For a long time know I have wanted to move on to making my own pcb's for projects. After some research, i quite like the idea of the laser jet printer and the glossy paper method. The things I'm uncertain of is the software to use that's suitable for a beginner, and which printer will do that transfer method reliably. Also I've not much space for chemicals etc, I have looked at the lower end equipment for PCB production, and that option isn't something I'd want to rush out and buy.
The printer is the big question mark. Brother lasers categorically don’t work for PCB transfer. Other brands vary wildly. Consensus is that old lasers work best, but IMHO that’s not a viable long-term solution. (There’s a big thread on this very topic — modern printers for PCB transfer — but no solutions have been forthcoming.)
The other thing that is mandatory for a good transfer is a laminator. A clothes iron will NOT produce reliable output. Bear in mind that many laminators must be modified to accept the thickness of a PCB. I suggest doing what I did: get a secondhand heavy-duty office model. (I got mine for $2 from the local classifieds!)
With the right printer, a laminator, and a good process (get the copper impeccably clean and scrubbed, degrease thoroughly, don’t touch with bare hands, etc), you can produce excellent results. I did a few boards for 5050 LEDs and had no trouble whatsoever with 0.25mm traces.
But is it worth the trouble? Errr... I did it for the instant gratification and the fun of tinkering with the process.
But if the Chinese PCB makers have cheap shipping to your country, and you don’t need the board
immediately, they make more sense.
And just another uncertainty is my ability to map out the circuit in software, I'm familiar with stripboard techniques, although I do make the odd mistake, like overlooking to break a track or solder bridge, silly mistakes once I've spotted it. I suppose it's confidence having a go at this process. I'm good with chassis wiring and case / enclosure design, but uncertain of my ability with mapping out a circuit in software, then taking it to PCB copper clad boards. I can't think of anything more frustrating than mapping out a circuit, getting it on the copper clad board, using the ferric chloride, only to realise you've stuffed it up in software. Any pointers or tips appreciated. Although I'm uncertain of my software art design ability, I'd still really like to try it out.
Thanks for reading.
The process works like this: first you draw your schematic. This is where the burden of getting it right falls solely on you, so take your time and triple check everything. Once your schematic is done, you create the PCB. The software will understand (based on the schematic) which part pins need to connect, and shows this as the “rats nest” — lines directly connecting the pads that need to be joined by a trace. As you draw in those traces, the rats nest lines go away. When no rats nest is left, you’ve wired all the components. Of course, it’s up to you to wire them in ways that make sense, and to put components where they make sense and lend themselves to good routing. You may find, as I do, that it’s helpful to lay out the PCB twice: the first time as a trial run to discover what works and what doesn’t, and the second time to do it according to those insights, as it is often faster to start from scratch than to modify the trial run. Either way, the software prevents you from forgetting connections and from connecting things that aren’t meant to be connected. There are also rules you can configure to enforce your design needs. (“DRC” - design rule checking.) For example, you can tell it your PCB maker’s minimum tolerances so you don’t make traces too small and too close. Or that a particular net (a connection in your schematic) needs extra thick traces because it carries high current.
If you’ve never used PCB layout software, I highly recommend starting with EasyEDA. It’s web based and free, and IMHO it really is the easiest one. It doesn’t have every feature, but the basics are solid. And it has a huge ready-to-use component library, which is a HUGE problem on other tools. And if you outgrow it, the transition to a more complex tool is MUCH easier than if you’d used the complex tool from the get-go. (EasyEDA is made by LCSC, the same company as JLCPCB, so it ties into the LCSC component library, and makes it super easy to order the board from JLCPCB. But you can use other components and PCB vendors too.)
Kicad’s PCB layouter is great, but the schematic designer is frustrating.
Eagle made me want to gouge out my eyes with a rusty railroad tie.
Altium is what I use at work — EasyEDA is in many ways modeled on Altium (but with far less complexity), so upgrading from EasyEDA to Altium was really easy. At first I hated it, but it’s really grown on me as I’ve figured out the tips and tricks. But unless you can get it from work or through school (I think you can get a free license just by being a student), it’s hella expensive.