Please wear latex gloves and wear protective goggles when dealing with these chemicals. For this video, I ran out of gloves at the moment due to the massive shortage of medical supplies due to the COVID19 pandemic. Lye (developing solution) can be corrosive to human tissue, for this project, the concentration of lye is quite low. I washed my hands thoroughly after getting exposed to it. Ferric Chloride on the other hand barely has an effect to human skin, but it does leave a stain on everything when not immediately rinsed with water. Stay safe fam!
Just a very important FYI: Do NOT pour down the sodium hydroxide solution down the drain. It now contains copper(II)-hydroxide (or rather a hydroxy-complex, that's why it's blue!) and that is not very good for the environment. You actually have to bring that to a hazardous waste disposal facility. Yes, really. Your local wastewater treatment plant will thank you for not making them deal with heavy metals. Also, please store acetone in a very well ventilated area (preferrably outside!). Acetone has a very low flammability and high vapour pressure - if you're really unlucky you'll blow yourself up. Not a joke.
Brings back memories. Back in 1985, we technicians were making our own boards for all sorts of stuff. One of my pet projects was making a PAY TV decoder. I designed it so that it decoded the video line by line rather than the standard frame by frame method. Thus there was no need for a PLL ( phase-locked loop) circuit. It was powered by 12 vdc, and it only pulled about 12 mA, and the board was only 1.5 inch by 4.5 inch. So you just installed it inside your TV converter by tapping the converter's 12 vdc power line, and then cut the video connection that connected the RF demodulator to the RF modulator, and then feed these wires to the tiny decoder board. And that was it. You now had a PAY TV decoder. It decoded all the PAY channels, and did so instantly, since there was no PLL delay. Meanwhile, the engineers used the standard method that required tons of IC's and other components, and it therefore pulled plenty of current, so it needed its own power supply, and of course it needed its own box as well. That costs money. Mine, only had three IC's, MC4013, MC14538, and an LM393, plus a few transistors, diodes, etc. So making just one, cost about $5.00 total. Those days were fun indeed.
That's so nice! I would have liked to live in that time, a simpler time where technology was less integrated into society and solutions were more practical and simple. There is no way in which something like this works today, technological innovation has been displaced and relegated to mega-corporations with funds of millions of dollars to allocate to research.
That was, hands down, one of the nicest and easiest to follow TH-cam tutorials I've seen in ages! Thank you for that! :) So many content creators mumble or talk waaaaaay to fast without taking the time to speak CLEARLY.
Thanks man! Means a lot! I wanted to make a tutorial on PCBs for years but I found out a lot of people already posted it. I revisited some of the classic tutorials only to realize they weren't first-timer friendly, so I made this vid anyway hahaha 😊
Honestly, before I saw your tutorial I always imagined making your own PCBs was a way more complicated and chemically hazardous process. Glad to see it's actually way easier than I thought!
Doesn't matter as long as all light is artificial from LEDs, they have zero UV output and the film is sensitive only to UV, so even dimmer sun will start reaction while several thousand lumens of LEDs won't
Overall a good tutorial. Just 3 remarks. 1) There is a easier/better way to cut PCB material that also works with glass-fiber and double sided material. Score BOTH sides 2 to 4 times with the sharp side of your blade, then snap. 2) Temperature is important for development and etching. Do both "au bain marie" in a tub of hot water, to get around 30C - 40C. You may find you get better results and the chemicals can literally last years. Years? yes. My etching machine holds about 2 liters Ferric Chloride. The same Ferric Chloride has been in there for over 10 years and was used to etch almost 2 square meters worth of double sided PCB material. I add Hydrochloric acid to compensate for evaporation and keep the solution active, even though there is now a lot of copper in there. 3) Please be safe, pure Ferric Chloride only stains HOWEVER the Copper Ferric Chloride mixture you get after etching is rather poisonous.
I kinda knew the process before but this made it so much clearer. It was super easy to follow and had all the information needed but none of the fluff. Thanks dude!
TechBuilder , you have just gotten me out of the months-long toner-transfer vicious circle - in 10 minutes and 10 seconds! Thank you greatly for that!! Every day is a new lesson!
You explained everything in a simple, straightforward and slow pace that made it EXTREMELY understandable. I hope you become a teacher because you have a great skill at presenting information. I also admire your ingenuity at building the machines you needed to finish the project. Well done!
One tip is to leave as much copper on the board as possible, and only etch the spaces between the traces. Usually there is an option in the PCB software like "create ground plane". First, this reduces the amount of etching required significantly, extending the life of your solution. Second, you will have more uniform etching, since there are no areas that get exposed to bare etchant for a long time. Third, you'll have a ground plane to help reduce interference and make your trace impedance more consistent (important for high frequency or timing sensitive applications).
