Oli Glaser wrote:
> Yep, pretty easy as long as the hole is drilled right. They give you a
> drill size (0.2mm larger IIRC) for each corresponding rivet e.g. 0.4mm
> rivet hole size needs 0.6mm drill bit, 0.6mm rivet needs 0.8mm bit and
> so on.

Thanks! We'll definitely get the rivets but will skip the punch.


>> What is the advantage of using UV over presensitized PCBs sensitive to
>> regular light?
>
> I'm not sure, never used sunlight. I imagine the timing is more
> repeatable (3-4mins for our UV box) as the strength is consistent, so
> maybe there is less risk of over/under exposure. Possibly the focus of
> sunlight is better given it's a direct point far away, though as long as
> the mask is flat (no space underneath for "sideways" light to get in)
> then this shouldn't matter much - the more expensive UV boxes have
> vacuums to hold the mask flat.

I never said "sunlight". :) We use a 64W CFL lamp, though in the past I use=
d=20
100W incandescents. We use these PCBs:

http://www.mgchemicals.com/products/600.html


> How long does it take to expose your boards using sunlight?

Regular light (see above): about the same as your UV boards (3-4 minutes).

See this video for the basic process:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D_sdcucoWj4E&feature=3Dplayer_embedded#at=
=3D62

A few notes on the video:

- You really shouldn't take off the black plastic with the room lights on.=
=20
We use a yellow bug light in our "dark room".
- He says exposure takes 10 minutes, but with our super-bright CFL we cut=20
the time in half.
- Etching does not take 30 minutes (assuming the solution is already=20
preheated). IIRC it only takes about 10.
- We figured that printer toner is cheaper than etchant, so we use generous=
=20
copper pours in Eagle.
- We leave the green resist on, after etching. It can be soldered through=20
very easily, protects the copper from oxidation, and looks cool.
- Double-sided PCBs are great when you need a ground plane. We figured that=
=20
if we don't put anything on the bottom, we don't have to mess with alignmen=
t=20
or double the exposure time.

Vitaliy=20

--=20
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