Homebrew PCBs

Does anyone know how to use this stuff?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Flexible-PCB-Cuttable-with-scissors-200mm-X-150mm-0-4t_W0QQitemZ300128830462QQihZ020QQcategoryZ36327QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

Do you solder components to it? Is it for through-hole components?

???

I decided to order some of it to find out what it is.  It seems to be
for through hole, though how well that can take flexing seems dubious.
 I should know in about a week - if all the peculiar things I've
ordered off eBay lately don't bring Homeland Security down on my head.

-- Dave

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "circuitmangler" <erantapaa@...>
wrote:
>
> Does anyone know how to use this stuff?
> 
>
http://cgi.ebay.com/Flexible-PCB-Cuttable-with-scissors-200mm-X-150mm-0-4t_W0QQitemZ300128830462QQihZ020QQcategoryZ36327QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

> 
> Do you solder components to it? Is it for through-hole components?
> 
> ???
>

expensive & useless stuff, unless you make (expensive) fly-swatter.
  :)))
  

pork_u_pine2000 <wittend@...> wrote:
          I decided to order some of it to find out what it is. It seems to be
for through hole, though how well that can take flexing seems dubious.
I should know in about a week - if all the peculiar things I've
ordered off eBay lately don't bring Homeland Security down on my head.

-- Dave

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "circuitmangler" <erantapaa@...>
wrote:
>
> Does anyone know how to use this stuff?
> 
>
http://cgi.ebay.com/Flexible-PCB-Cuttable-with-scissors-200mm-X-150mm-0-4t_W0QQitemZ300128830462QQihZ020QQcategoryZ36327QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem
> 
> Do you solder components to it? Is it for through-hole components?
> 
> ???
>



         

       
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Probably, but expensive and useless are in the eye of the beholder,
and I have yet to behold.  Hope springs eternal, to coin a cliche or
three...

-- Dave 

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, guja <guja2001bg@...> wrote:
>
> expensive & useless stuff, unless you make (expensive) fly-swatter.
>   :)))
>   
> 
> pork_u_pine2000 <wittend@...> wrote:

...

For my uses, I have found the boards that are just a bunch of single 
hole solder pads are usless for my purposes, but I did find some very 
thin board material on ebay a while ago that is thin enough to fit 
through a standard inkjet printer, and I have successfully cut it with 
scisors. It is flexible, but I wouldn't count on flexing it under parts, 
if you value your solder pads.

Chris Hart
pork_u_pine2000 wrote:

> Probably, but expensive and useless are in the eye of the beholder,
> and I have yet to behold. Hope springs eternal, to coin a cliche or
> three...
>
> -- Dave
>
> --- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com 
> <mailto:Homebrew_PCBs%40yahoogroups.com>, guja <guja2001bg@...> wrote:
> >
> > expensive & useless stuff, unless you make (expensive) fly-swatter.
> > :)))
> >
> >
> > pork_u_pine2000 <wittend@...> wrote:
>
> ...
>
>

Hi Group

I also dont think they are useless, but they are expensive indeed.
For flexible led clusters for example, this matereal should be great.

Cheers
Michael

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "pork_u_pine2000" <wittend@...>
wrote:

>
> Probably, but expensive and useless are in the eye of the beholder,
> and I have yet to behold.  Hope springs eternal, to coin a cliche or
> three...
> 
> -- Dave 
> 
> --- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, guja <guja2001bg@> wrote:
> >
> > expensive & useless stuff, unless you make (expensive) fly-swatter.
> >   :)))
> >   
> > 
> > pork_u_pine2000 <wittend@> wrote:
> 
> ...
>

Can anyone suggest a UK supplier of small quantities
(i.e. offcuts) of flexible or thin scissor-cut pcb stock?

Possibly a board manufacturer in the North London/Mid Herts
area who is willing to sell scrap on the doorstep for cash,
to minimise paperwork and carriage.

I know I can order small sheets of flexible from Mega in
Cambridge for a fairly high price but I could utitilise pieces
2 inches square or less and I'm hoping I can get it cheap.


