Axe_Murderer

I usually get all my stuff from Digikey, but for some odd reason they have the worst prices and worst selection of prototype boards ever. If I used them the cost of the boards would be more than the cost of components! Can you suggest a good online retailer for cheap prototyping boards?

Thanks.

panic mode

check www.allelectronics.com or www.jameco.com.

Example:

5$ (standard)
http://www.allelectronics.com/cgi-bi...840&type=store

3$ (small)
http://www.allelectronics.com/cgi-bi...400&type=store

Or try eBay...

Axe_Murderer

Actually I'm looking for the solder type. How can a drilled piece of fiberglass cost more than $2?!!! :evil:

panic mode

Well it depends on size of board and type of material and...

anyway

$2
http://www.allelectronics.com/cgi-bi...C-4&type=store

$1
http://www.allelectronics.com/cgi-bi...C-3&type=store

Optikon

It is the low volume that does it. When digikey purchases $1000 worth of the stuff but then lets someone buy just one of them.. :arrow: 2 bucks
when it is really worth $0.50

Axe_Murderer

Anybody have an opinion on phenolic boards (as opposed to fiberglass)? They're cheaper, are there any drawbacks?

kinjalgp

Phenloic boards are easy to burn if you solder them for long time.
No re-work is possible on phenolic boards as far as I have experienced. The pads come out if you try to de-solder any part.

For one-time building phenolic is ok else use fibre glass.

__________________
"There is no way to peace, peace is the way!"

Nigel Goodwin

I disagree, it's very rare to find fibre glass PCB's in domestic electronics, the boards stand up to plenty of repair work.

Obviously fibre glass is a better material, but it's a great deal more expensive for commercial production - one big reason is that the holes have to be drilled, on cheaper PCB's (usually made of SRBP) the holes can be punched - a much cheaper process.

kinjalgp

I was talking about General Purpose boards without Green Mask and not commercial product PCBs.
Production PCBs are made out of good quailty clad which has better bonding with the copper and also the green mask to a certain extent protects tracks and pads from comming off while reworking.

Cheap general purpose boards use poor quality clads and so pads tend to come off even with single re-work. This is my personal experience gained from years of playing with these boards.

__________________
"There is no way to peace, peace is the way!"

Axe_Murderer

As luck would have it I happened to look at my favorite board today in a store... and it's phenolic. I've abused the heck of of them and they're never seperated or done anything odd, but that may be because they are buss pads instead of per-hole. For non-clad perfboards it sounds like a great way to save money and I'll keep buying my favorite phenolic buss boards when I need them.

panic mode

i would have to agree with knijalgp that quality of phenolic boards
is often very disapointing. there are very good phenolic boards and
I had rarely have problems with boards etched by me. but those
little predrilled and etched boards that reach retail as protoboards
are very often pathetic.