A useless correction for the algorithm: Scotch is a brand owned by 3M, not the other way around. I believe Scotch has always been part of 3M since it began. More importantly, this is another great video. Hope all is well with the creator.

The use of the green foil is a perfect solution to poor toner coverage.

I love your videos! I can’t believe you don’t have more views and followers. But if you ever decide to make more regular content… I’m sure you will pick up a lot of subscribers and interest because your content is among the very best in regards to the electronics niche of KZread!

@JoeOlneyGym

2 жыл бұрын

Blame the algorithm

I've used Press-n-peel toner transfer "paper" successfully in the past. You LASER print your pattern directly onto the matte-blue side of this transfer film. I used a nearly identical method for cleaning the blank copper board with a Scotch green scrubby and Bar Keeper's Friend, which is an excellent copper cleaner. I used a standard clothes iron to heat the transfer paper, at 215°F-240°F. Iron with medium pressure for 2-4 minutes. When the toner is "sticking to the copper" you will notice a slightly darker color change through the glossy side. Ammonium Persulfate is an excellent etchant, so long as it is over 100°F, otherwise it largely does nothing. I used a Pyrex glass baking dish, 11"x14", or 8"x12". Microwave the etching solution in that dish, without the board, until the temperature is about 120°F, drop your board in the solution, agitate the dish gently and "watch the copper melt away". Total etch time at these temperatures is no more than 5 minutes. The solution also turns a pretty aqua-blue color. Quickly take the completed board out of solution, and rinse under cold water to stop the etching process, to prevent "under cutting" of the traces by the etchant. Removal of the toner from the copper is easily handled by pure Acetone. Wear glove that are acetone-resistant; most dissolve in acetone. Wet a paper towel in acetone, and the toner wipes cleanly away in less than a minute. Best to do this outside, as the fumes can be overwhelming otherwise. I never bothered with the front-side mask, I just printed in tiny fonts on the foil side the IC part number and a "dot" next to pin 1 for chip alignment. For your mask reverse side mask alignment, you already drilled a hole through the board to run your retrieval wire through it. Try drilling a 2nd hole in the opposite corner of the board, and use those for alignment of the mask. I like the use of a laminator, which will generally give consistent temperature/pressure when transferring toner / mask patterns onto the board. Drilling the board: I used my drill press, which amazingly held the fine wire bits very well. As my board, which had 118 holes for just the ICs, this board was quick and fast drilling with the press. I never broke bit, and yes etching out the pad alignment hole is essential for the drilling process, which helps with "self centering" the bit into the hole. My approach, which I figured out by trial and error, and some Internet newsgroups posts some 20yrs ago worked very well, and gave reproducible results. My most ambitious project contained 6 CMOS chips and a MAX232 chip (Serial Port driver), which has an IR receiver module. The purpose of this circuit is to convert IR remote "blink" codes to a series of 1's and 0's that are sent over the serial port (pre-USB ports!) to a computer, so you can sample and save the remote control codes for replay later to control various IR controlled devices. This project is largely obsolete now with computers with IR receivers in them. However, I had a need to control an AV receiver, and a C-Band satellite dish for recording of weekly music programs available from various NPR/PBS stations that were in-the-clear at that time. Nice video. Definitely a good demonstration for use of toner transfer paper. Press-n-Peel toner transfer sheets is mostly a combination of toner transfer paper and the "green foil" in one step. This makes quick sport of transferring images to copper directly in one ironing step.

@Guishan_Lingyou

6 ай бұрын

Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

I usually design my own.

Can you use a 3D printer, to print to the copper side? Or perhaps a flat bed ink jet printer? and then dissolve the copper in the tub?

I use a household iron, and it is unreliable, but I'm also using nothing other than paper, discarded contact film, with no secondary treatment. While all this works, the resolution and detail is limited, and the process prone to areas of poor quality.