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I tried and tried to get a good board with this until I figured out (using an IR thermometer) that the cheap iron I bought just for use with circuit boards wasn't getting near as hot as I thought it was. After that, I've been able to make good boards. My issue is that it isn't clear how to remove the etch resist. Maybe it depends with the toner used, but I've tried acetone with only marginal results. Scrubbing the board with steel wool and even sandpaper will leave the board substrate with a damaged look. Trying to solder through the resist leaves a smudgy look to the boards. Frankly, I still prefer a positive photo etch approach since I don't run into the etch resist problem. From a cost standpoint, however, the press&peel film is still cheaper than buying photosensitive boards.
This stuff is pretty much IDENTICAL to glossy photographic paper. I get great results with $.20 per sheet "Kinkos" glossy photographic paper (any kind should work), You just have to iron it for a shorter period of time, and you have to soak the paper off. The actual "etch resist" in both products is the printer toner (which is basically powdered plastic), not the paper.
Indeed, you can use almost any kind of paper that you can run through your laser printer and get decent results after a short learning curve, but you have to SOAK the paper off, usually with some sort of mechanical agitation. This adds too much hassle and time. It also tends to dislodge some of the toner.
After I clean my board with a Scotch Brite pad, I put the Press N Peel on the board, sandwich it with some parchment paper and run it through my $5 laminator I got on Ebay. I cannot overemphasize how much better the results are using an old luggage tag laminator instead of an iron. I have the temp control turned up all the way and it shoots a board through in seconds. Consistency of temperature and pressure are critical - And impossible to achieve with an iron. I turn the board over and send it through again for good measure.
I wait for the board to cool for about thirty seconds, peel off the Press N Peel and I'm ready to etch (1 part Muratic acid to 2 parts plain, old Hydrogen Peroxide absolutely rocks!). I can do 8 mil traces with no problem and the material is thin enough that you can line up the two sides of a double sided board easily and tape two opposing sides together so you have a pcb "sandwich" that stays alligned. At least half of the boards I do are double-sided and I get consistently good results. PLENTY good for prototype and limited production work. If you need a bunch, don't mess with doing them yourself - Farm 'em out to China!
this transfer film is worth the money it works awesome and i just follow the instructions.
and i suggest u don't waste time using the "put pcb in echant and wait" method, instead take a cellulose sponge and saturate it with ferric chloride then rub the pcb then the copper will disapear after +-5 rubs. it takes 30 sec to etch!
Tips: (1) Clean the blank PCB with Brasso or a copper-pot cleaner -- an abrasive is not necessary. (2) Put a magazine under the PCB for thermal insulation. (3) Put one sheet of paper over the P&P and PCB. (4) Set the iron to Wool, then use an IR thermometer to adjust to about 280-290F. (5) Press fairly hard with the iron, slowly move it around and let the PCB heat-soak for a minute or two. Make sure you heat-soak the PCB edges and corners. (6) Use the IR therm to measure about 275F as you slide the iron away -- you're done. (7) Let cool a bit, then optionally put under running water. (8) Dry and carefully peel one corner away. (9) If part of the P&P is not stuck to the PCB you can probably fix it (step 3...). (10) Slowly peel away the P&P. (11) Use a solvent, NOT an abrasive, to remove the toner -- I like "Oops!" from Ace HW. (12) Drill thru-holes with a Dremel. (13) If you're not going to solder it immediately, paint the PCB with liquid solder-flux to prevent oxiditation of the Cu.
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