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Seems to be all right so far. Just got to drill.

I come across a few dollars and have been wanting to get a set up going to allow me to make pcbs.
I got:

Brother laser printer - $38
150 sheets photo paper - $11
Ferric Chloride 500ml - $9
150mmx150mm board - $9
Ltr of Acetone - $9
1.0 & 1.5 hss drill bit (know they'll break) - $6
Dremel 4000 - $200
Pack of 10 sponges with green jex on back - perfect - $3

I am fully stoked!
Need some stuff to spray on it after I solder it right?

wolfy wrote:Seems to be all right so far. Just got to drill.

I come across a few dollars and have been wanting to get a set up going to allow me to make pcbs.
I got:

Brother laser printer - $38
150 sheets photo paper - $11
Ferric Chloride 500ml - $9
150mmx150mm board - $9
Ltr of Acetone - $9
1.0 & 1.5 hss drill bit (know they'll break) - $6
Dremel 4000 - $200
Pack of 10 sponges with green jex on back - perfect - $3

I am fully stoked!
Need some stuff to spray on it after I solder it right?

...so it's close to $300?

I love vero even more right now

Congrats!!!! I would much rather etch a board than use VERO as my vero builds always seem to have trouble. The cost for me was much less as all I had to buy was the etchant, blank copper clad and some cheap plastic containers to etch in. I already have a access to a laser printer at work and I already have the rotary tool. I never spray anything on the boards when I am done, and never pre-tin them and mine work just fine.

sinner wrote:
...so it's close to $300?

I love vero even more right now

Yeah that's what it's looking like. I want to get the dremel drill press as well - that's $100.
I've never done vero before but enjoyed my success with perfboard. I just wanted the satisfaction and neatness of a pcb - I wanted an exciting challenge and I loved the experience.

bato001 wrote:Congrats!!!! I would much rather etch a board than use VERO as my vero builds always seem to have trouble. The cost for me was much less as all I had to buy was the etchant, blank copper clad and some cheap plastic containers to etch in. I already have a access to a laser printer at work and I already have the rotary tool. I never spray anything on the boards when I am done, and never pre-tin them and mine work just fine.

Thanks man. Nice to hear I can get away with what you are. Gonna get myself some containers too. I ctually made a multivibrating led circuit about 10 years ago at high school. The only difference was that I drew the circuit on the board with a texta. Apart from working through projects from a book "short circuits -volume 1" on a springboard I have only made one other perfboard.

Looking very forward to making some shit.

sinner wrote:

...so it's close to $300?

I love vero even more right now

$200 of that is the drill and other stuff which can be reused (fecl. acetone lasts for ages), $10 of it is for the PCB which you'd have to spend on vero too... so more like ~$70 to be able to do stuff that is fr less frustrating (IMO/IME)...


drill bits breaking.. I snap mine half way down the shaft when I get them so there's only a couple of mm sticking out the end of the cuhck.. less purchase area on the shaft length and since I started doing that I have only broken one in the last year or so (and thats' cos I left too much sticking out the chuck)...

rocklander wrote: drill bits breaking.. I snap mine half way down the shaft when I get them so there's only a couple of mm sticking out the end of the cuhck.. less purchase area on the shaft length and since I started doing that I have only broken one in the last year or so (and thats' cos I left too much sticking out the chuck)...

now that there is a great tip.... Never thought that!

That sounds like an idea. Just to clarify; I take my new drill bit out of it's packet and snap it in half?

And that is a great tip (no pun)

abfackeln wrote:

rocklander wrote: drill bits breaking.. I snap mine half way down the shaft when I get them so there's only a couple of mm sticking out the end of the cuhck.. less purchase area on the shaft length and since I started doing that I have only broken one in the last year or so (and thats' cos I left too much sticking out the chuck)...

now that there is a great tip.... Never thought that!

yup.. I snap it at the point where the shaft ends and .. um.. 'drilly bit' starts.. otherwise they snap in the aforementioned 'drilly bit' which does matter rather than the shaft which matters not so much.

Thanks man - I understand now and think it's a good idea. Thanks.

rocklander wrote:.. um.. 'drilly bit' starts.. ...

The engineering term is flutes, but drilly bit describes it perfectly.

Need a smaller collet for my dremel so I had to use a corded hand drill. Just going through my box of parts now to whack them in.

love your combination of first threads:

"Just made my first pcb!"
followed by
"making pedals and selling them"

classic

Throw away those HSS bits and get yourself some carbide ones. They last 10 times longer and don't generally go dull!

http://drillcity.stores.yahoo.net/5pcnewwirsiz.html

#65 for fat leads like 1N4001 and #70 for resistors and caps, etc.

Plus, this: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-25ecodZ ... reId=10051

Keep your receipt for the Dremel! They have a 5 year warranty. I managed to burn the motor out in one.

Yeah I know. I was thinking about the future.

Seiche wrote:love your combination of first threads:

"Just made my first pcb!"
followed by
"making pedals and selling them"

classic

wolfy wrote:Seems to be all right so far. Just got to drill.

I come across a few dollars and have been wanting to get a set up going to allow me to make pcbs.
I got:

Brother laser printer - $38
150 sheets photo paper - $11
Ferric Chloride 500ml - $9
150mmx150mm board - $9
Ltr of Acetone - $9
1.0 & 1.5 hss drill bit (know they'll break) - $6
Dremel 4000 - $200
Pack of 10 sponges with green jex on back - perfect - $3

I am fully stoked!
Need some stuff to spray on it after I solder it right?

Ammonium Persulphate is a good alternative etchant to Ferric Chloride, because the Ammonium Persulphate Etchant solution is colourless, it doesn't stain clothing material like Ferric Chloride can....

You can order a special circuit board lacquer, which is solder-through, online from this website:


http://www.jaycar.com.au/



Here's what Ammonium Persulphate looks like:

Thanks DrNorris - will try it next time.