Watching this I noticed countless things that would make the process better. But then I realized that you are showing the most basic and simple way. One thing that I have learned about cutting the PCB is that a good heavy duty pair of scissors does the job surprisingly well. You might be worried about ruining the scissors. If you are you can buy a cheap pair just for the job.Thicker PCB would be a challenge for scissors but the thin ones like you made are not a problem.
Thank you! This was very helpful. Did everything as suggested. Printed my designed circuit on A4 plain paper with laser printer. Did some testings to find the right recipe for my conditions and I found that paint on paper are tend to blur after contacting with cooking oil, so I used spray varnish to protect my paper circuit before applying cooking oil. This worked perfectly.
This is my preferred method of building PCBs too. I use transparent sticker paper instead of the paper and oil. It’s too messy :) The transparent sheets are think and stick to the PCB thereby reducing the gap between the film and the PCB. The lines are more defined with this and I was able to get clearances as low as 0.3mm and track widths of 0.25mm with this.
@@jacobnoble2167 not an opaque paper sheet. I print them on a transparent sheet that can be printed on an inkjet printer, but with one sticky side. They are clear transparent plastic sheets that can be printed on.
There are definitely pros and cons. I do DIY pcbs when I'm iterating through changes and making sure my circuit is right. In fact I just did one the other night and forgot to add power pins to one module in the schematic. I usually do breadboarding first, then make the schematic from the breadboard, depending on what I am doing. Doing the board DIY allowed me to find that problem immediately, as well as changing some button placements which went through the back of the case for user input/selection. Once I'm satisfied, however, I'll get professional boards done. It's still very cheap, and having a solder mask and tinned pads makes it way easier to solder, especially if you have small SMT Ics with pins which are closely spaced.
Great video. I hardly know what a resister and a capacitor is but I’m gonna go out, buy a bunch of things, and make a circuit board. That was such a good tutorial,fascinating.
Your voice tend to make me think you're very young. Hope you inspire many guys around the glove. I like your techniques and very well documented video. The chemical in this country where I live cost me a lot, unfortunately. Nice job. Thank you keep it!
Ferric chloride etching can be significantly sped up (3-4 minutes) by heating the solution. I usually put it in a cooking glass container on the stove and heat it on the lowest setting, while agitating the solution and board with a stick. Toner transfer can yield same results and much cheaper. I made quite a few SMD boards with close traces (QFP32) and even one double sided board (even though I admit the alignment was tricky and got it on the second try).
Personally I recommend spraying the PCB with a solder-through lacquer, especially if it's not being used immediately. In the longer run, it helps prevent corrosion. Alternatively spray the track side (on single sided PCBs) after installing components and making sure any flux is cleaned off. I also score both sides of the board before snapping (and I use the sharp side of the blade). I've also been able to snap-break glass fibre boards that way. Also, I'd recommend using tungsten carbide bits for drilling PCBs as the standard hss types tend to blunt very quickly, especially with glass fibre.That can matter for accuracy when drills become dull.
Ok. I did try this. Took a few attempts but got it working. Here's my advice: I use a 4x8W UV lamps exposure unit at a distance of about 10 cm. It takes 10 minutes (anywhere between 8 and 12) to get proper exposure I oiled the paper separately, dried it off and then put it on the board. Way less messy to clean up later, it only takes some water and a drop of dish soap I used 6g of sodium hydroxide in half a liter (500mL) of water and it worked very well by leaving it in there a bit, agitating it with a brush. I think it got saturated though, as I needed to redo the solution midway. Maybe a liter would be the better choice I used a 1:1 ratio of ferric chloride and hot water to etch. This saves some time and cuts costs of etching I got very good results using 0.762mm traces, perfect definition this way. I think I could go down to 0.254mm if I wanted to, the results were that good Overall this was a great video to learn basics, I just needed to perfect my method
Very nice, I did this in the 80's with regular pcb boards with decalcs and permanent markers. Now with this light transfer method make things lots easier.
Todays offer from JLCPCB 100x100 mm2 two sided with solder mask and silkscreen 5 pcs = $2 plus shipping .... DIY PCB does not really make sense anymore, too bad, I liked to do it.
You should swap the paper with a Overhead Transparent sheet, then the PCB traces will not have all the inperfections that your resulting PCB has. (pixelation and small holes.) Print the pattern Mirrord, so the printed side is turned with the printed side against the Photo-resist dirrectly to reduce bluring of the edges of the traces.
Awesome tutorial! However I would suggest that people not think of lye as “a mild soap.” It becomes soap when it dissolves lipids and proteins. If it feels soapy guess where those lipids came from? Also keep the solution in HDPE plastic (number 2) or glass preferably, and never anything aluminum. You might not even notice that you’ve burned yourself with it for several hours.
Same! I brought back some memorable moments when we used to compete in robotics and fabricated circuits with this method. These days I only use it when I need a PCB done within the day since Chinese PCB fabrication services are becoming a lot cheaper by the day.
