whats the best way to transfer a pcb layout to the board??

[el duderino]

......
some are to small to copy.
:shock:
thanks
eamonn

[gez]

If you're talking about small circuits then you can use photoboard with a fluorescent strip light (if you have one in your kitchen/bathroom).  The board can only be as wide as the light though, and it has to be taped to its surface.  Those energy efficient 'bulbs' (twisty thingies) work too.

You can print off your artwork onto transparencies and cover them with a bit of tracing/greaceproof paper, this makes it opaque enough for exposure.  Another method is to print off your artwork onto paper and spray with WD40.  This makes it transparent enough to use it with photoboard.  Results aren't as sharp but it works fine (and is good enough for most things people build here).

The above methods work with an ordinary inkjet printer.  If you have a laser jobbie you can fart about with press and peel.

If the board is a one off you can use permenant marker pens, but it's a lot of work and results can be patchy.  If you screw up you have to start all over again (aghhh!)

I've finally got hold of a decent exposure box, so I'm a happy chappy!  

[el duderino]

i was going to use pen but thought about the whole mess it up process!!

is it possible to use t-shirt transfers??

Another method is to print off your artwork onto paper and spray with WD40. This makes it transparent enough to use it with photoboard. Results aren't as sharp but it works fine (and is good enough for most things people build here).

> i dont really understand the procedure using wd40 and the florescent light what exactly do you do??
whats photoboard??

thanks
eamonn.

[Marcos - Munky]

Here is what I do. I reverse the layout in my PC (like how you do when you will use PnP), then print it. After print it, I put the ink side in the board IMMEDIATELY (with the ink wet). Then the ink will transfer to the board. After this, I use the pen over all the ink.

[gez]

No, I don't think you can use T-shirt transfer as it's a plastic film and would act as a resist to the Ferric.  That aside, would inkjet toner withstand Ferric?  

Photoresist board is sensitive to light.  It has a protective plastic peel-off layer which, once peeled, reveals a pre-sensitised copper surface onto which an image can be developed.  You don't need a darkroom or anything, just a source of UV light.  

Usually, people use transparencies and an exposure box containing UV tubes.  The artwork is placed on the board, exposed to the light then developed in a solution of, er developer (you buy it from electronics suppliers, even Maplin sell it).

Exposure boxes cost money, so a DIY approach is to use fluorescent lights.  Not as good as UV tubes, but they do work.  Tape your artwork to the board, tape the board to the surface of the light, turn on said light for a few mins (supplier of your board will tell you how long it needs) then disassemble it all and slip the board in developer for 30 secs.  The bits that weren't exposed (the parts of the board that were blocked off to light by the overlay) remain and act as a resist to ferric, whilst the exposed areas dissolve.

Suntan beds can be used too.  You can even buy UV bulbs and suspend them over a board (use eyeprotection though).  Or, you can make your own exposure box, UV tubes and all! (there are websites telling you how to do this).

For your artwork you simply print off your design onto a transparency.  This won't be opaque enough to block out light so that's where the layer of greaseproof paper comes in.  An alternative is to print off your design onto paper and spray with WD40.  This makes the paper 'transparent' and allows light to pass through the white bits.

Might sound complicated but it isn't.  You can get incredible detail using this method.  Missed a bit?  No problem, go over the transparency with a marker pen.

Incidentally, you can use a permanent marker pen with a transparency too (if you want to do it by hand), just use a layer of tracing paper to make the image more opaque.

[Gringo]

What i used to do before i knew about transparencies and photopaper transfer was this:

- reverse the transfer and print it
- stick it to the piece of board, with the print facing you
- punch the holes through the paper
- redraw the layout using the punched dots as a guide, with a permanent marker(sharpie?)

Works fine for small boards with wide traces, but don't push it

[el duderino]

thanks for the tips guys i will check out the sugestions :wink:
eamonn.

[shawn]

I love using transparencies, printing them out on a laser, then ironing them as you would with the much expensive Press N Peel blues. Dump the board in a homemade etching tank(plexiglass, silicon adhesive caulk) I get results in 6 minutes! totally worth the diy approach. I generally take a copper board from radio shack, arrange many circuits on one board and etch them all at one time. last board I did had an ampeg scrambler, crash sync, fender blender, and few others. Worked like a charm!