Favourite parts with off-label uses?

On Thu, 9 Apr 2020 09:20:49 +1000, Clifford Heath <no.spam@please.net>
wrote:

>I had excellent success with toner transfer, handling 0.6mm pin-pitch 
>parts easily, when I was using my ancient HP LJ6L. That finally died, 
>and the replacement HP2055DN produces a porous checker-plate that's 
>visible only under magnification. I haven't worked out how to stop it 
>doing that, but the etchant gets through the tiny gaps, even if I use 
>the toner transfer foil. Perhaps I'll have another go at it, I've only 
>tried etching once (printing many times, but only one seemed good enough 
>to etch.

Methinks you mean the HP P2055DN printer.  Here are the setting
involved in adjusting the print density and resolution.

1.  Resolution:  Set it to "ProRes 1200" for highest quality.  If it
starts to fill in component holes, back it off to "Fast Res 1200".

2.  RET:  Resolution Enhancement Technology.  I don't recall exactly
what this does, but try toggling it to see what effect it has.

3.  Print Density:  Higher numbers are denser or darker.  Lower
numbers are less dense and lighter.  I think higher is what you want.

4.  Econo Mode:  Save toner but produces "thin" characters.  Turn it
off.

5.  Try switching between PCL5c and Postscript.  Each has its own
"smoothing" algorithm which might affect print density.  I suspect PS
will be smoother, but incredibly slow to print.

Good luck.

-- 
Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D    http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann     AE6KS    831-336-2558

On 9/4/20 11:56 am, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
> On Thu, 9 Apr 2020 09:20:49 +1000, Clifford Heath <no.spam@please.net>
> wrote:
> 
>> I had excellent success with toner transfer, handling 0.6mm pin-pitch
>> parts easily, when I was using my ancient HP LJ6L. That finally died,
>> and the replacement HP2055DN produces a porous checker-plate that's
>> visible only under magnification. I haven't worked out how to stop it
>> doing that, but the etchant gets through the tiny gaps, even if I use
>> the toner transfer foil. Perhaps I'll have another go at it, I've only
>> tried etching once (printing many times, but only one seemed good enough
>> to etch.
> 
> Methinks you mean the HP P2055DN printer.  Here are the setting
> involved in adjusting the print density and resolution.
> 
> 1.  Resolution:  Set it to "ProRes 1200" for highest quality.  If it
> starts to fill in component holes, back it off to "Fast Res 1200".
> 
> 2.  RET:  Resolution Enhancement Technology.  I don't recall exactly
> what this does, but try toggling it to see what effect it has.
> 
> 3.  Print Density:  Higher numbers are denser or darker.  Lower
> numbers are less dense and lighter.  I think higher is what you want.
> 
> 4.  Econo Mode:  Save toner but produces "thin" characters.  Turn it
> off.
> 
> 5.  Try switching between PCL5c and Postscript.  Each has its own
> "smoothing" algorithm which might affect print density.  I suspect PS
> will be smoother, but incredibly slow to print.

Jeff,

Many thanks for that input. Pretty sure I've been through all the 
options previously - definitely Print Density, Econo Mode and Resolution 
Enhancement. I think ProRes1200 but cannot recall for sure.

I can't see how to switch between PS and PCL5c (using the Mac OSX print 
dialog to print a PDF).

In addition to a PCB, I had produced a document with a grey-scale 
rectangle to check the printer, and spent most of a day playing with 
settings in Kicad, OSX and the printer to get, at the end, a 
disappointing result.

Kicad users beware: Print and Plot are completely different output 
modules with very different quality results.

It could be the after-market toner, of course. A genuine HP cartridge is 
$152 ($280 for high yield), compared to $19 ($25) for after-market. 
Guess which I chose? Maybe I should try a different cheap cartridge, or 
take a USB stick to some place where I can try it with genuine toner.

Clifford Heath.