@@TechBuilder I used the black tape and transfers for small runs as they give clearly defined boards, you can also get Etch resistant transfers for one off prototypes
Very nice and straight forward instruction. I used this method around 20 years ago already ;-). One suggestion. Use laser printer instead. The lines will be much more accurate and edges sharper. You can also experiment with printings on a foil.
Interesting to see you just use a paper printout. I've always printed to high temperature overhead transparencies. Your way of wetting it and sticking it to the board saves any unwanted movement.
Very easy to follow. Simple instructions, practical approach. Quality audio and visual. Instructions and example and explanation. Overall excellent stuff thank you! This is how you know when someone knows what they're doing.
double sided works well too, just tape the topside acrylic transparency to the underside by one edge, fit a double sided PCB inside and expose. remember to have the printed side closest to the copper, then theres less or no diffraction errors from the light box. use the pads to align both layers then tape. as long as tph pads are big enough to allow for slight misalignment, should be golden. we used this method for small scale commercial prototyping late 90s, the benefit is you can make a prototype PCB in hours. from CAD to construction. using a proper PCB production company takes a day or two, depending if theres a local one.
Problem with DIY double sided are through hole plating. Try to get a 44 in PLCC socket to make contact with both sides. It's impossible. If you have simple discrete components you probably can get an iron on both sides, but not with many components.
I managed to make .008 inch (0.2032mm) traces pretty reliably with similar technique, except I sprayed Positive 20 photoresist on polished FR4 PCB, using inkjet printer with the color cartridge filled with all black ink, set to high resolution photo and and photo paper settings, but I actually used normal paper instead of photo paper. :D That was achieved with my old HP Deskjet F2480 printer, and regular 80g/m2 paper, and cooking oil to make it transparent, as you mentioned. Now I bought a new pigment based (HP Deskjet Ink Advantage 3775) inkjet printer, and high quality 90g/m2 Xerox Colotech+ paper, which has smooth surface, and it actually gets more transparent when the oil is applied. I bet it's gonna be even more reliable once I perfect the method, although the old printer really soaked the paper with ink making it really black, this new one, does not even at high resolution photo settings although it looks even blacker then with the old printer, it's kinda transparent black(which is not good)... I'm thinking if I can't make it work with the new pigment ink, I'm gonna experiment with mixing pigment based, and dye based ink to get the blackness I need to achieve even though it may ruin the cartridge.
It is best to use an inkjet printer (HP is best I have found) with inkjet transparencies for the artwork. This will significantly improve your line edges. (Laser printers don't have the black density necessary for this process.) Also, a much higher power UV lamp lets you finish the exposure in less than a minute, which also helps reduce undercut. (I use a 400 watt mercury vapor street light with the outer envelope removed) With this procedure I regularly do 15 mil traces with no breaks and clean edges.
Simple solution is to tin the entire board before putting on the components. Also the solder will bridge the small pinholes in the traces. Any extra copper shorting traces would also be revealed as the solder will flow over that as well.
I use vinegar and salt to remove the copper. It works best over low heat while agitating. I have done this with the toner transfer method. I assume it would work with this also. Great video. It looks far superior to the toner method.
Nice & straightforward. I would add a cautionary note about using acetone inside, you MUST have good ventilation. It evaporates so quickly you can build up a dangerous level of highly flammable fumes in short order.
Awesome video. I built a UV exposure unit into an old scanner body with 3W UV LED's. It took my exposure time from 2-3 minutes to 12 seconds with perfect results.
Nice video. One correction though: sodium hydroxide is not the main ingredient of soap, but is used to make soap from fatty acids. It’s actually the main component of drain cleaner, or “liquid sosa”
to be frank, nowadays almost all hobbyists go for breadboard, use several meters of flimsy patch cables, and then the 'built' contraption finally looks like a bush and not an electronic project.. and the worst part is when they let this temporary protototype be the final solution... aww . 😟😭 I have seen breadboard implementations built into frames, enclosures as final... it hurts... so it is really good to see that you created this thorough educational video on how it is PROPERLY done! 👍
Thank you! Hahahaha I feel ya! I eventually made an unhealthy habbit of using fabricated PCBs even for the simplest circuits. 😂 It makes the project more satisfying to the eye hahaha
Great video as always. And, presentation is slow, calming and comes across as do-able by the watcher without previous experience. Perfect for tutorials, and excellent, interesting projects.
Fiberglass (FR-4) PCBs can absolutely be scored and snapped. The fibers on the edge can be sanded or filed down. I prefer this method, as it produces less fiberglass dust than sawing the PCB.
Great explainer! If you use a small sponge to wipe the board while in solution, you will cut etching time to 5 min - covered In solution, small bubbles form on the surface of the board excluding enchant. you can agitate or blow air bubbles with a fish tank air pump, they don't help. the sponge method uses probably 1/4 of the etchant you're using because you don't cover the board, you just keep dipping it and sponging it off, and you have much finer control of the process. Ferric chloride has no VOCs, Does not combust and is used in water sanitation plants as a chelator., lie goes down the drain every day, so you can be sure the etchant does no harm to the environment.
