Circuit Skills: Circuit Board Etching

[@MarzJonp]

I love Collin's Mannerisms and personality. Makes me feel welcomed.

[@christopherwells4768]

Couldn't have said it better, Yogi.

[@patrickcardon1643]

Isaac Asimov reincarnated :D

[@christopherwells4768]

Thanks for doing this, Collin. A coworker recommended I check this process out instead of soldering onto prototype boards, and this video has me excited to do it. You make it look much easier -- and fun -- than I expected. Rock on!

[@richardwalter9915]

Just watched this with my 9 year old son and we were both inspired! So cool! We are going to give it a go! Thanks my man, we loved this; beautifully explained with passion, care and simplicity. Many thanks for sharing! My son wants to give you this; 👍 Great work Colin! You have two new fans....

[@CodfishCatfish]

Your laid back approach is AWESOME. Your not stressed and simple direct explanation is just what newbies need. Your system is exactly how I make my boards and mine come out excellent every time. I skimp and use ferric chloride hexahydrate and caustic soda but I have been doing it for years and know the measurements. Also an etch tank with a fish tank bubbler and heater bring the etch time to under 8 minutes depending on copper thickness. Dry Film Solder mask is cheap and easy with a laminator.

[@schematica2]

So far I've enjoyed all the video's that I have viewed on this channel. I also am one of those that is almost petrified by the thought of making my own circuit boards. Thanks for giving me the inspiration too give it a try.

[@poffpoff1]

Excellent summary of one layer PWB etching! We are having a lab this week and had multiple lectures about this, along with extensive instructions, but this video really connected the dots. Thank you :)

[@DadGoneLive]

This is a very interesting piece. Thanks for posting this. I was always wondering how I can bypass the hassle of making my own but you seriously simplified the whole process. Thank you.

[@BlensonPaul]

I came here again just to give a thumbs up... nicely done , highly professional indeed..

[@rikachan9323]

+Blenson Paul hey ,if anyone else wants to learn about introduction to electronics pdf try Elumpa Circuits Expert Alchemist (do a search on google ) ? Ive heard some extraordinary things about it and my mate got amazing success with it.

[@coryheck610]

...and I thought it was some really drawn out process to do this! You made it look easy...thank you!

[@ajmvfr]

I just did this process following this video, and using the same products from Jameco. It worked perfect, and I got a great board. The only difference I found was my board had to sit in the developing solution for almost 30 minutes, I give this process a big thumbs up, it worked great.

[@jacobkantor3886]

this guy is my spirit animal

[@scitwi9164]

Aren't humans animals too? :q

[@Keeymoo]

actually there is a big debate about it so right now it is an opinion for now though

[@averagegeek3957]

+ko animations There is no debate.

[@trollobite1629]

@@crashthestash Well, I've asked my parrot to etch my pcb and so far he's just shit on it with a lot of squawking

[@zver711]

I'm sure I will never need this but the fact that it can be done at home is amazing. Kick ass!

[@joeredd3867]

I have been making pcb s for years. I made a rocker for the solutions, uv light box and using a Dremel drill on a flex cable. There are now new products and procedures that are really fascinating, I use a MacDraft Pro drawing program to create the positive circuit and print it out on an old hp 5000 printer to the transparency sheet. I like the idea of using two stacked prints to enhance the pattern. I sometimes use a heat lamp (150W lamp) over the etchant to warm it up. I made a vent hood with squirrel cage fan to blow fumes out. I am still experimenting with the photo resist sheets, (now on order) and using the hard to find photo resist in the spray can to try on my home made pcb spinner, that will be used in the hood. Sorry I went on here, but that about covers it. //... Joe

[@jimrichards3621]

"This board has got heart". Colin, you are the man. I love your uber geek style, great work man!!!!

[@MAKE]

Thanks so much!

