Etcher

Justin Presson

Justin Presson

Well-Known Member
Hey guys, I'm ordering a stencil from Ernie so now I need an etcher. I was thinking of getting the Atlas mini etcher. Any thing good or bad? Seems like it would do all I need it to the one thing I might need is a better pad set up but I really don't know since I have never used one.
 
Hey Justin, I know you read my thread about my experience building Ernie's etcher. I sincerely believe you can do it if you try. Even if you have to buy a $10 soldering iron you can build it for $80-$90. It may not be the money buy I can tell you there was a lot of personal satisfaction in doing this. If you want, I will guide you through the process either by phone or here on KD. To start just print Ernie's parts list and go to the best Radio Shack in your area. They have every thing on the list even though the first three items on the list Ernie lists another vendor. Buy what's on the list plus a little extra Red/Black wire and a cheep soldering iron and you will have everything you need. After you buy it let's talk.

Wallace
 
Justin, Wallace is right Ernie's etcher is very easy to build and gives an excellent job. All parts are found at radio shack and your shop. Give her a try and you will have the satisfaction knowing its ins and outs.
 
All right fellas if your willing to help me out then... let's do this!
I will get the parts bought and post back up here when i have everything


Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
 
I work with a bunch of aircraft electronics techs so I am going to see what I can get them to come up with for a cheap system. If I can figure out something, I will post a WIP. It should be simple,
 
Justin, sorry to leave you hanging - Drs appt.

Buy a small spool of 18 gauge, stranded, 2 conductor, red and black speaker wire. You are only going to need about 3'-4' of wire. 2'+ for the alligator clips and short lengths for connections inside the box.

Wallace
 
Power Supply

I didn't buy anything from Rio Grande. I simply printed the list from Ernie's web site and bought everything except the hand piece Items from Radio shack. I didn't buy the hand piece items because I used Q-tips and salt water (saves a bunch of money and works good).

Wallace
 
Justin:

When you get everything bought bring it home and unwrap every part. Print a copy of Ernie's schematic diagram and lay out your parts on the diagram and post a picture of it. There are a couple of danger points in getting everything laid out right.

Wallace
 
FWIW...I used these same plans and just made my own hand piece. I used a 2 1/2" length of oak 1x2 with a hole drilled lengthwise down the center. I ran my conductor through that and soldered it to a piece of stainless steel and I used double sided tape to attach the steel to the oak. I originally just used felt from the craft store with salt water on the hand piece but have since bought etcher pads and solution from Tracy. While the regular felt and salt water works my results are much cleaner with the deep etch pads and the solution.
 
I did it!!!! First all thanks to wmhammond and Freds edge for pushing me to do it. I got all the parts at radio shack plus a soldering iron kit and total was $79.54 plus they had a deal and got a $10 mail in rebate thing. The soldering was slow at first until I got the hang of it.
Very rewarding to make it my self and it works!!!
I kind of rednecked me a hand pad not sure how long it will work or if anyone sees a problem it might cause let me know.
Here are some pictures.
du9e6yqu.jpg

u3uzyrad.jpg

etube9uz.jpg

e7ugu8et.jpg

ejumy9ug.jpg

yry8yduv.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top