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Make your own PCB's

 

All:

I've been wanting to try a new technique for making PCB's but never got around to it until now. The first time heard about it was via a series of YouTube videos by Charles Adams, K7QO. He calls this technique the?

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Muppet method because it's a mix of Manhattan and Ugly construction techniques. Simply stated, you use ExpressPCB (free download) to create a circuit board. Once that's done, you create a negative, flipped, image of it and send that image to a laser printer using color laser paper. (If you don't have a laser printer, put the images on a thumb drive and go to Staples and have it printed.) Next, he laminates the image to the copper side of a PCB. I found an Instructable that uses Isoproply Alcohol and Acetone to transfer the image to the copper. It takes about 5 minutes to etch a small board. I've posted two pictures of the resulting board; one just after etching and the second with the parts mounted on it.


I'm thinking of writing an article on it and will share it if there is interest.


Jack Purdum, W8TEE
 

I've been using this board fabrication technique for a while. Only difference is I go a bit more traditional and drill all the holes for the through hole parts using a Dremel tool and a Dremel drill press. For drill bits an order through ?will set you up.

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My PCB fab equipment consists of a $80 Samsung monochrome laser printer, an Apache AL-13p laminator, a gallon of muriatic acid and a few bottles of hydrogen peroxide. Clean up material consists of acetone to remove the toner and baking soda to neutralize the etching solution.

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Give it a shot. It's easier than the video shows it to be.

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Till later

Hank Ellis, K5HDE??

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