I dabble with PCBs, I normally get them made in china and sent. I have however got a atomstack S7 + M50 laser diode and also a PCB etchant / agitator tank.
So… I have been dabbling with getting some simple double sided PCBs made.
The process should be simple:
clean + scour the double sided pcbs, dry and spray paint with a thin coat of black spray paint.
wait to dry.
burn paint coating from PCB (double sided, flip over and do other side)
add to etch solution,
clean / wash etch solution
install back into / under laser and cut holes and board out.
Simples…
but … not so simple it seems as lightburn does not import gerber or echelon files… no worry, export to SVG and import… damn! imported SVG is not correctly displayed as lightburn does not seem to like the multilayer / overlaid SVG objects and only shows some of the objects.
No problem…
Open each gerber and echelon file with Flatcam and export each as SVG, then import into lightburn… damn!! co-ordinates don’t align… zoom in and tweak alignment and then set layers according to fill and line… (fill for board edge + holes so that they can be cut later)
First question… is their a simplier way as it should not be this difficult to make a couple of bucks of simple PCB’s (happy to upload for review)???
Sure I could have just bought 10/20 of them for $4USD but where is the rapid prototyping fun in that when I have all the tools
Next question… any chance maybe lightburn could maybe look to import gerber and echelon files
How have you done this? Normal layers should be preserved without fuss. Masks are troublesome.
Are you exporting the files with coordinates intact? Meaning, that all files share the same origin? If so, there should not be an issue with alignment. To get LightBurn to load with coordinates preserved hold shift key while loading.
If you can upload the multi-layer SVG and the split layer SVG files I can take a look.
I’ve looked into this… There are a number of issues that come up. I have a little cnc3018 that is only used for PCB.
There are two issues with your description…
I have a 50 watt China Blue and I can’t cut through the copper on a 1 oz pcb… even if the copper was etched away I couldn’t cut through the board material.
You have some nice ‘toys’ maybe yours will… There is no clear description of your laser type.
Most fiberglass doesn’t cut well. Some types of PCB material release gases you don’t want to breath.
I am following this instructable as close as possible
I use easyeda for my boards (I have got used to it and had a lot of boards made in china with it and in some cases smts installed and shipped 95% complete
I am using an atomstack s7 M50 (10w (2x5w)) output diode laser.
yes I suspect that easyeda when it exports the svgs is using masks (I did not know there were 2 variants of of SVG and lightburn did not work with one of them)
I am not concerned with chemicals or rather vapours being given off as I have designed a carbon activated filtration system as local exhaust vent (I do it as a day job).
I was looking for a quicker way of making PCBs than milling them (which is option 2/3) as I generally only need small batches hence exploring light burn as one of the steps.
I do have a lot of toys (a lot more than listed) but I’m just trying to see if lightburn can offer anything of use to the task at hand or make the task easier as all I am trying to do is:
burn through a spray painted layer over the copper,
flip the board and do the same but mirrored on the reverse.
etch the board
use the laser to cut through the board outline and holes (saves milling or drilling it, speeding up the process)
Didn’t detail the whole article, but I think I’ll give it a shot. I’ve seen so many attempts to cut fiberglass that I kind of wrote it off as not really feasible… Even his is rather ‘burnt’ around the edges…
I will have to review that. I do like his ‘jig’ for holding the board… Might be usable for other things also.
I wonder how this will work out with a co2 laser…?
I got a thin cheap stainless 150x100 square and have attached it to a 4mm piece of magnetic stained steel, I then use a load of thin 2mm neo magnets 20mm dia to hold the board in position, can just pop it out and flip it over.