On Thu, 9 Apr 2020 12:49:31 +1000, Clifford Heath <no.spam@please.net>
wrote:

>On 9/4/20 11:56 am, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
>> On Thu, 9 Apr 2020 09:20:49 +1000, Clifford Heath <no.spam@please.net>
>> wrote:
>> 
>>> I had excellent success with toner transfer, handling 0.6mm pin-pitch
>>> parts easily, when I was using my ancient HP LJ6L. That finally died,
>>> and the replacement HP2055DN produces a porous checker-plate that's
>>> visible only under magnification. I haven't worked out how to stop it
>>> doing that, but the etchant gets through the tiny gaps, even if I use
>>> the toner transfer foil. Perhaps I'll have another go at it, I've only
>>> tried etching once (printing many times, but only one seemed good enough
>>> to etch.
>> 
>> Methinks you mean the HP P2055DN printer.  Here are the setting
>> involved in adjusting the print density and resolution.
>> 
>> 1.  Resolution:  Set it to "ProRes 1200" for highest quality.  If it
>> starts to fill in component holes, back it off to "Fast Res 1200".
>> 
>> 2.  RET:  Resolution Enhancement Technology.  I don't recall exactly
>> what this does, but try toggling it to see what effect it has.
>> 
>> 3.  Print Density:  Higher numbers are denser or darker.  Lower
>> numbers are less dense and lighter.  I think higher is what you want.
>> 
>> 4.  Econo Mode:  Save toner but produces "thin" characters.  Turn it
>> off.
>> 
>> 5.  Try switching between PCL5c and Postscript.  Each has its own
>> "smoothing" algorithm which might affect print density.  I suspect PS
>> will be smoother, but incredibly slow to print.

>Many thanks for that input. Pretty sure I've been through all the 
>options previously - definitely Print Density, Econo Mode and Resolution 
>Enhancement. I think ProRes1200 but cannot recall for sure.

Two more for the list:

6.  The printer driver has a "type of paper" setting in the "Paper
Handling" menu.  I don't know what type of paper you're using but try
everything from glossy to sandpaper and various thickness.  When
experimenting, roll the printed page a little to check if the toner
has been properly fused to the paper.  The toner on shiny glossy paper
tends to fall off in large flakes.

7.  Run a test or demo page on the P2055DN from the printer and NOT
from the computah.  If the demo page doesn't have any "holes" in the
large black graphics areas, then the computah print driver is telling
the printer to put holes in those areas.  To print the demo page (not
the config pages), push the "Go" button when the "Ready" light is on
and nothing else is printing.

>I can't see how to switch between PS and PCL5c (using the Mac OSX print 
>dialog to print a PDF).

You'll probably need to install a 2nd printer driver in MacOS.  One
for PS and the other for PCL5c.  I could probably figure it out if I
had a MacOS machine handy.  However, I left my ancient MacBook at my
office, which is essentially inaccessible.  Sorry.

>In addition to a PCB, I had produced a document with a grey-scale 
>rectangle to check the printer, and spent most of a day playing with 
>settings in Kicad, OSX and the printer to get, at the end, a 
>disappointing result.

I'm curious.  What part of the resulting prints were disappointing?
Much of the print quality is in the toner cartridge, imaging drum, and
the fuser.  Mostly, the imaging drum.  If it's burnt, scored, uneven,
or otherwise deteriorated, no amount of adjusting the printer settings
is going to produce an even gray scale and high resolution print.

The P2055DN is not what I would consider a good printer. Mechanically,
they are difficult to take apart.  Electrically, I've seen a few
defective and intermittent (crappy soldering) formatter boards on the
similar P2015DN etc models.  It might be useful to borrow a different
printer and see if some of the problems disappear.

>Kicad users beware: Print and Plot are completely different output 
>modules with very different quality results.

Yup.  For the P2055DN, print means PCL5c or Postscript.  Plot HPGL
(actually HP-GL/2), which the P2055DN does not support.  Data sheet
at:
<http://www.i-print.com.hk/datasheet/LJ%20P2055.pdf>
  Languages and fonts: HP PCL6, HP PCL5c, HP postscript 
  level 3 emulation; automatic language switching;
  45 scalable TrueType fonts and 35 PostScript&#4294967295; fonts 

>It could be the after-market toner, of course. A genuine HP cartridge is 
>$152 ($280 for high yield), compared to $19 ($25) for after-market. 
>Guess which I chose?