[@ProfessorDukiDoo]

in 2014 electre-engeniering school in Požega, Croatia we draw the whole pcb with a permanent marker lol but it was some fun to do this in school :D

[@nialljamesbuckley]

best way to learn!

[@joeredd3867]

Yes, I've done that in the old days. Time consuming. Could not do that for the connections of today. 2017

[@LifeReDiscovery]

You are awesome! Look at the perfectly centered blueprint. Highly developed sense of art. Also, I like that you cut the unnecessary frames off getting to the point without wasting time. One of the best KZbinrs.

[@edgarmagalhaes18]

"(...) it's got heart! Something that those boards don't!" Ahahahahah You're the best! : D

[@DoctorX17]

He's a subtle comedic genus, hehe

[@KazKylheku]

Making my own PCB's was fun the first couple of times. It was much more fun when that mail arrived with a top notch, superbly manufactured rendition of my design. I still had all the fun of designing the circuit, and laying out the PCB. A factory with the right equipment did a top-notch job realizing it, for a cost that I could never achieve making a lower quality version myself. Many DIY-ers naively calculate cost by assuming their time is worth nothing, and gloss over quality differences.

[@eddebrock]

I have no idea what I just watched. But there was some shiny board there at the end.

[@kardelsharpeye1380]

eddebrock are you a nincompoop? I hope not.

[@thunderbolt997]

eddebrock great! thats the first step of learning

[@abdelrahmangamalmahdy]

eddebrock This is a homemade circuit board manufacturing process.. a board such as that's inside your own computer or PlayStation. After having done making the board, one can 'solder' electronic components on it. You can make your own radio station or a satellite receiver or whatever you want.

[@shivamshrivastava704]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@iProgramInCpp]

@@kardelsharpeye1380 whats a nincompoop?

[@JamesBrowningII]

That is the most bad ass video I've seen on the Make account in a while. Collin is awesome! Please! Please! Please! Do more videos with Collin!

[@lilliampumpernickel9916]

i made my first one today

[@davidharper4289]

Thank God for you. I have been trying to find a simple way of doing PCB's.....all seemed too hard, ...........and you've demonstrated a very easy solution. Thank you.

[@mendebil]

I always expose to sunlight on a sunny day. And it makes such a big difference! Why be stuck in a dark room with a light bulb when I can watch some birdies flying and look at the blue sky!

[@sr.d5126]

mendebil True my friend

[@blvck_mvgic]

UVs produced by sunlight aren't constant on the board, which means that you don't really know what the actual exposure time should be.

[@joeredd3867]

Sometimes it does not sun shine and need to practice when the sun doesn't shine.

[@alfhanahmed]

bcz it is 100% homemade.

[@DiegoSynth]

I followed this video, but instead of using a CFL bulb I used a halogen. I put the board after it in the developer, but it came out exactly as it was, like nothing happened. My board was sold as photosensitive, it came with the protective sticker, but never looked green or blue. Just copper color. Do you think only the lamp was the problem? After putting it into the developer I killed the photosensitive layer, right? So I cannot repeat it with a CFL and the same board? If I cannot: can I still use the board with marker / iron method? Thanks a lot in advance!

[@yagnikpandya7748]

you demonstrated great ! The precision, precaution and the way you showed off was brilliant. Thanks a lot.

[@emmanuelisanda1449]

I am making one right now for a home made drone. Wish me luck

[@the9tailsupersaiyan]

Emmanuel Essandah how did it go?

[@keitheowest8578]

Send me pic .

[@dilbo_swaggins3957]

Emmanuel Isanda any follow up?

[@jax2059]

@@dilbo_swaggins3957 Yeah he died... Drone to the face

[@firmman4505]

anything?

[@mcomeau3341]

I liked this video a lot, put my mind at ease. The guy was your "quintessential electronics geek", but he was smart, and cool about the process. Highly recommend to my friends already. Thanks for the info!

