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Re: A great new, easy and cheap PCB design

Post by Mike »

Yes, I found out that the paper has to be removed. I etched the board, and all that was under the paper didn't come off. I removed it with an exacto knife, and will etch the rest tomorrow.<p>The board was brand new out of the packaging, so I didn't clean anything.<p>-Mike
Bernius1
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Re: A great new, easy and cheap PCB design

Post by Bernius1 »

Mike, I've heard of various thermal-transfer processes, & the most common problem occurs when the parent material (the PCB) is cold, and insulated from the heat source (IRON) by the transfer medium (TONER). Imagine a chocolate bar on an ice-cold cookie tray, under a heat lamp. The top of the medium will melt, & bleed over, but you don't get good adhesion, because only the edges actually attach. Most pre-heats only warm the parent material. So, maybe 20-sec's in a hot water bath to warm the copper. It may be worse, if it's too long. If you see under-cutting, or areas where the etchant wept under, then I may be right. Did you see any??
Can't we end all posts with a comical quip?
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ptribbey
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Re: A great new, easy and cheap PCB design

Post by ptribbey »

The ferric chloride will not dissolve the paper.
You should just let the board soak in warm soapy water longer. Paper is just wood fiber and clay pressed together. Water will dissolve it. Try using your kitchen sprayer on it with hot water after it soaks for a while.
Works for me every time.
Something you may already know: hot etchant works faster. Use a tropical fishtank heater.
Paul
Mike
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Re: A great new, easy and cheap PCB design

Post by Mike »

Thanks paul,<p>I'll make sure that I let it sit longer next time. <p>For this pcb, i just re-wet the paper, and scraped the parts between the traces with an xacto knife. since the copper under the traces stays, i didn't have to worry about scraping off the paper over the traces.<p>Thanks!<p>-Mike
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