NBC... Nothing But Cheapest.

>Maybe I should try a different cheap cartridge, or 
>take a USB stick to some place where I can try it with genuine toner.

I would try both a different cheap cart and a different printer.  The
original problem I was trying to address was "holes" in the printed
image visible with a microscope.  However, reading between your lines,
it seems that there might be other problems related to the printer.

-- 
Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D    http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann     AE6KS    831-336-2558

On 9/4/20 2:56 pm, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
> On Thu, 9 Apr 2020 12:49:31 +1000, Clifford Heath <no.spam@please.net>
> wrote:
> Two more for the list:
> 6.  The printer driver has a "type of paper" setting

I'll try that, but I doubt it will fix the symptoms I'm seeing.

> 7.  Run a test or demo page on the P2055DN from the printer and NOT
> from the computah.  If the demo page doesn't have any "holes"

See below.

>> I can't see how to switch between PS and PCL5c (using the Mac OSX print
>> dialog to print a PDF).
> You'll probably need to install a 2nd printer driver in MacOS.  One
> for PS and the other for PCL5c.

I don't recall having to install a first printer driver. Maybe I did and 
just can't recall, it was almost two years ago. Probably Apple automated it.

>> ... a disappointing result.
> I'm curious.  What part of the resulting prints were disappointing?

See <https://www.dropbox.com/s/wm87qcu2imydbja/HpPrint.png?dl=0>
Scanned at 1200DPI on a good Epson scanner, the upper band is part of 
the solid black banner on a test page, the lower section is from part of 
a PCB.

I can't see the checker-plate pattern in these ones (that might be the 
1200dpi setting), just the blotchiness.

Can't etch from it anyhow.

> Much of the print quality is in the toner cartridge, imaging drum, and
> the fuser.  Mostly, the imaging drum.

I suspect this drum.

> The P2055DN is not what I would consider a good printer.

As a user, I don't mind it, it does what I want... except for this, and 
I'm not blaming HP for that.

>> Kicad users beware: Print and Plot are completely different output
>> modules with very different quality results.
> 
> Yup.  For the P2055DN, print means PCL5c or Postscript.

No. These are Kicad actions that *both* produce PDF files - no printer 
in sight at that point.

<https://www.dropbox.com/s/53bova20c1vf9rs/KicadFileMenu.png?dl=0>

>> It could be the after-market toner, of course. A genuine HP cartridge is
>> $152 ($280 for high yield), compared to $19 ($25) for after-market.
>> Guess which I chose?
> 
> NBC... Nothing But Cheapest.

Hell, the whole printer was only $AU300, refurbished.

>> Maybe I should try a different cheap cartridge, or
>> take a USB stick to some place where I can try it with genuine toner.
> 
> I would try both a different cheap cart and a different printer.  The
> original problem I was trying to address was "holes" in the printed
> image visible with a microscope.  However, reading between your lines,
> it seems that there might be other problems related to the printer.

I suspect the drum. The whole thing with extended toner was only $AU50.
I'll be happy to spend more *if* I know it will fix the problem.

I had such good results with the ancient PH LJ6 and refilled print 
cartridges, so I hoped for better this time.

Clifford Heath.

On 09/04/2020 14:56, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
> The P2055DN is not what I would consider a good printer.

What is the best old HP printer? Prerequisite : Must be old enough to 
have no DRM in the cartridges, and accept straight postscript, i.e. 
before the era where the printer itself became loss-making bait purely 
designed to force users to install gigabytes of "printer driver" mostly 
composed of spyware, malware, bitcoin miners and advertising platforms?

My LJ4 from 1992 is working fine except that I am really struggling to 
find replacement cartridges that have not decayed from old age, and I 
have not yet got around to figuring out how to fix the wiper blades in 
them. I'll probably eventually get around to learning to do that, but it 
would be nice to have a backup printer. Also, I'd quite like a printer 
that can do double sided.