For step 8: the drilling will be more precise if you're preparing it with eg a pricker or something and the drill will not slide to an improper position on the board.
Good video, many people dont know this method. But i have one suggestion. If you want better resulst aspecially with thin traces try to use transparent foil for inject printer. I use this methode for several years and results are much better than plain paper. If you use transparent foil you need to reduce UV expositure time. In my case max 2 minutes will work. I use nail polis UV light.
Thanks! I agree! Although it might be scarce in times like these, the transparency film does a better job indeed! Just ordered a roll of those dry film foils, I'll try that! Thanks for this! 😊
Been following you since you dropped that BB8 diy video, that really catch me on arduino but was too young to understand a lot of that stuff at the time. Now I'm ready
As I understand it, lye is not an -ingredient- in soap, but a processing chemical to separate the glycerin from oils. It is highly caustic, not like mild soap at all. Basically, it's the common ingredient in drain cleaner, and, if left on your skin, it will literally melt it.
To place the components on the board, print a mirrored/flipped copy of the board and include the components. Place it on the component side of the PCB. Line up a few holes and punch them with a wire or pin.
Please wear latex gloves and wear protective goggles when dealing with these chemicals. For this video, I ran out of gloves at the moment due to the massive shortage of medical supplies due to the COVID19 pandemic. Lye (developing solution) can be corrosive to human tissue, for this project, the concentration of lye is quite low. I washed my hands thoroughly after getting exposed to it. Ferric Chloride on the other hand barely has an effect to human skin, but it does leave a stain on everything when not immediately rinsed with water. Stay safe fam!
The number of views would be more if the video were translated into Arabic
The number of views would be more if the video were translated into Arabic
th-cam.com/video/F9ft8d5T0Is/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for your
Just a very important FYI: Do NOT pour down the sodium hydroxide solution down the drain. It now contains copper(II)-hydroxide (or rather a hydroxy-complex, that's why it's blue!) and that is not very good for the environment. You actually have to bring that to a hazardous waste disposal facility. Yes, really. Your local wastewater treatment plant will thank you for not making them deal with heavy metals.
Also, please store acetone in a very well ventilated area (preferrably outside!). Acetone has a very low flammability and high vapour pressure - if you're really unlucky you'll blow yourself up. Not a joke.
Brings back memories. Back in 1985, we technicians were making our own boards for all sorts of stuff. One of my pet projects was making a PAY TV decoder. I designed it so that it decoded the video line by line rather than the standard frame by frame method. Thus there was no need for a PLL ( phase-locked loop) circuit. It was powered by 12 vdc, and it only pulled about 12 mA, and the board was only 1.5 inch by 4.5 inch. So you just installed it inside your TV converter by tapping the converter's 12 vdc power line, and then cut the video connection that connected the RF demodulator to the RF modulator, and then feed these wires to the tiny decoder board. And that was it. You now had a PAY TV decoder. It decoded all the PAY channels, and did so instantly, since there was no PLL delay. Meanwhile, the engineers used the standard method that required tons of IC's and other components, and it therefore pulled plenty of current, so it needed its own power supply, and of course it needed its own box as well. That costs money. Mine, only had three IC's, MC4013, MC14538, and an LM393, plus a few transistors, diodes, etc. So making just one, cost about $5.00 total. Those days were fun indeed.
How do you learn about all of that stuff? Can you still use a similar workaround today for paid channels? That sounds so neat!
@@426F6F No
relevance?
That's so nice! I would have liked to live in that time, a simpler time where technology was less integrated into society and solutions were more practical and simple. There is no way in which something like this works today, technological innovation has been displaced and relegated to mega-corporations with funds of millions of dollars to allocate to research.
@@426F6F modern tv is digital and uses encryption similar to what the internet uses
That was, hands down, one of the nicest and easiest to follow TH-cam tutorials I've seen in ages! Thank you for that! :) So many content creators mumble or talk waaaaaay to fast without taking the time to speak CLEARLY.
Thanks man! Means a lot! I wanted to make a tutorial on PCBs for years but I found out a lot of people already posted it. I revisited some of the classic tutorials only to realize they weren't first-timer friendly, so I made this vid anyway hahaha 😊
Honestly, before I saw your tutorial I always imagined making your own PCBs was a way more complicated and chemically hazardous process. Glad to see it's actually way easier than I thought!
"Only peel the PCB in a dim room."
Proceeds to peel the PCB in a room brighter than the beaches of Normandy.
yeah
BTW ev8, have you become a flat earther yet?
I mean, he's filming.
Doesn't matter as long as all light is artificial from LEDs, they have zero UV output and the film is sensitive only to UV, so even dimmer sun will start reaction while several thousand lumens of LEDs won't
@@flat-earther🌍🌎🌏🌐
Overall a good tutorial. Just 3 remarks.
