16 Jun
2006
16 Jun
'06
5:58 a.m.
On 6/16/2006 at 12:27 AM Scott Quinn wrote:
A while ago (late '80s, early '90s) I heard a
suggestion for using copier
toner as PCB etch resist
(draw on paper, copy onto overhead transparencies, iron onto the PCB).
Now that PCB layout software is available easily, as are laser printers,
has anyone here tried
it? I'm wondering how well it would resolve for finer-pitch DIP/SIP
packages, or if the etchant would eat through the traces.
I tried it once; it's been a long time and the results weren't wonderful.
IIRC, it involved printing onto a transfer medium land then transferring
the toner to the PCB blank using a heat sorce like a household flatiron.
It was barely adequate for regular DIP. I used a PCB design program on an
Atari 540ST (one of the better choices for that kind of stuff in its day).
I still have the software, if anyone's interested.
Did anyone have better luck with it? Maybe it has a lot ot do with the
toner.
Cheers,
Chuck