Does PLA stick to a copper sheet/ PCB?
If it does, it should be possible to print etch resist (plastic) onto a pcb and then etch it with the plastic on there.
Only thing is. I can’t use any materials to make it stick. The copper must be absolutely clean before etching.
Printer extrudate is a but thick for that, but there’s probably some combination of materials that would work. ABS juice would probably make PLA stick. Rinsing thoroughly with acetone should remove the exposed ABS film, while the PLA would protect the ABS under it from being dissolved. Or, going the other way, if you smeared it with ABS juice, print on it, then peel the print off, the ABS film under the printed traces should come off with it, while the film (which should work as an etch resist) is left on the spaces between the printed traces.
When I used to make PCBs by hand, we used to have a resist repair pen for scratches or tracks that had been over exposed to UV. you could hook one of these pens up to the head and use it like a plotter.
@Mark_Durbin I’ve seen lots of people do it that way, but it requires mounting a pen to the printer. You could also mount a cutting tool to remove the copper. I thought the point of the exercise was to come up with ways to do it without modifying the printer.
@Whosa_whatsis I see, I was only talking about taping a pen to the head, not mounting a router. The problem with the ABS wash is the thickness and consistency. Will it come off cleanly/neatly where the print is and will it resist the etch. Anyway, just trying to help. the bigger problem for the illustrated design is aligning the two sides and plating through the holes /soldering both sides under components.
I designed a pen holder for my Mendel for pcb work.
And wrote up some details here
http://www.apapageek.com/pen-holder-for-prusa-version-2/
Thanks guys! @Mark_Durbin You don’t need to plate the board if you use through hole components. Those act as via’s.
I would, but I get a bad coverage everytime I make a pcb. The traces are not solid enough.
I know you can use the special material “Press’n’peel” but that is quite expensive.
The design looks like is was done in Eagle, what do you use to translate that tog code?
The design was indeed made in eagle. What is a Tog code?
'To Gcode"
Thanks Mark, Tog code is what you get when someone who is tired is writing late at night ! To Gcode it is.
Ah I see, hahaha. Well I accualky don’t know. I guess I can import it in my 3d programm and convert it to an stl