Regards, LenW

x----- Original Message ----- 

From: "Len Warner" <novost@...>
To: <Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, August 03, 2007 6:30 PM
Subject: [Homebrew_PCBs] Re: flexible pcb material?


> Can anyone suggest a UK supplier of small quantities
> (i.e. offcuts) of flexible or thin scissor-cut pcb stock?
>
> Possibly a board manufacturer in the North London/Mid Herts
> area who is willing to sell scrap on the doorstep for cash,
> to minimise paperwork and carriage.
>
> I know I can order small sheets of flexible from Mega in
> Cambridge for a fairly high price but I could utitilise pieces
> 2 inches square or less and I'm hoping I can get it cheap.

I'd find a local PCB manufacturer and scrounge some offcuts from them. I've 
done that a couple of times. It was a firm I used for work, which helped, of 
course.

Leon

Hello Len,

  Friday, August 3, 2007, 7:30:27 PM, you wrote:

> Can anyone suggest a UK supplier of small quantities
> (i.e. offcuts) of flexible or thin scissor-cut pcb stock?

> Possibly a board manufacturer in the North London/Mid Herts
> area who is willing to sell scrap on the doorstep for cash,
> to minimise paperwork and carriage.

> I know I can order small sheets of flexible from Mega in
> Cambridge for a fairly high price but I could utitilise pieces
> 2 inches square or less and I'm hoping I can get it cheap.


> Regards, LenW 


  In  approx  a month of time, Guja can organize a friend to bring one
  A4  sheet  of  thin, flexible FR-4 for you to pick it up somwhere in
  London.

  If interrested, just reply on private mail to work things out.

-- 
 Best regards,
 Zoran A. Scepanovic
 zastos@...
 +381 11 344-0748
 +381 63 609-993  (GSM)
 +381 61 141-3074 (GSM)

*********
Not as dumb as yesterday, but stupider than tomorrow!
*********

Please be advised what was said may be absolutely wrong, 
and hereby this disclaimer follows.  
I reserve the right to be wrong and admit it in front of the entire world.



Local time: 9:24


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I received some of the board material in question, and while it is
interesting it doesn't seem useful for anything I am building at the
moment.  

Like you, my immediate thoughts are that it might be work for
mounting LEDs on a pre-stressed, curved surface, or the narrower
strips might serve for 'whiskers' on a robot of some sort.  

But the stuff *is* really expensive, especially the narrow strips.  

I have bought a good bit of 0.014 in double sided 1 oz copper FR4
board from 'abcfab' on eBay.  The descriptions are a bit sketchy but
the product seems quite good and arrives reasonably quickly.  I have
also purchased 0.030 in. and 0.060 in. board stock, as well as some
unlaminated 0.014 in. base material for experiments.  

This source sells a variety of stock from 0.014 in. to 0.125 in. and
Cu copper weights up to 5 and 6 oz/in (sq).

I have also purchased unlaminated Kapton Polyimide in a variety of
thicknesses from 'PaperStreetPlastics'.  I have been quite satisfied
by the quality and service from this source as well.  I have used this
stuff for experimentation with flexible circuits using conductive
paints and/or inks. I've tried silver, cu, and carbon, so far. 
Polyimide's's main claim to fame is that it is flexible and can
withstand solder temperatures. 

The trick to developing good inks seems to be to design a mechanism
for applying the desired conductive material in a form that retains
flexibility, adhesion, and good conductivity.  There are a lot of
issues that determine the final conductivity of the deposited material.

Though it is hardly an original thought, what I would really like to
be able to do is apply conductive, resistive, and suitable dialectric
materials using an inkjet process on a variety of appropriate
substrate materials.  The goal would be to create all of the 'glue'
components - bypass caps, resistors, traces and pads to minimize the
fabrication cost and/or effort for one off prototypes.

--Dave

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, Chris Hart <kc8ufv@...> wrote:
>
> For my uses, I have found the boards that are just a bunch of single 
> hole solder pads are usless for my purposes, but I did find some very 
> thin board material on ebay a while ago that is thin enough to fit 
> through a standard inkjet printer, and I have successfully cut it with 
> scisors. It is flexible, but I wouldn't count on flexing it under
parts, 
> if you value your solder pads.
> 
....