john@stiatl.UUCP (John DeArmond) (08/31/89)
vince@mplvax.EDU (Vince Pavlicek) writes: >In article <6684@stiatl.UUCP> john@stiatl.UUCP (John DeArmond) writes: > Last etcher we bought from Keppro (smallest one they make) >was over $600!!! Thru plating is tedious, chemically particular and >expensive unless you are doing a lot of boards. We do 10 to 30 double- >sided, non-plated-thru-hole prototypes a year and go outside for production. Expensive depends on the point of view, I guess. 600 bux is not that much to invest in either a commercial or serious hobby environment. I built my equipment after buying one Kepro etcher but it rarely gets used anymore. I wanted to stress your last point. With PC-based CAD, and automated production facilities, it's very hard to compete with the job shops. The fab shop I use has a BBS where I call in and upload my board file (native format, NOT gerber output). Typical cost for 48 hour turnaround on medium sized boards (<2000 holes) is in the 3-600 dollar range. That gets me 3 doublesided, tinplated, thruhole plated, silkscreened, and soldermasked boards. Not too shabby. I'd be hard-pressed to achieve that kind of precision at any cost in my shop. I still make an occasional board when only one is needed and it is too simple to justify the NRE costs at the fab shop. But that's getting rarer and rarer. The shop I use is Colt Technologies in Kansas. 913 888 1673. Usual disclaimers apply. John -- John De Armond, WD4OQC | Manual? ... What manual ?!? Sales Technologies, Inc. Atlanta, GA | This is Unix, My son, You ...!gatech!stiatl!john **I am the NRA** | just GOTTA Know!!!