[@devinogden]

I've found that a laser engraver is fantastic for making custom pcb. Rather than having to rely on those light sensitive boards, simply paint the whole board black, print your circuit out with the laser engraver removing the unwanted paint i.e. the copper that is to be removed. Then continue with Ferric Chloride.

[@caseismographmissouri]

What type of black paint, if I may ask? Thank you.

[@stronzio666]

Today after many years I finally tried and got it right at first try. Highly recommended!

[@TRTHEPRODUCER]

this video really helped me thank you

[@uDaniels]

what did you make?

[@TRTHEPRODUCER]

@@uDaniels it was for college coursework lol

[@watergroovin]

Thanks for the kind words. I have finally perfected the process all the way to solder mask. It comes form a conglomerate of others work and tweaking it. In a nutshell, there are papers out there saturated with silicone oil that toner prints to with no problem (assuming the write paper) and little pressure initially with the board hot and flat and clean. It transfers perfectly then once stuck in the right place, in my heat laminator2X. Cooled and done right it peals right off and reuse the sheet.

[@Taaazu]

you look like mad scientist .. hehe keep up the good work ..... very educatational

[@koncertLive]

I now believe you have to sacrifice hair line to make a quality video, excellent blend of score, lighting, information, scripting, and topic. Well played sir!

[@robertrandom3450]

In my opinion, harmful etchants (like ferric choride) are un-nessisary to develop board. They require special disposal, are environmentally un-cool, and require special safety measures. I use white vinegar, salt, and hydrogen peroxide to etch boards. Results are always perfect. These chemicals are far more benign than methods suggested above.

[@tyslaa3185]

thanks, totally works, and no special disposals

[@Darkl0ud_Productions]

Except you are making Cupric Chloride which is harmful anyways... Also when you add salt, and see those fumes coming off? Thats Chlorine Gas.... A Chemical weapon. So be careful.

[@puchu9507]

now there you go, you saved some and killed more including yourself

[@joeredd3867]

How long does it take to do that. Sounds interesting though. I don't know what the recipe for that.

[@matthewsantiago7113]

Warren Brown, where is the chloride coming from in this approach? From the board itself?

[@HikikomoriDev]

and this... this is why I dropped out of college. I couldn't handle being baby sat without learning anyr... here, I just learned something new and awesome, and a dense amount of documentation online makes my days brighter and more knowledgeable.

[@garydunken7934]

4:47 I could smell the chemicals in my nose :) Does FeCl3 smell?

[@HisVirusness]

It's fun watching these pre-JLCPCB at-home-circuit videos.

[@paulwyleciol3459]

06:10 sorry, but you forgot to tell the people, that if they get it in their eyes, they have dark brown eyes (where it was white before!) from that on ... - anyway thanks for posting this nice video!

[@dd884e5d8a]

The world needs to see Collin more often

[@jtsiomb]

Ferric chloride is horrible, and 20 minutes wait time is a joke. I prefer a mix of hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide. If it isn't smoking, add more hydrogen peroxide to taste. Etching is done in 2-3 minutes if you stir a bit, and the leftover HCl and cupric chloride in the container can be reused a number of times, by adding some more hydrogen peroxide when it seems to lose its potency.

[@padmad3k63]

+John Tsiombikas You're right. I had been etching PCB's for a longtime with sodium persulfate and it took almost 30 mins. That stuff is also pretty expensive, it had been a longtime since I done an electronic project. I will start with this hobby again soon but with better equipment. Better solderstation, using silkscreening to create professional PCB's. I'll also make a DIY etching tank with plexiglass. It's very cheap to make one yourself instead of buying one.

[@mellowb1rd]

Table salt speeds up the reaction and can pep it up if it starts to slow down.