The other noise source used in wideband jammers was a 931 PMT illuminated by a 4 Watt fluorescent lamp via an iris.

 Having seen what happens when a student at work uses too much gain or too much laser excitation on a confocal microscope, I can understand and believe in that configuration. 

My old RSGB handbook 
shows festoon lamps and HV rectifier vacuum tubes as noise sources. Evidently Sylvania made a small "end cap" diode designed to match into a coaxial line at one time. 


Steve

On Wednesday, April 8, 2020 at 7:01:28 PM UTC-4, Clifford Heath wrote:
> On 9/4/20 12:34 am, George Herold wrote:
> > On Wednesday, April 8, 2020 at 4:31:41 AM UTC-4, Clifford Heath wrote:
> >> On 8/4/20 1:51 pm, Clifford Heath wrote:
> >> Ok with 12V, 2.6mA through the BFR93A's b-e, it zeners at 5.8V.
> >>
> >> Two stages of amplification is possibly too much - the noise is
> >> assymetrical around 0V, see this scope photo:
> >> <https://www.dropbox.com/s/bmjnhm988160zjc/NoiseScope%20BFR93A%202.5mA%202xERA3.jpg?dl=0>
> >>
> >> I guess I need to reduce gain somewhat?
> > Hi Cliff, I'm not at all a HF noise guy.
> > (So listen to Gerhard and not me .:^)
> > But the non-symmetry is typical.  You might want to look at the
> > signal as a function of the bias current. That is your 'best' knob.
> 
> Oh, good to know, it didn't seem right that the ERA-3's could be 
> producing this on overload. it makes sens that it's typical zener behaviour.
> 
> >> I haven't investigated the spectrum yet.
> > How fast a 'scope do you have?  Have you tried triggering on the
> > noise (pulses)  With a DSO you can average the pulses/ noise peaks
> > and get a pseudo-spectrum... at least a guess at the max freq.
> 
> 500MHz Tek 7904, with all the nice plug-in's :). No, I haven't tried 
> triggering on it. But the noise looks almost the same regardless of the 
> timebase, so that's a good sign.
OK, it's kinda fun to look at the AC behavior of zeners as a function of 
current.  There were some nice long threads here about that back in the 
90's??  (Before my time here, but I read the posts with interest... 
there's also a nice article by McKay (sp?) at bell labs.  
Hmm searching SED for { Zener-noise (current) }  gets a lot of hits.
and some thread about 'Zener diode oscillation' in '97.  but I couldn't 
get google to find it for me.    

Oh this article,
https://journals.aps.org/pr/abstract/10.1103/PhysRev.94.877

George H. 
> 
> But I also have a HackRF and I'm not ashamed to use it as a spectrum 
> analyser.
> 
> Clifford Heath.

On Wed, 8 Apr 2020 16:39:04 -0700 (PDT), dagmargoodboat@yahoo.com
wrote:

>On Wednesday, April 8, 2020 at 7:20:56 PM UTC-4, Clifford Heath wrote:
>> On 8/4/20 10:22 pm, Gerhard Hoffmann wrote:
>> > Am 08.04.20 um 05:51 schrieb Clifford Heath:
>> >> On 8/4/20 12:39 pm, Gerhard Hoffmann wrote:
>> >>> Getting closer to saturation
>> >>> than 20 dB will damage the crest ratio / noise statistics.
>> >> Right. Not sure what that will do to the spectrum though?
>> > 
>> > No idea. But a customer of mine had some problems with the
>> > autocorrelation of pseudo-noise for ranging purposes. The measured > S-curve did not look so triangle-like as it was supposed to be.
>> 
>> We'll see how the resistor noise looks. I'm just worried that much 
>> amplification will show the noise of the first ERA3, or power supply or 
>> ambient noise that I haven't filtered or screened out.
>> 
>> >> I'm using 0805 resistors but not series inductors, for now. Will that 
>> >> affect flatness (rather than just lose some gain)?
>> > 
>> > Pure resistance from high VCC is probably easier for the beginning.
>> > Use smaller R in series, it's a matter of C over the resistor vs. C from
>> > resistor to GND. You get predictability and spend VCC.
>> 
>> I could easily put a tiny wire loop inductor in series after the R, at 
>> risk of coupling to the next stage and singing. That should help at GHz.
>> 
>> > I had quite good success with home etching, it helps during the lock-down.
>> 
>> I had excellent success with toner transfer, handling 0.6mm pin-pitch 
>> parts easily, when I was using my ancient HP LJ6L. That finally died, 
>> and the replacement HP2055DN produces a porous checker-plate that's 
>> visible only under magnification. I haven't worked out how to stop it 
>> doing that, but the etchant gets through the tiny gaps, even if I use 
>> the toner transfer foil. Perhaps I'll have another go at it, I've only 
>> tried etching once (printing many times, but only one seemed good enough 
>> to etch.
>
>I haven't been able to get toner transfer working since I changed
>toner carts. But I've dabbled with two promising variations.
>
>1) If you lacquer-coat the PCB *then* transfer the toner, the
>lacquer fills in the toner's pores.  The lacquer itself, meanwhile,
>can be easily removed with alcohol, but the toner's pores seem to
>stay filled.
>
>The toner image is printed on the paper you peel off the back of
>adhesive labels, or in my case, backing peeled off adhesive
>shelf-liner paper from the one-dollar store.
>
>2) A variation of the above is to spray the lacquer, then transfer
>the toner almost immediately, before the lacquer dries. The lacquer
>itself grabs the toner.
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dpCi9kgpuw
>
>3) A third method is to zap the toner with acetone/alcohol mix to
>make the toner tacky, then stick it to the board. That always
>smears the traces when I try it. "Cold Toner Transfer"
>e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVhSCEPINpM
>
>Cheers,
>James Arthur

If I can't Dremel copperclad, I lay out a 4-layer board and order it
quick-turn. All that homebrew PCB stuff is messy and tedious, and you
wind up with low-res boards with no gold plate, no solder mask, no
planes, no plated vias, and no silk. And a lot of drilling.



-- 

John Larkin         Highland Technology, Inc

Science teaches us to doubt.

