www.Allelectronics.com had 4" x 6" boards for $2.00, single sided. They also have etchant and pens. I order a lot of stuff through these guys. Lots of good stuff that they pick up and unload for cheap. Lots of odds and ends.

I have yet to try using the P&P Blue but will be soon. For making double sided boards I was thinking you could layout the board keeping through-hole components a half inch apart so the spacing will not be critical. Then drill all the holes after etching one side to line up the paper on the other side. Just fixing imperfect lineups with a pen or a jumper wire.

 

I am not sure if the P&B Blue is opaque, (Evandude?). The Pulsar paper is nearly so but can be lined up over a light table or held up to a bright light.

A half inch is way overkill. You should be able to get the 2nd side so close that the size of each pad is enough to make up for the misalignment. If you are using EagleCad there is a script called drill-aid (run drill-aid) that reduces the hole size. The idea is to leave just enough hole to start the drill bit. It does this by drawing small circles on layer 116 and does not change the top or bottom layer.

You may want to try drilling the holes first. Then etch one side at a time. See the method on etching with a sponge and other tips on the PulsarProFX site. I use box tape to protect the side that is not being etched, burnish it down. The etchant creeps about 1/4 inch under the tape on the sides so be sure the board is a bit larger then the artwork. A paint on solution might be better (suggestions?).

 

PnP is relatively translucent, certainly enough to allow you to line things up over a light.

drill-aid is awesome, I just discovered it a month or so ago, and now I consider it an absolute MUST for homemade PCB's.

I've heard of people painting the back side of a board with nail polish or some kind of spray enamel or something, when making boards with a solid ground plane across one whole side.

There have been a few methods of doing double-sided boards with toner transfer mentioned on the forums, some ironing one side at a time, some ironing both at once, and all the ones I've seen involve etching the whole board at once.

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I don't know if someone has mentioned this before but you could make a double sided board by using two single sided boards. If you leave enough room around the edges and do not care if the boards edges line up perfectly this would work. Just make each side on a separate board then stack them together after drilling, using the through-hole components to line up the traces. It may take less time if you are not worried about looks.

If I was making a double sided board I would definitely try to make it perfect using 3v0's method, but if I don't have a double sided board on me or if time was critical I will give the 2-board idea a try.

I am going to be making a PCB using some Staples brand Photo Paper to transfer it. I will let you guys know how it works out, cause it is much cheaper than the specialty paper.

 

If it means anything, I used the staples picture paper for a year or so, and met with reasonable success, but as soon as I tried Press-n-Peel I never looked back. It's way less work, way faster, makes higher-quality boards, and is far more reliable. Staples picture paper requires quite a bit of soaking and scrubbing to remove the paper, and it usually gave me a number of broken/damaged traces on each board.

With that said, if cost is truly your ONLY concern, staples picture paper will get the job done for many boards. There's some pictures of some of the boards I made with it in this (WAY outdated) old tutorial of mine:
http://www.eegeek.net/electronics/tu...cbtutorial.htm

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This makes me laugh. I use el-cheapo inkjet paper and it works just fine. about a nickel a page. And aligning the two sides is very easy, especially with a homebuilt light table (great for lots of other projects).

As for etching seperately, why? once you can align the artwork for the two sides, etch all at once. If you use opaque media, just cut the art out to a fixed border, mount them on thin paper and align that way. This isn't rocket science.

By the way, I would NOT drill prior to transfer.

 

got some pnp blue ... and I admit, I like the toner transfer method now

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I ain't exactly Mr. Super Etcher or anything, but I have to say I started on PnP Blue and just found that the ironing temp/time was too sensitive for my taste. When I did get it just right, it worked really nicely, though.

From my experience:

PnP Blue:
o Nice results, when you get the ironing just right.
o Expensive (hobby shops here sell it at around $4 CDN/sheet).
o Easy to peel off after the ironing.

No-name glossy photo paper:
o Cheap as all get-out.
o Super easy to iron; just crank the iron all the way up and give it around 4-5 minutes.
o Harder to remove. I soak the board in warm water with a drop of detergent in order to soften it up. After about 10 minutes, 90% of the paper peels off, and you are left to thumb-rub or q-tip (gently) the remaining paper fibres and weird plastic layer off. This is a pain, but not too much of an issue for me since I usually time it so that I can do the rubbing while watching some hockey.

I wouldn't recommend doing much drilling before etching, and certainly not on pad holes or vias; that just lets the etchant seep through the holes and attack the inner edges of the copper.

One day I want to mod an old Laserjet (although maybe I'll start with this old C64) to just print directly to the PCB, although I have yet to find a local supplier for Mispro inks.

Advice from a relative noob; take it for what it's worth!


Torben

 

Magazine paper:
All the advantages of no-name glossy photo paper plus it's a free waste product.

Another good thing about press 'n' peal is (or so I'm told) is it fills in gaps where the toner is thin on the ground.

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Ah yes! I keep meaning to try this but I haven't had a project that needs a PCB since I decided to try it. Maybe I'll just try a transfer this way tonight during the game to see how it works out for me.


Torben

 

Hey Torben,
Where abouts are you in BC?

I know the Canadian shops are expensive. I've been buying mine at R&P for around $2.30 Can.
http://www.rpelectronics.com/

Still expensive, but for the time and hassle it saves me, worth it. I don't have a lot of good to say about shops in Canada, in general, though. There is one I really like; ever been to Lee's Electronics on Main Street?

I do agree, Hero, magazine paper is hard to beat, but I am getting better results with the pulsar stuff. I think the green foil would improve the magazine paper as well. It covers the toner, and fills holes.

 

Hi BeeBop,

I'm up by Kingsgate Mall. I normally go to Lee's or Main Electronics, both of which I quite enjoy. I've been told about R&P but as I understand it's down in Richmond and sadly my truck's transfer case is currently shot.

Haven't ever tried the Pulsar stuff, but maybe when I do enough etching to wear out my thumbs from rubbing I'll give it a shot.


Torben

 

Naw, it's over in Burnaby. I'm way out in Richmond. You must get the P&P from Main, then? Haven't been in there in a while, as I usually shop at Lee's, but perhaps I should give them another look. I just find Lee has better selection, well a bit better.

 

I've got it from both places and can't remember which place charged what. Normally I'll just compare between Main and Lee's since they're only about 20 meters apart. IIRC, however, I was in a hurry and just wanted to run in and out (probably had my wife with me--she finds little less interesting than a components shop).


Torben