PCB Milling from Gerber files

Andrew -

I have tried this using DeskCNC - it will take Gerber & Excellon drill files and convert to G-code. You can download a time-limited version to evaluate.

You will find that milling fine tracks is a non-starter - you may decide you're better off with the photo etch route.

Regards, Tony

Why is that, Tony? Just curious, it's something I may want to try some day.

Cheers Tim

Tim Leech Dutton Dry-Dock

Traditional & Modern canal craft repairs

There's a limit to how fine a width you can mill with a tungsten router cutter, allowing for rough edges etc, while the photo-etch system which most PCB houses use (including us) will get you down past 5thou if the front end plotting is done with a laser and you expose the master with a decent focussed light onto the photo-resist.

Even with screen-printed photo-resist you can get close, but you are restricted by the mesh of the screen.

Peter

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Tony / Peter / Tim,

Thanks for the contributions - yes I suspect that I'll have to go down the optical route - or more probably see if I can find a company that can make them from my Gerber files - though I expect that's a very expensive option.

Regards,

Andrew Mawson

Considered Laser engraving Andrew? I don't know if it will work having never tried it on my Laser kit but could be worth looking at and is usually very inexpensive at most online traders.

cheers D

ps:The stencil cutter worked out fantastic. thanks :)

If you have the Gerber files, you should have two:

1) Tooling File (XXXXXXXX.tol 2) Plot File (XXXXXXXX.plt)

The file extensions are variable between programmes, but you can normally work out which is what. Both are normally plain ASCII with the first having the tool sizes against a table of T0 to TX

Second is a mass of X-Y plots and vectors. I can send you a few examples if you want.

You'll also need a drill file unless you are going to do that yourself.

Peter

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In article , Andrew Mawson writes

You could try

. They are pretty competitive on low quantities - they do a system where they automatically add your boards to those of other customers onto a single panel, which is cheaper for them to make than using a whole panel for your order. You pay just by area of your boards.

I've had some good results with them, but they aren't suitable for next day turnaround :-)

Matt

Matt,

Thanks for that pointer - it seems a very good contact - much appreciated

Andrew Mawson

Similarly:-

used a lot by people on the PIClist - not tried them myself.

I have had a couple of jobs done by RAK in the uk.

Fairly small, single sided boards. Worked out at about £20 per panel - i.e. about £4.00 per board. Fill in the form on their web page and you get a quote back by email.

For one-offs (single sided) I use a laser printer on to magazine paper, then iron on to the fr4 and etch... Geo

Professional PCB CNC machines: '

' Nice software for gerber & excellon to G code:

...and your relationship with this company is what, exactly?

Regards, Tony

Most people are using

nowadays for generating gcode. Does a nice job without any outlay ;)

According to me, what you are offering is more private case than general solution. You know that it can be used only in case of usage of Eagle. Important issue is that there is no rubout (only insulation), no cloning and many other useful features are missing.

Works fine for me ... from EasyPC ... I've spent enough money on all these 'power tools' over the years. And even EasyPC is going down the same path so I'll be dumping that soon. OH for KiCAD supporting gcode output ;)

Another refuge from rcgroups with only three posts to his name , all pushing software. Join Date: May 27, 2010.

Does big ears, sproutie whiskers and bridge spring to mind ?

.

What's a rabbit got to do with a bridge ?

I think you misunderstood - a dental bridge, to support those big front teeth?

Hey, I resemble that remark :-)

Mark Rand RTFM

Err...whassup doc?

Regards, Tony