  Claude Bernard
  

On Thursday, April 9, 2020 at 10:53:35 AM UTC-4, jla...@highlandsniptechnology.com wrote:
> On Wed, 8 Apr 2020 16:39:04 -0700 (PDT), dagmargoodboat@yahoo.com
> wrote:
> 
> >On Wednesday, April 8, 2020 at 7:20:56 PM UTC-4, Clifford Heath wrote:
> >> On 8/4/20 10:22 pm, Gerhard Hoffmann wrote:
> >> > Am 08.04.20 um 05:51 schrieb Clifford Heath:
> >> >> On 8/4/20 12:39 pm, Gerhard Hoffmann wrote:
> >> >>> Getting closer to saturation
> >> >>> than 20 dB will damage the crest ratio / noise statistics.
> >> >> Right. Not sure what that will do to the spectrum though?
> >> > 
> >> > No idea. But a customer of mine had some problems with the
> >> > autocorrelation of pseudo-noise for ranging purposes. The measured > S-curve did not look so triangle-like as it was supposed to be.
> >> 
> >> We'll see how the resistor noise looks. I'm just worried that much 
> >> amplification will show the noise of the first ERA3, or power supply or 
> >> ambient noise that I haven't filtered or screened out.
> >> 
> >> >> I'm using 0805 resistors but not series inductors, for now. Will that 
> >> >> affect flatness (rather than just lose some gain)?
> >> > 
> >> > Pure resistance from high VCC is probably easier for the beginning.
> >> > Use smaller R in series, it's a matter of C over the resistor vs. C from
> >> > resistor to GND. You get predictability and spend VCC.
> >> 
> >> I could easily put a tiny wire loop inductor in series after the R, at 
> >> risk of coupling to the next stage and singing. That should help at GHz.
> >> 
> >> > I had quite good success with home etching, it helps during the lock-down.
> >> 
> >> I had excellent success with toner transfer, handling 0.6mm pin-pitch 
> >> parts easily, when I was using my ancient HP LJ6L. That finally died, 
> >> and the replacement HP2055DN produces a porous checker-plate that's 
> >> visible only under magnification. I haven't worked out how to stop it 
> >> doing that, but the etchant gets through the tiny gaps, even if I use 
> >> the toner transfer foil. Perhaps I'll have another go at it, I've only 
> >> tried etching once (printing many times, but only one seemed good enough 
> >> to etch.
> >
> >I haven't been able to get toner transfer working since I changed
> >toner carts. But I've dabbled with two promising variations.
> >
> >1) If you lacquer-coat the PCB *then* transfer the toner, the
> >lacquer fills in the toner's pores.  The lacquer itself, meanwhile,
> >can be easily removed with alcohol, but the toner's pores seem to
> >stay filled.
> >
> >The toner image is printed on the paper you peel off the back of
> >adhesive labels, or in my case, backing peeled off adhesive
> >shelf-liner paper from the one-dollar store.
> >
> >2) A variation of the above is to spray the lacquer, then transfer
> >the toner almost immediately, before the lacquer dries. The lacquer
> >itself grabs the toner.
> >https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dpCi9kgpuw
> >
> >3) A third method is to zap the toner with acetone/alcohol mix to
> >make the toner tacky, then stick it to the board. That always
> >smears the traces when I try it. "Cold Toner Transfer"
> >e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVhSCEPINpM
>
> If I can't Dremel copperclad, I lay out a 4-layer board and order it
> quick-turn. All that homebrew PCB stuff is messy and tedious, and you
> wind up with low-res boards with no gold plate, no solder mask, no
> planes, no plated vias, and no silk. And a lot of drilling.

It's not that bad, really, and sometimes it's handier than waiting.

Since toner transfer turned fickle I've mostly Dremel'd too.  But while
toner transfer was working it was a lot faster than Dremeling, with
much better resolution, and it was easy to make two or three on a panel.

With surface mount these days I don't drill at all, mostly.  A few holes
to access the ground side, at most.

How do you make holes?  I use an OLD Dremel drill stand that keeps the
Dremel fixed & raises and lowers the bed. There's no wobble in it.
Doesn't break carbide drill bits.  Magic.

It makes a huge difference drilling when drilling is trivial and quick.

Don't use the new Dremel drill presses for this, or you'll snap one
bit per hole. On the plus side, I use the broken bits for manual
board Dremeling, making fine cuts and traces. They're the bees' knees.

Cheers,
James

On Thu, 9 Apr 2020 10:27:56 -0700 (PDT), dagmargoodboat@yahoo.com
wrote:

