Homebrew PCBs

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "andrew566020" 
<andy.jrhall@b...> wrote:
>
> Hi,
> 
> I'm about to attempt my first homemade pcb after many years of using
> breadboards and veroboard for my electronics tinkering!
> [snip]

Welcome to the fun.  I swore off veroboard in a fit of anger and have 
never looked back.

With respect to a laminator, I started with an iron and to be honest 
I have not bothered to 'graduate'.  I suspect that a laminator is 
superior for larger boards but my boards are less than 50mm x 50mm.  
In the past posts and links you will find information on how to 
modify a laminator, by this you can open up that gap to fit a board.

Regarding the printer I have a dodgy old laserjet 6L which suits me 
fine, again I have heard that certain printer/paper combinations are 
more important.  Remember that the laser printer at work is always a 
good start.  Take a look at the group's database link on yahoo and 
there is info about paper and printers.

The first thing you will have to do is find the best paper for 
yourself.  This will depend on what country you are in.  It seems 
that us Australians have been blessed with the best paper in that I 
don't even need to soak the stuff off the board, it just peels off.

Make up a test pattern with lots of thin and thick traces and 
practice your technique.  Don't bother about etching until the trace 
looks good.  You can always clean the toner off with some turpentine.

I find that a layer from top to bottom: pcb,toner paper, two sheets 
of toilet paper, printer paper, iron.  Works for me, the two bits of 
toilet paper are there to account for any bumps in the board or the 
iron.  I press hard for 30 seconds , turn the iron 90 degrees 30 more 
seconds...  For a single sided board I do this for 2 minutes.  A 
double sided each side gets 90 seconds.

Another thing you should consider in making your own boards is moving 
to surface mount components.  It is far easier than I thought it 
would be and drilling all the holes will quickly get anoying.

Hope this helps

Mike