[@jamespalmer9556]

John Tsiombikas have u lost ur mind ? Ur crazy

[@sludgiebear]

Why is a twenty minute wait time a "joke"? I'm just considering that the board(s) could be used for years, so spending twenty to thirty minutes during this step of the manufacturing seems a reasonable investment - especially when compared to the many days or weeks it cane take for a third party manufacturer to produce the board(s) for you. I also feel that the satisfaction for creating your own circuit board(s) should out-weigh the whole process. If, however, you wish to mass produce your board(s), then certainly try other processes in order to reduce manufacturing times. I feel the bigger picture here is that anyone can create their own circuit boards, and even their own circuit components, at a low cost. What does it really matter if we need to wait minutes or hours to do so? The process of creating your own components, and thus the feeling of accomplishment, should - in my view - balance the effort required.

[@briancarlson6035]

Note: Don't put too much hydrogen peroxide in the solution! Using too much hydrogen peroxide can result in the production of chlorine gas, which can be deadly if not well ventilated!

[@Kini_the_Fox]

10 years later, the music hasn’t aged very well, but still just as helpful. Thank you!

[@TheNextLevelGraphics]

I swear I seen you in Alvin and The Chipmunks

[@Monstacheeks]

Cool music, fun project, and enjoyable to learn the process! Thanks for Showin us how its done!

[@jojosolo521]

Make sure you neutralize the acid on the circuit board in a bath of Baking Soda and Water BEFORE you rinse the acid soaked board in the sink with cold water, otherwise the etching solution will destroy your house's drain pipes and enter the environment! D:

[@grownupemo]

Having worked as an electronics engineer where our PCBs were made on a production line, I'm keen to try this home method. Having watched many videos with people using laminators, I'm fairly sure this is going be a more sensible method.

[@andrewwaters2354]

he didn't say how to dispose of ferric chloride - please don't put it down the drain!

[@LPClef]

Andrew Waters how do you dispose responsibly?

[@mark22732]

Literally put it back in the bottle it came from. Most of the copper will settle as sludge. There's no need to dispose of it for a very long time.

[@Schindlabua]

Colin always makes the best stuff.

[@sarubinca]

An excellent tutorial. One suggestion: the very thin drill bits that I use -- 0.04" -- can easily "dance" away from the hole that are intended to be drilled, particularly on this very hard phenolic board. To limit this, I use a center punch in order to create a very shallow divot on the hole as a wide to guide the drill bit during early moments of drilling.

[@zthetha]

This is a really excellent vid! It is so well photographed and narrated that it is hard to believe it is not the work of a professional crew - ah - 'makemagazine'? Don't know who they are but they do a first class job. Am definitely gonna have a go at this even though I have zero background in science.

[@JandeBloois1952]

It's a long time aga I made a PCB. You explain it very well. My complimenten for this movie. Greetings, Jan, Netherlands.

[@davidjereb]

Collin, I recommend etching with Water + Muratic acid + Peroxide. It takes 20 seconds or so, compared to the 20 minutes of Ferrochloride. Just make sure you do it in a very well ventilated area, with a respiratory mask.

[@NikolajLepka]

I made plenty of etched circuit boards.. all of them were made in a brightly lit room, and all of them work perfectly fine.

[@ronettreker]

I remember in my first year of an electronics class we used nail polish as resist. We literally had to paint the pattern using the nail polish brush. Imprecise but did work fine for simple circuits and it was cheaper. When we moved to more advanced circuits we used toner transfer.

[@mcelfreshiii]

I would like to see a second video where this is board is assembled and used for whatever project you were making.

[@WisdomVendor]

That is just damn cool !!!! Made my first pcb in the mid 1980's with a radio shack pcb etching kit. It was a much simpler method, but needless to say, it didn't look nearly as good as yours. Thumbs up for the purple lab gloves.

[@jonivanart]

I remember using a permanent marker to draw the circuits when I was in High school to make my own and it sucked!! This is awesome! Thanks man!

[@yorelallison8942]

Very cool for a do it yourself construction of a printed circuit board, when you have all the materials need.