1) There is a easier/better way to cut PCB material that also works with glass-fiber and double sided material. Score BOTH sides 2 to 4 times with the sharp side of your blade, then snap.
2) Temperature is important for development and etching. Do both "au bain marie" in a tub of hot water, to get around 30C - 40C. You may find you get better results and the chemicals can literally last years.
Years? yes. My etching machine holds about 2 liters Ferric Chloride. The same Ferric Chloride has been in there for over 10 years and was used to etch almost 2 square meters worth of double sided PCB material. I add Hydrochloric acid to compensate for evaporation and keep the solution active, even though there is now a lot of copper in there.
3) Please be safe, pure Ferric Chloride only stains HOWEVER the Copper Ferric Chloride mixture you get after etching is rather poisonous.
Definitely brings back memories from 1980-ies. When I made my DIY PCBs only in such way because there were no better ways.
I kinda knew the process before but this made it so much clearer. It was super easy to follow and had all the information needed but none of the fluff. Thanks dude!
TechBuilder , you have just gotten me out of the months-long toner-transfer vicious circle - in 10 minutes and 10 seconds! Thank you greatly for that!! Every day is a new lesson!
You explained everything in a simple, straightforward and slow pace that made it EXTREMELY understandable. I hope you become a teacher because you have a great skill at presenting information. I also admire your ingenuity at building the machines you needed to finish the project. Well done!
One tip is to leave as much copper on the board as possible, and only etch the spaces between the traces. Usually there is an option in the PCB software like "create ground plane". First, this reduces the amount of etching required significantly, extending the life of your solution. Second, you will have more uniform etching, since there are no areas that get exposed to bare etchant for a long time. Third, you'll have a ground plane to help reduce interference and make your trace impedance more consistent (important for high frequency or timing sensitive applications).
So etching is just an engravement on the copper board?
Peat
1年前
I usually don't comment on videos, but this is something else. Very clear& easy to follow. Definitely worth subscribing
Man... you are an asset to the whole world! Hope you shine more and share your knowledge with te world! Thank you!
Thanks man!!!
Watching this I noticed countless things that would make the process better. But then I realized that you are showing the most basic and simple way. One thing that I have learned about cutting the PCB is that a good heavy duty pair of scissors does the job surprisingly well. You might be worried about ruining the scissors. If you are you can buy a cheap pair just for the job.Thicker PCB would be a challenge for scissors but the thin ones like you made are not a problem.
I usually don't comment on videos, but this is something else. Very clear& easy to follow. Definitely worth subscribing
just started electrical engineering and this got me super excited for it
How I wish this quality tutorial existed 7 years ago. Tough times.
I feel ya
Thank you! This was very helpful. Did everything as suggested. Printed my designed circuit on A4 plain paper with laser printer. Did some testings to find the right recipe for my conditions and I found that paint on paper are tend to blur after contacting with cooking oil, so I used spray varnish to protect my paper circuit before applying cooking oil. This worked perfectly.
This method is meant to be used with an inkjet printer.
This is my preferred method of building PCBs too. I use transparent sticker paper instead of the paper and oil. It’s too messy :) The transparent sheets are think and stick to the PCB thereby reducing the gap between the film and the PCB. The lines are more defined with this and I was able to get clearances as low as 0.3mm and track widths of 0.25mm with this.
Any sticky paper?, and im gussing you print your schmatic to the paper and then just slap it on and the do the rest of the steps?
@@jacobnoble2167 not an opaque paper sheet. I print them on a transparent sheet that can be printed on an inkjet printer, but with one sticky side. They are clear transparent plastic sheets that can be printed on.
@@hrishikeshb Could you link what your talking about and im guessing you print on the non sticky side? THen Uv expose... etc
Amazing content. Clear and educational. Thank you.
Thanks! :D
Now thats an interesting approach, by some miracle a local store is selling positive presensitized boards, will have to try this. two thumbs up!
I wish I had a store like that
You have a local store selling electronic components.. I envy you.
@@booruvcheek1331 You would be surprised. But they are slowly dying
Thank you but I would wish know how to use prototype software
i didn't even know they existed. hope there's one near me
For those without a laser printer, this video is priceless! Thanks!!!
Glad it helps!
Holy crap!! This looks WAY cheaper than shipping JLC PCBs from China!! Thank you so much for this!!
There are definitely pros and cons. I do DIY pcbs when I'm iterating through changes and making sure my circuit is right. In fact I just did one the other night and forgot to add power pins to one module in the schematic. I usually do breadboarding first, then make the schematic from the breadboard, depending on what I am doing.
Doing the board DIY allowed me to find that problem immediately, as well as changing some button placements which went through the back of the case for user input/selection. Once I'm satisfied, however, I'll get professional boards done. It's still very cheap, and having a solder mask and tinned pads makes it way easier to solder, especially if you have small SMT Ics with pins which are closely spaced.
