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EtchingCircuitBoard
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last edited
by PBworks 16 years, 11 months ago
EtchingCircuitBoard
Here is a process for making your own circuit board. You will need a board trace on tracing paper or photo paper. You can design that board using CadCircuits or EagleSchematic. You may also find good information at PrintedCircuitBoards
- Get an accurate board image printed on the laser printer
- Check the design on regular paper
- the board should be a small as possible to conserve materials and chemistry
- Make sure the traces go where they are supposed to
- Make sure you can put the components on
- The print of the traces should be backwards of the way it will appear on the board
- When you have checked the design with a few people and it is corrected print it on tracing paper
- trim a piece of copper clad board to the smallest size that will work
- lightly sand the copper side of the board to remove any protective coating, use either fine grit sandpaper or scotch pad, don't use steel wool
- tape the design to the board, masking tape won't melt
- use the iron to heat up the board
- You will want the toner to fuse to the copper board. It will stay fused to the paper
- dunk the board and paper into a cup of water
- carefully remove the paper from the board. Let the water soften the paper
- Your board should now have just the black toner traces
- You can clean up the image by tracing over it with a wax pencil or sharpie to provide a resist.
- immerse the board in a tray of Ferric Chloride - Wear Safety Goggles
- If you can, heat up the Ferric Chloride to about 125 degrees F on a hotplate
- Rock the tray like a photo print, make a wave that goes back and forth across the board
- If it is a double sided board, turn it every now and then to make sure both sides get etched.
- Check the board to see when it is etched
- Your board traces should be solid toner, the other areas should be clear and show fiberglass
- If you keep it in the etchant too long, you will remove your traces from the board.
- When the board is done, rinse it off and the tools.
- Pour the Ferric Chloride into the Used Ferric Chloride bottle
- Use a fine grit sand paper to remove the toner. Try not to take too much of the copper.
- Tin the traces with a thin layer of solder
- Drill the holes for your components with either a small drill bit or a finish nail
- Next you stuff the board with your components
- Ideally, your components will all go on the fiberglass side of the board and be soldered on the side with the traces.
- Test your board, put power to it and it should work fine.
- If your board does not function properly, check for physical problems first
- Do you have all the correct components, and are they in the correct orientation?
- Are all your solder joints holding?
- Do you have continuity where you need it and no where you don't?
- If it still doesn't work, you might have a bad circuit design
- You can build the circuit on a breadboard to prove its function
- You can also build it on a simulator like http://www.falstad.com/circuit
EtchingCircuitBoard
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