[@BentElectronics]

You Know it man!...Its all about the HEART and FEEL of the Board!!!..I Draw my Simple circuits out by Hand with Sharpie...This makes the CIrcuit 100% Hand Built!...

[@The3Ggy]

seen this video years ago an got me into etching found it again an by far the best video out on how to

[@sabledriver]

Great job on this process. I did this in High School Electronics forever ago, only we used fingernail polish for resist, with no photosensitive coating. Real caveman, but it works. Again, Excellent video.

[@tjean723]

Great video! I watched this video with my 12 year old son. It was very simple to understand. Thanks!

[@edwardholmes91]

Wow, I am really impressed at how you can use pre-sensitized board and a normal lamp. I have always used a UV box at school. I have looked at getting my own but it is so expensive!

[@AnthonyBrown-zl1no]

I have the photographic negative for making the pcb , but Im not sure how to start making the PCB yet, thanks for your video it was the best I have seen so far.

[@asherdavion]

Why is some people dislikes this video? This video is very helpful.

[@moncef0147]

this guy is the real genius in makemag

[@glaros0]

The wall in the background reminds me of my student room at the university of Essex North Towers. Great video, cheers!

[@mdofxds]

Nice tutorial on PCB etching! I use almost the same method except the photoresist type - I use "POSITIV" spray. Covering patterns with some oily liquid (e. g., glycerine) is another way to stick them together and to the board so no any frame or glass piece is needed. Also, 'drill-aid.ulp' Eagle script (included in distribution) is very handy when you use manual drilling. The script reduces hole diameters to a selected (small) value more suitable for drill centering.

[@JahanZeb1976]

Excellent work. Really helpful to beginners.

[@robotpickle]

Thanks for that! I've been doing strip-board forever, but I believe ...it is time.

[@ventureelect]

I use a special paper that has a rating of 100 pound. Just iron the toner onto the board and soak in warm water for 10 min and you have a board that is very close to factory level. This is a great video too.

[@Standbackforscience]

This earned you another channel subscriber.

[@SPFAR]

What I always use is regular A4 paper instead of transparent sheets. It'll block more light but, the print is very sharp and does not have holes. So no need to print it twice. You need a laser printer for that though. 4.5 minutes in UV light and you're done. You can also use a marker to draw your layout on the board. The marker paint will protect it while you are etching off the copper.

[@beardization]

really well put together and narrated, nicely done.

[@tlv1117]

Here's a trick for the etchant bath. Lots of people make very nice setups with temp. control, aerators, etc. For a basic but not too basic setup I like to use a muffin fan from an old computer. Break off a couple blades next to one another so it is unbalanced. Place it underneath your tank. I use my variable bench supply for adjustable power but an old wall-wart would do. Secure the tank by placing heavy items beside all 4 sides so it can't vibrate off! Heat it with an incandescent desk lamp.

[@subukai]

Nice explanation. Etching seems so simple now .

[@anthonydelarosa9367]

Thanks for the tips and procedures to do the etching.

[@GeorgeGeorge-xj2bc]

Depending from the photosensitive pcb in 5:17 the board sometimes needs to wiped with a kitchen paper to remove residues of photosensitive and after that washing with water,because the unvisible residues is the most important reason for the bad etching leaving shadows of copper in the board.

[@synthfreakify]

Awesome video, thanks for posting! Loved all of it except the dust mask used while drilling- you need a two-strap one that says "N95" on it, the one-strap masks are made from coffee filter material.

[@codyofga]

very handy tricks. printing two and using a sharpie to correct the smaller empties. good vid.

[@SirLovestain]

GOD BLESS YOU!!!!!! IT TOOK WAY TOO LONG FOR THIS VIDEO TO COME OUT. I love you. Oh and by the way you should of mentioned that you could by the photoresist dry film and copper clads for even cheaper on ebay. But thank you for the video, it was deeply needed. You guys show think about making a video on stepper motors.

[@wdtiger]

i love your videos Collin! Always great work.