Great video. I hardly know what a resister and a capacitor is but I’m gonna go out, buy a bunch of things, and make a circuit board. That was such a good tutorial,fascinating.
Your voice tend to make me think you're very young. Hope you inspire many guys around the glove. I like your techniques and very well documented video. The chemical in this country where I live cost me a lot, unfortunately. Nice job. Thank you keep it!
Hello, I'm from Russia! Thank you for the video, 73!
Welcome! Greetings from the Philippines my good sir!
Ferric chloride etching can be significantly sped up (3-4 minutes) by heating the solution. I usually put it in a cooking glass container on the stove and heat it on the lowest setting, while agitating the solution and board with a stick. Toner transfer can yield same results and much cheaper. I made quite a few SMD boards with close traces (QFP32) and even one double sided board (even though I admit the alignment was tricky and got it on the second try).
Personally I recommend spraying the PCB with a solder-through lacquer, especially if it's not being used immediately. In the longer run, it helps prevent corrosion. Alternatively spray the track side (on single sided PCBs) after installing components and making sure any flux is cleaned off.
I also score both sides of the board before snapping (and I use the sharp side of the blade). I've also been able to snap-break glass fibre boards that way. Also, I'd recommend using tungsten carbide bits for drilling PCBs as the standard hss types tend to blunt very quickly, especially with glass fibre.That can matter for accuracy when drills become dull.
Thank you for the tips. I'll be making my own pcb for a project in the next few weeks.
@@KE8UYV Good luck, as it can be very frustrating.
Ok. I did try this. Took a few attempts but got it working. Here's my advice:
I use a 4x8W UV lamps exposure unit at a distance of about 10 cm. It takes 10 minutes (anywhere between 8 and 12) to get proper exposure
I oiled the paper separately, dried it off and then put it on the board. Way less messy to clean up later, it only takes some water and a drop of dish soap
I used 6g of sodium hydroxide in half a liter (500mL) of water and it worked very well by leaving it in there a bit, agitating it with a brush. I think it got saturated though, as I needed to redo the solution midway. Maybe a liter would be the better choice
I used a 1:1 ratio of ferric chloride and hot water to etch. This saves some time and cuts costs of etching
I got very good results using 0.762mm traces, perfect definition this way. I think I could go down to 0.254mm if I wanted to, the results were that good
Overall this was a great video to learn basics, I just needed to perfect my method
Very nice, I did this in the 80's with regular pcb boards with decalcs and permanent markers. Now with this light transfer method make things lots easier.
I recall doing photo resist in the 80s, but you had to draw the circuit by hand!
That was great to watch. Forgot how many steps are needed to produce a simple pcb. This video was an eye opener. Great work!
Todays offer from JLCPCB 100x100 mm2 two sided with solder mask and silkscreen 5 pcs = $2 plus shipping .... DIY PCB does not really make sense anymore, too bad, I liked to do it.
You should swap the paper with a Overhead Transparent sheet, then the PCB traces will not have all the inperfections that your resulting PCB has. (pixelation and small holes.) Print the pattern Mirrord, so the printed side is turned with the printed side against the Photo-resist dirrectly to reduce bluring of the edges of the traces.
Awesome tutorial! However I would suggest that people not think of lye as “a mild soap.” It becomes soap when it dissolves lipids and proteins. If it feels soapy guess where those lipids came from? Also keep the solution in HDPE plastic (number 2) or glass preferably, and never anything aluminum. You might not even notice that you’ve burned yourself with it for several hours.
This brought back memories for me, I used to make a lot of prototypes this way.
Same! I brought back some memorable moments when we used to compete in robotics and fabricated circuits with this method. These days I only use it when I need a PCB done within the day since Chinese PCB fabrication services are becoming a lot cheaper by the day.
@@TechBuilder I used the black tape and transfers for small runs as they give clearly defined boards, you can also get Etch resistant transfers for one off prototypes
@Timothy, same as me. Used an old tanning lamp for the exposure light. So much easier to pay $2 to get a professional board done!!
@@favesongslistah the black tape and transfers, that dates some of us , fond and annoying memories.
Thank you. I had given up on it because I thought I had to do toner transfer. Doing it with inkjet is amazing
Same! Agree!
Very nice and straight forward instruction. I used this method around 20 years ago already ;-).
One suggestion. Use laser printer instead. The lines will be much more accurate and edges sharper. You can also experiment with printings on a foil.
yes, a laser printer, we could go down to reliable 6 thou tracks with a laser printer. also 0805 SMDs. SOICs and so on.
This is the best PCB tutorial I've seen. Thank you!
incredible, I loved the video. I can't wait to try this myself!
Have fun! Drop a comment here if you experience some difficulties in the process, I'd be happy to help.
