Recomendation for Dremel bit to cut PCB's with.

[Thunderchild]

I am making small PCB's in batches of 6/8 as obviosly it's easier to make a single "sheet" of boards than do them individualy. I think though cutting them apart with a hack saw or making a mess with an electric jig saw is not the best idea. I do have a dremel on a stand so could cut the boards apart with it but I'm not sure which "bit" I would need. I have a router bit but it is big i need something that is 1 mm, any ideas ?

 

[Grossel]

I think the least messy method must be to buy a stand for a dremel and use a drill bit with diameter just slightly more than the width of the path you're gonna cut. You don't have to drill a complete hole, just enough to cut the path.

 

[Thunderchild]

I have a stand for the dremel, so your saying just use a normal drill bit and "cut" or rather deeply score the board ?

 

[smanches]

They make special cutting bits that look just like a drill bit but have a much faster spiral. Use one of those, as they are made exactly for this purpose.


EDIT: https://www.dremel.com/en-us/AttachmentsAndAccessories/Pages/CategoryProducts.aspx?catid=60&catname=Cutting+Bits

 

[Thunderchild]

what exactly do they mean by grout removal ?, i saw the 1.6 mm version on ebay and am considering it, the 3.2mm spirals are a bit big

 

[smanches]

Grout is the stuff between the tiles in floors, counters, showers, etc. It's a common use for those bits, as well as drywall cutting.

 

[DirtyLude]

This seems obvious to me, but why wouldn't you just use a cut off wheel?

**broken link removed**

I use a cut off tool and a flex shaft. I found the cheap Chinese reinforced cut off wheels are actually the best.

 

[Thunderchild]

This seems obvious to me, but why wouldn't you just use a cut off wheel?

**broken link removed**

I use a cut off tool and a flex shaft. I found the cheap Chinese reinforced cut off wheels are actually the best.

good idea, I'll have a look at those

 

[MrAl]

Hi,

Yes the cutoff wheels work pretty well. They make at least two different sizes. The big ones are fiber reinforced but the small ones are not. The big ones make a slightly wider cut however, while the smaller ones more narrow. The smaller ones also wear out faster than the big ones. Either way these are probably the best bet.

They do make steel cutters like little saw blades on a permanent shaft, and they actually make little saw blades for mounting on a mandrel too but they might be hard to find. The steel cutters wear out too fast though when cutting through fiberglass board, although they do still cut after that. Some of the little saw blades they make have teeth that are far too big and get caught on the work piece so it's not a good idea. The small teeth saw blades would be ideal, but they would probably dull too fast, and also i dont know where to get them anymore.