[@michaeljacewicz4892]

You sure know what you are doing! Enjoyed your video!

[@RobPaige]

I'd love to see this as a kit on Maker shed.

[@sciencoking]

YESTERDAY i watched a video with collin and i thought "man, this guy is awesome, post more videos with him" ...so, thanks a lot ^^

[@MichelKiflen]

i like it when he shows us how to make electronic parts

[@daehr9399]

Love it! Quick, simple, and to the point. Thank you!

[@DIYerGuy]

Interesting video Collin. I've been down this route before. Your board came out very nicely. There is one additional step you could take which is tin-plating so that the copper traces don't oxidize. Solder masks are also possible but do take more work and effort. But all in all, your board came out very nicely and that's what matters. There were a few points in the video where the background music was a tad too loud, so you might want to tone it down a bit more for future vids... Thanks for your video! P.S: Drilling a small PCB is not too bothersome, but if you do larger boards, or multiples of a board boards, it can become tedious and time consuming... this is where a CNC machine that understands Gerber can make a huge difference, but not to mill away the copper to leave the board's traces (which is of course possible) but to use the Gerber Drill file from your CAD program to drill all the holes for you with greater precision. Admittedly a CNC is an investment, but if you're doing lots of boards it can make a difference.

[@Nutzietheclown]

Wow thats actually quiet amazing to watch! May the force be with you!

[@renekenshin6573]

True yea its very true indeed, it got heart because you made it yourself the same way i feel when i finished doing one of my own work. The satisfaction level is rewarding enough especially when you made it to work as intended :)

[@AxelTiger]

For those that dont know; the 'over head projector sheets' are called 'acetate sheets'

[@marcmody]

wawaweeeeeeeeeeeewaah....I learned more about circuit boards from this video then any of those complicated books! Hey man, can you post a video about how to make a miniature handheld EMP unit?

[@OllieSandcastle]

This is an excellent tutorial on this topic. I have shied away from etching my own boards due to my fears of having perilous chemicals around my house (I have to do most of my hobby stuff in my living room & kitchen) e.g ferric chloride and the like. Yes, using stripboards can be tricky, but the main hassle with these is soldering one up that was copied from a breadboard - and the breadboard test wasn't a proper test to begin with...Thanks for the info, anyway.

[@RavenCorvinus]

i had no idea this is how they were made. Thanks for the Video! :)

[@PuI2ePLaYaZ]

That looks like a good fun project to do.. Thank You for the instructions...

[@Logikbombmusik]

This is the most enlightening video I have ever seen yet on YT! Im a music producer looking to repair and maintain my own music equipment. Now, (Mind Expansion) I realize I dont have to send it to ANYONE to repair it. I can repair it down to the MotherBoard. Soldering or Duplicate the Circuit Board. VICIOUS! - Logikbomb (DC Producer) THX @makemagazine

[@ГеоргиХристов-г6р]

Thanks for this tutorial! This method is very professional and very expensive, also you can't store photoresist board or foil for long (6 months-1y and sensitivity decays). For amateur work I prefer direct transfer of toner by heat, with some retouch.

[@FrostfoxFilms]

This would be a fun project to do one day. Thank you for making it.

[@Varta4Life]

Nice vid! :) You can use a toner spray that spreads the ink so it covers holes that your printer hasn't drawn. or you can use nitrocellulose thinner. take a thin box, put the mask in and pour some nitrocellulose thinner on the box cover. The alcohol fumes will also spread the ink evenly along the printed mask.

[@soulshinobi]

Two notes: if the picture frame uses plastic instead of glass it could be polycarbonate, which blocks UV light. Also, nail polish remover's primary ingredient is acetone, for those concerned with purity.

[@edward17829991]

the photo frame part is really a good idea!

[@muhammadsohail4393]

thanks now maybe i can start my plane project because i don't have to wait for 3 WEEKS for my circuit board to come so thank you very very much