2 Cool points for the guy who remembers the part number of the Radio Shack kit for these boards. Man I miss that store:(
Interesting to see you just use a paper printout. I've always printed to high temperature overhead transparencies. Your way of wetting it and sticking it to the board saves any unwanted movement.
Transparencies give the best results! I do find the inkjet and oil more economical. Yes! The oil really helps with the grip! :)
Wow very beautiful result at the end I'll save this
Remember this in school, It was always fun.
Excellent! Clear, detailed and well-paced explanation. Thank you very much.
Ok so nobody gonna mention how he used his bare foot to hold that PCB down????????
Very easy to follow. Simple instructions, practical approach. Quality audio and visual. Instructions and example and explanation. Overall excellent stuff thank you! This is how you know when someone knows what they're doing.
YT recommended this video and I watched the whole thing.
double sided works well too, just tape the topside acrylic transparency to the underside by one edge, fit a double sided PCB inside and expose.
remember to have the printed side closest to the copper, then theres less or no diffraction errors from the light box.
use the pads to align both layers then tape. as long as tph pads are big enough to allow for slight misalignment, should be golden.
we used this method for small scale commercial prototyping late 90s, the benefit is you can make a prototype PCB in hours. from CAD to construction.
using a proper PCB production company takes a day or two, depending if theres a local one.
Problem with DIY double sided are through hole plating. Try to get a 44 in PLCC socket to make contact with both sides. It's impossible. If you have simple discrete components you probably can get an iron on both sides, but not with many components.
i 3d printed a mini dremel table saw its like 8in by8in perfect for cutting pcb board
I love how organized your closet is.
When breaking the PCB, better to keep the scored line flush with the book and table surface.
I managed to make .008 inch (0.2032mm) traces pretty reliably with similar technique, except I sprayed Positive 20 photoresist on polished FR4 PCB, using inkjet printer with the color cartridge filled with all black ink, set to high resolution photo and and photo paper settings, but I actually used normal paper instead of photo paper. :D
That was achieved with my old HP Deskjet F2480 printer, and regular 80g/m2 paper, and cooking oil to make it transparent, as you mentioned. Now I bought a new pigment based (HP Deskjet Ink Advantage 3775) inkjet printer, and high quality 90g/m2 Xerox Colotech+ paper, which has smooth surface, and it actually gets more transparent when the oil is applied. I bet it's gonna be even more reliable once I perfect the method, although the old printer really soaked the paper with ink making it really black, this new one, does not even at high resolution photo settings although it looks even blacker then with the old printer, it's kinda transparent black(which is not good)... I'm thinking if I can't make it work with the new pigment ink, I'm gonna experiment with mixing pigment based, and dye based ink to get the blackness I need to achieve even though it may ruin the cartridge.
It is best to use an inkjet printer (HP is best I have found) with inkjet transparencies for the artwork. This will significantly improve your line edges. (Laser printers don't have the black density necessary for this process.) Also, a much higher power UV lamp lets you finish the exposure in less than a minute, which also helps reduce undercut. (I use a 400 watt mercury vapor street light with the outer envelope removed) With this procedure I regularly do 15 mil traces with no breaks and clean edges.
A single point source of light also improves edges. Love your videos.
One of the best guide I ever saw
You forget to apply layer of paint on the exposed copper layer. (Current + humid air + copper = copper oxide = failed circuit board)
Agree! I suggest others to do the same, but only after the soldering. Flux mask is also a nice option.
@@TechBuilder Would conformal coating work as well?
I've experienced, the copper clad of pcb would develop a green rust-like subtance on its surface
@@glenford3436 its oxidation, copper got really colourful oxidation
Simple solution is to tin the entire board before putting on the components. Also the solder will bridge the small pinholes in the traces. Any extra copper shorting traces would also be revealed as the solder will flow over that as well.
I took electronics in HS in the 80s and we had the machines to make boards like this. I still have four of those projects.
Hey bro waiting for your next video 😁♥️✌️🔥
Thanks!
Great video, I find that if you warm the Ferric Chloride in the microwave to about 50/60C before you use it it works a lot better
I'll try that. This man!
Got nostalgic when I saw your Sadiku Book. Brings back college memories. 😅🙌
I use vinegar and salt to remove the copper. It works best over low heat while agitating.
I have done this with the toner transfer method. I assume it would work with this also.
Great video.
It looks far superior to the toner method.
Nice & straightforward. I would add a cautionary note about using acetone inside, you MUST have good ventilation. It evaporates so quickly you can build up a dangerous level of highly flammable fumes in short order.
Wow the real tech builder and your workshop looks amazing.
Thanks for sharing.
What a relaxing way to learn something
Nung nakita ko yung Summit. HAHAHA Pilipino to. Pati pala sa pagsasalita. By the way ganda ng content!! ❤️❤️❤️
Man, the nostalgia of producing PCBs for school projects... (106 represent, hehe)
115 here! Hahaha. Must have brought back so much memories hehehe.
