At 01:19 PM 8/29/2005, Bob Axtell wrote: >I used AP Circuits for years, but I have become disenchanted with 1/2oz >copper as >a primary conductor size. Since I always use 1oz in my normal designs, the >action >(mostly GND signal) of 1/2oz copper is not representative enough of the final >product to be of any advantage. > >barebones (4PCB) uses 1oz laminate, so works better for me. Hi there, Bob. You might want to check with APC on what that 1/2 oz copper spec means. My understanding is that the laminate starts off at 1/2 oz before drilling. The board is drilled, imaged, and the drill holes sensitized (activated) for the plating process. Next, the board is electroplated. This applies the plating to the holes and also builds up the trace copper thickness to 1oz nominal. We get some of our high current boards plated to 2oz or 3oz thickness. S&P Flex Circuits (Ottawa, Ont, Canada) tells me that they start off with 1/2oz laminate, then plate to the desired copper thickness. In short, I would be *extremely* surprised if the boards supplied by APC are not at least 1oz weight / thickness. dwayne PS - I've got the latest batch of boards from APC in my hands as I write this - my uncalibrated thumbnail tells me that the traces feel about as thick as the edge connector traces on a production board from S&P. I'm comparing to an edge connector since it doesn't have a solder mask covering. dwayne PPS - I figured I'd better double check my facts before inserting foot in mouth. APC's web site states: "60/40 Fused Tin-Lead over 1 Oz of Copper" - dwayne -- Dwayne Reid Trinity Electronics Systems Ltd Edmonton, AB, CANADA (780) 489-3199 voice (780) 487-6397 fax Celebrating 21 years of Engineering Innovation (1984 - 2005) .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .-. .- `-' `-' `-' `-' `-' `-' `-' `-' `-' Do NOT send unsolicited commercial email to this email address. This message neither grants consent to receive unsolicited commercial email nor is intended to solicit commercial email. -- http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist