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Ok,I am making this instructable to hopefully win the Epilog laser challenge, if I win I would use it to make my own PCB's and to tinker with.
Ok,so making your own PCB's is not that hard actually,if you have the luxury of a laser cutter,then it is a simple matter. But for people like me,we use,drum role please....a LASER PRINTER!!
There are some great websites that can enplane the whole process very well this one dose a good job though the site is kind of clutterd,http://fullnet.com/~tomg/gooteepc.htm .The good people at Hack a Day made a good one that I loved,the guy used a microscope slide as a PCB.http://hackaday.com/2011/09/12/glass-pcbs/ .this will be one of my projects actually!
in this Inscrutable,there are some chemicals that can hurt you,if you get them on yourself,such as Muriatic Acid and Hydrogen Peroxide,please use the proper safety gear,such as safety goggles and gloves,and read the instructions on the back of the cans.
Ok,so the basic concept is to take a laser printer,print a design onto some paper,iron the paper to the PCB,remove the paper,and etch in the etching solution. Seams simple right? Yes it is!!
When you use the printer,toner(the black stuff)is put on the paper,then when you iron the paper to the PCB,you heat up the toner and it sticks to the board! Then when you etch the board,the toner acts as a barrier agents the etching solution,and you get your design,yup,that simple!
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Signing UpStep 1Stuff you will need.
Ok,here is the list of stuff you need.
- Access to a Laser printer.
- A sheet of photo gloss paper.
- PCB.(single sided).
- Muriatic Acid.
- 2% Hydrogen Peroxide.
- A cloths iron.
- Plastic containers.
- 0.8mm 1.0mm and 1.2mm drill bits and a drill.
- A paintbrush.
- A one gallon bucket.
- A hacksaw(if needed).
- A drill(if needed,see step 8).
- Acetone or methylated spirits.
- Some Fine grit sandpaper or a Scotchbrite pad.
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If you can get 3% Hydrogen Peroxide, thats even better. And 3% should be easy to obtain since it can be bought as disinfection-solution. In switzerland we can buy 3% in the pharmacy. 1Liter for around 4$.
And as always: When mixing acid and non-acid, be sure you ALWAYS pour the acid into the peroxide and not the other way around.
3 hints:
- Separate the etching-solution and the acetone ALWAYS by at least 2 meters. If they mix (even drops and spills), you are in danger accidently creating a HIGHLY instable explosive.
- The etching-solution is VERY good, but holds one downpoint (as you mentioned already): freshly mixed, it works great and can be potentially used almost forever.... if you do something: After around 24h-36h the bubbling of the solution itself will come to a stop. At this point the etchingcapability starts to fall rapidly. There wont be a color-change. The colorchange comes from the ammount of copper you etched. If you notice that it does not etch anymore or needs longer than 30min to etch, then use a bubbler (as already written) and introduce air over some time (2-3h) till it
1.: Turns a lighter color (If used for lots of etching
2.: starts to slowly build small bubbles on the inside of the container
Alternatively you should also be able to add some H2O2 (Hydrogen Peroxide), but the bubbler is better since you regenerate the solution and not only add good stuff to bad stuff which ends in medicore stuff.
The etchant is now ready for action again.
- Since we know now that there is gasbuildup it should (!) be clear NOT to store it in a sealed bottle. a tight sealed glass bottle can this way turn into a fragmentation-acid-grenade within your kitchen-cupboard. I am sure you dont want this, right.
I always store my etchant in a plastic bottle (for chemicals) and i made a needle-hole in the cap. Too small for the acid to spill out if i shake the bottle but large enough to let the gas escape.
I am unsure about the gas, but think it is mostly oxygen.