Your explanation is so clear and simple yet you covered the topic very well!
Thank you!
Awesome video. I built a UV exposure unit into an old scanner body with 3W UV LED's. It took my exposure time from 2-3 minutes to 12 seconds with perfect results.
One of few people who can solder correctly.
1 percent I would say 😁
Nice video. One correction though: sodium hydroxide is not the main ingredient of soap, but is used to make soap from fatty acids. It’s actually the main component of drain cleaner, or “liquid sosa”
Can't wait for your video on the electric car circuit. Exactly the kind of thing I've been wanting a clear and concise explanation of.
Thanks man! Almost done filming it! It may take a few more months, due to my video edit lineup.
to be frank, nowadays almost all hobbyists go for breadboard, use several meters of flimsy patch cables, and then the 'built' contraption finally looks like a bush and not an electronic project.. and the worst part is when they let this temporary protototype be the final solution... aww . 😟😭 I have seen breadboard implementations built into frames, enclosures as final... it hurts... so it is really good to see that you created this thorough educational
video on how it is PROPERLY done! 👍
Thank you! Hahahaha I feel ya! I eventually made an unhealthy habbit of using fabricated PCBs even for the simplest circuits. 😂 It makes the project more satisfying to the eye hahaha
My dad whose main hoby is electronics (he built his own radio at about 20 yo) still uses this method and so do I for some of my projects
Great video as always. And, presentation is slow, calming and comes across as do-able by the watcher without previous experience. Perfect for tutorials, and excellent, interesting projects.
Thanks making this video simple.. most easiest video for my brain to process the step by step information
this video was very relaxing to watch!
Really a clean and good demonstration on how to make PCBs. You have simplified it.
That was really informative and comfy to watch. Sad that you stopped uploading videos to this channel
Fiberglass (FR-4) PCBs can absolutely be scored and snapped. The fibers on the edge can be sanded or filed down. I prefer this method, as it produces less fiberglass dust than sawing the PCB.
Great explainer! If you use a small sponge to wipe the board while in solution, you will cut etching time to 5 min - covered In solution, small bubbles form on the surface of the board excluding enchant. you can agitate or blow air bubbles with a fish tank air pump, they don't help. the sponge method uses probably 1/4 of the etchant you're using because you don't cover the board, you just keep dipping it and sponging it off, and you have much finer control of the process. Ferric chloride has no VOCs, Does not combust and is used in water sanitation plants as a chelator., lie goes down the drain every day, so you can be sure the etchant does no harm to the environment.
Thank you. You have done a fine job of explaining this process.
For step 8: the drilling will be more precise if you're preparing it with eg a pricker or something and the drill will not slide to an improper position on the board.
Good video, many people dont know this method. But i have one suggestion. If you want better resulst aspecially with thin traces try to use transparent foil for inject printer. I use this methode for several years and results are much better than plain paper. If you use transparent foil you need to reduce UV expositure time. In my case max 2 minutes will work. I use nail polis UV light.
Thanks! I agree! Although it might be scarce in times like these, the transparency film does a better job indeed! Just ordered a roll of those dry film foils, I'll try that! Thanks for this! 😊
this is the best video i've seen related to this yet. i hope it spreads
Thanks!!
That was hands and foot down .
Verry helpful video thanks.
This video is a savior
Super cool video! I didn't know that type of DIY pcb existed.
th-cam.com/video/F9ft8d5T0Is/w-d-xo.html
I think that it is the best solution to do pcb at home for small project.😃
Been following you since you dropped that BB8 diy video, that really catch me on arduino but was too young to understand a lot of that stuff at the time.
Now I'm ready
Well thanks for the video and the hint that we can also use normal white light, I totally had forgot this 😅
As I understand it, lye is not an -ingredient- in soap, but a processing chemical to separate the glycerin from oils. It is highly caustic, not like mild soap at all. Basically, it's the common ingredient in drain cleaner, and, if left on your skin, it will literally melt it.
nice first descent tutorail on making pcbs
You think I could use a leftover Whitestone dome UV light?
Very well described tutorial you are a master at explaining clearly and very precisely what to do !! awesome! Can we use vinegar as etchant?
The video I was looking for. 💚
Thanks for making this video ,,,,,,it is very informative and helpful for me,,, thanks again,,,,,,, 👍
Would the 12 minute exposure box be more efficient if you put mirrors on the walls and floor, and added a door with the same?
3:48 If I understand correctly, P Diddy would be an excellent PCB maker.
This was extreamly impressiv
Thank you!
Great video.. easy to follow Thank you!
You are so organized!!! Very Neat job man. Keep it up.
It helps me a lot with my workflow, thanks! 😊
This is so HOME-MADE I even want to try it :D
TY! sir
To place the components on the board, print a mirrored/flipped copy of the board and include the components. Place it on the component side of the PCB. Line up a few holes and punch them with a wire or pin.