How to build a contact copier for PCB
This tutorial will show you how to build a contact copier for PCB.
Required material:
Electrical parts:
- 4 neon tubes 8W Ultraviolet light (Hitachi F8T5)
- 4 ballasts for 8W neon tubes
- 4 Starter for 8W neon tubes
- 4 Starter holders
- 8 Columns for 8W neon tubes
- several electric wire of different colors, if possible (at least 6 meters in total).
- a panel switch with 220V lighting
- a connector for panel-type male power supply
Mechanical parts:
- a 3 mm aluminum plate. 20 cm. X 29 cm.
- a 5 mm aluminum plate. 24 cm. X 34 cm.
- a wooden box ready from "Wood Point" 36 X 27 X 14 cm.
- 1 piece of 3 mm.20 cm black neoprene. X 30 cm.
- 4 Columns, 5 cm. each
- 1 5 mm glass. 20 cm. X 30 cm. Frosted at the edges
- a wood from frames 2 cm. X 3 cm.
- various screws
and here we are at the practical construction.
Cover:
First mount the neon holders on the 3 mm thick aluminum plate.
The holders must be mounted at a distance of 3.5 cm. one from the other and the 2 lateral ones 5 cm apart. approximately from the edge. Once assembled you have to carry out the electrical wiring of the wires, leaving the wires protruding from the plate for at least 20 cm. Once the wires have been connected, you can mount 2 pieces of wood on the lid of the box in order to install the aluminum plate on it and screw the screws to the lid. Mount the starter holders in the remaining space and connect the relative wires (small trick: you should make the wiring with the disassembled plate leaving the threads slightly abundant, the excess wire will hide it under the aluminum plate) the cover is finished.
Box:
Drill the necessary holes for the switch and the power connector and insert them into the box.
Now mount the 4 ballasts on the bottom of the box, since the bottom is very thin to put a piece of plywood under the ballasts and connect the wires coming from the cover following the wiring diagram. Connect the ballasts to the switch and to the power connector.
Drill 4 holes at the 4 corners of the 5 mm aluminum plate and install the 4 columns
Put the plate on top of the ballasts, if you have respected my measurements the wires coming from the cover pass through it, otherwise you can do a little adjustment.
Put the neoprene on the aluminum plate.
Put the glass on top of the neoprene.
Completed!
Now you can try to engrave your PCB circuit, put the pre-sensitized copper plate on the neoprene, put the master on it (right I recommend :-)), put on the master and plate the glass checking that the master has not moved.
Close the lid, turn the switch on for a minute and a half, switch off, open, take out the PCB and put it in the solution of caustic soda for development. After a couple of minutes you will see your design appear magically on the PCB.
WARNING!
The times I mentioned above may not be the right ones for you, so do some tests, perhaps with a design of parallel lines from thin to thicker.