>On Thursday, April 9, 2020 at 10:53:35 AM UTC-4, jla...@highlandsniptechnology.com wrote:
>> On Wed, 8 Apr 2020 16:39:04 -0700 (PDT), dagmargoodboat@yahoo.com
>> wrote:
>> 
>> >On Wednesday, April 8, 2020 at 7:20:56 PM UTC-4, Clifford Heath wrote:
>> >> On 8/4/20 10:22 pm, Gerhard Hoffmann wrote:
>> >> > Am 08.04.20 um 05:51 schrieb Clifford Heath:
>> >> >> On 8/4/20 12:39 pm, Gerhard Hoffmann wrote:
>> >> >>> Getting closer to saturation
>> >> >>> than 20 dB will damage the crest ratio / noise statistics.
>> >> >> Right. Not sure what that will do to the spectrum though?
>> >> > 
>> >> > No idea. But a customer of mine had some problems with the
>> >> > autocorrelation of pseudo-noise for ranging purposes. The measured > S-curve did not look so triangle-like as it was supposed to be.
>> >> 
>> >> We'll see how the resistor noise looks. I'm just worried that much 
>> >> amplification will show the noise of the first ERA3, or power supply or 
>> >> ambient noise that I haven't filtered or screened out.
>> >> 
>> >> >> I'm using 0805 resistors but not series inductors, for now. Will that 
>> >> >> affect flatness (rather than just lose some gain)?
>> >> > 
>> >> > Pure resistance from high VCC is probably easier for the beginning.
>> >> > Use smaller R in series, it's a matter of C over the resistor vs. C from
>> >> > resistor to GND. You get predictability and spend VCC.
>> >> 
>> >> I could easily put a tiny wire loop inductor in series after the R, at 
>> >> risk of coupling to the next stage and singing. That should help at GHz.
>> >> 
>> >> > I had quite good success with home etching, it helps during the lock-down.
>> >> 
>> >> I had excellent success with toner transfer, handling 0.6mm pin-pitch 
>> >> parts easily, when I was using my ancient HP LJ6L. That finally died, 
>> >> and the replacement HP2055DN produces a porous checker-plate that's 
>> >> visible only under magnification. I haven't worked out how to stop it 
>> >> doing that, but the etchant gets through the tiny gaps, even if I use 
>> >> the toner transfer foil. Perhaps I'll have another go at it, I've only 
>> >> tried etching once (printing many times, but only one seemed good enough 
>> >> to etch.
>> >
>> >I haven't been able to get toner transfer working since I changed
>> >toner carts. But I've dabbled with two promising variations.
>> >
>> >1) If you lacquer-coat the PCB *then* transfer the toner, the
>> >lacquer fills in the toner's pores.  The lacquer itself, meanwhile,
>> >can be easily removed with alcohol, but the toner's pores seem to
>> >stay filled.
>> >
>> >The toner image is printed on the paper you peel off the back of
>> >adhesive labels, or in my case, backing peeled off adhesive
>> >shelf-liner paper from the one-dollar store.
>> >
>> >2) A variation of the above is to spray the lacquer, then transfer
>> >the toner almost immediately, before the lacquer dries. The lacquer
>> >itself grabs the toner.
>> >https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dpCi9kgpuw
>> >
>> >3) A third method is to zap the toner with acetone/alcohol mix to
>> >make the toner tacky, then stick it to the board. That always
>> >smears the traces when I try it. "Cold Toner Transfer"
>> >e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVhSCEPINpM
>>
>> If I can't Dremel copperclad, I lay out a 4-layer board and order it
>> quick-turn. All that homebrew PCB stuff is messy and tedious, and you
>> wind up with low-res boards with no gold plate, no solder mask, no
>> planes, no plated vias, and no silk. And a lot of drilling.
>
>It's not that bad, really, and sometimes it's handier than waiting.
>
>Since toner transfer turned fickle I've mostly Dremel'd too.  But while
>toner transfer was working it was a lot faster than Dremeling, with
>much better resolution, and it was easy to make two or three on a panel.
>
>With surface mount these days I don't drill at all, mostly.  A few holes
>to access the ground side, at most.
>
>How do you make holes?  I use an OLD Dremel drill stand that keeps the
>Dremel fixed & raises and lowers the bed. There's no wobble in it.
>Doesn't break carbide drill bits.  Magic.

The quick way is to jam the carbide dental-burr cutter into the board.
That will do for a quick via. The slow way is to walk down the wall to
the lab, where we have a drill press.

I like to use 2-56 hardware as places to alligator-clip to, power and
grounds. The holes for them work best with the drill press.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/yd19osiwz1z74s4/HV_Proto_2.JPG?raw=1


>
>It makes a huge difference drilling when drilling is trivial and quick.
>
>Don't use the new Dremel drill presses for this, or you'll snap one
>bit per hole. On the plus side, I use the broken bits for manual
>board Dremeling, making fine cuts and traces. They're the bees' knees.
>
>Cheers,
>James
-- 

John Larkin         Highland Technology, Inc
picosecond timing   precision measurement 

jlarkin att highlandtechnology dott com
http://www.highlandtechnology.com