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First PCB Etch

A project log for Landy Wiper Control

Sick of having 2 speeds for my windscreen wipers. Nothing a 555 timer can't fix!

tron9000Tron9000 08/03/2017 at 12:220 Comments

I Etched my First PCB at home using the toner transfer on magazine paper method using the PCB transfer I made in EAGLE (See files I've added):

NOT TO SCALE - DO NOT COPY, BOTTOM SIDE AS VIEWED FROM TOP

I printed it off onto gloss magazine paper, cleaned the surface of the PCB, hooked up a heated pad to a  power supply to warm the ferric cholride and aid to speed up the etching process...

...then applied the transfer to the PCB using a clothes Iron with a sheet of foil between the paper and iron surface, Iron was cranked to highest setting and pressed down for about 5mins and after a bath in water, managed to peel off the magazine paper:

Some touch-up was required with the permanent fine marker and then into the etch bath. Here's how it came out...

Hmmm....not the best really, would work if i did a little fettling. I think the issue is I am leaving the iron on for too long and the toner is bringing the paper with it and also bleeding. 

Unfortunately this was the only piece of bare copper clad I had, the others have photo-sensitive resists on them, If i can get hold of some transparency and leave it out on a sunny day then I could get the same result. I have some more bare copper coming soon.

I'm going to make another attempt either using the photo-resistive stuff or the bare clad when it arrives.

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