editing PCB pdf layouts, PLS help, Pics included

[Fndr8875]

ok im new to making my own pcbs, so far out of the ones ive etched the ones from tonepad have worked first time everytime, have sounded good etc.

seems like most etches i find are the reverse of tone pad, ie tonepad has just the traces and the rest of copper is removed  when etching. sites like effects.layout.blogspot have the traces but are surrounded by copper, and ive been having a hell of a time getting those to work bc its so easy to accidentally get solder bridges, and once you get one i havent found a way to get it clean with out messing another area up, used solder sucker and the braid stuff.




this one isnt from that site but i had 3/4ths of components in clean then i got to bottom where there are alot of components and things went to shit in about 5 min or less. makes its very disheartning when you put so much time into making a good pcb and then bam you got solder bridges and whole thing is screwed. I know or think that haveing the more copper provides for larger grounding plane so it should keep unwanted noise out.

Ive looked into solder masking and theres no way thats an option. Best thing i can figure is to use photoshop to remove all the surrounding black around traces and add back in black around grounds that are left blank. Does anyone know how this can be done in photoshop/illustrator any app, i pretty much have them all, gimp, inkscape whatever....

here is a tonepad RAT i build



i didnt think it was gonna work but it fired up first time, no noise, even with distortion turned all the way up there is not one ounce of ground noise. So till i get little better at soldering( also think not so good iron i have is a part of it) but need help editing the PDF files i have of PCBS to be left with just traces and not all that copper.

[GGBB]

I don't say this to be a jerk - but it will work out better in the long run if you spent the time practicing your soldering instead of editing the layout files. That RAT might work now, but may not in a year or so, or the first time you really need it to work. What I am getting at is, solder bridges are only one type of soldering problem. The first thing you need to work on is using way less solder - that will help a great deal with the solder bridges.

To edit PDFs - try Inkscape. Images - GIMP. Not all PDFs are the same, so you may or may not be able to do what you want.

[Fndr8875]

oh def i know i use to much solder. Think part of the prob is the iron i have, it seems inconsistent temp wise, so sometime it will just start flowing fast, and sometime its like damn i dont wanna burn pad, so im guilty of hitting the iron with little solder to get things flowing which results in to much solder. guess its time to break down and spend the 100 bucks on a weller or a hakko. Havent done it yet cus i just got serious about wanting to be able to prodce a all around quality pedal vs justdo whatever to get it working and shove it in enclosure. Guess ill hold off on things till i can come up with few hundred bucks to get good soldering station, some new enclosures and parts, and work on my patience. i realize this after looking at my post from earlier.

[davent]

Like Gord said, practice the soldering and much less solder.

Some peoples PDF's are locked and some aren't, i'll leave it to you to figure who's are which. If they're locked the only way i've figured out how to do what you want is to use Inkscape to redraw/trace a new board overtop the existing pdf/pcb. Choose a different colour and a different layer for your trace so you can see it as you draw then switch it to black after you've got everything you want.

If the pdf's unlocked, in Inkscape 'ungroup' the pdf and erase the bits you don't want, make any adjustments then 'group' the pcb and you should be set to print it.

dave

[Fndr8875]

also if you google pdfunlocker the first entry will very easily let you select pdf to unlock, and then gives you a link to unlocked pdf. I then was able to open and edit them in inkscape, photoshop, illustrator etc... Im learning these programs, now that adobe has the monthly plan that gives you access to all there apps i have a good friend who lets me use his account so i have access to some nice software. The vector pedal pack for illustrator is very cool, designed my enclosure and drilling template earlier, theres alot of good people who make awesome stuff for ppl for free, so thanks to all you guys.

oh about my soldering...

https://www.amazon.com/AGPtEK-Adjustable-Electric-Temperature-Soldering/dp/B00M1O9ZSG/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1475550461&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=agptek+sodlering+iron


this is what i currently have. actually have a couple of them due to a faulty second one i bought, and seller just said ill send you another one dont worry about sending damaged one back.

There are a ton of different manufactures of this iron that look exactly the same. The first one i got was AGPTEK branded, and seemed to work very nicely for about 6 months or so. The next one i bought had to be a different manufacture, any way i really would like to go ahead and get a soldering station but im pretty much all out of stock, pots, capacitors, 3pdt switches, jacks, sockets etc so for next pedal im gonna have to buy new iron, components etc so id like to spend less than 100 bucks on the iron.

Im looking at this one its got a lot of good reviews and i think it will work

https://www.amazon.com/Aoyue-Variable-Soldering-Station-Removable/dp/B00MCVCHJM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1475550832&sr=8-2&keywords=aoyue%2Bsoldering%2Bstation&th=1

if anyone has this one let me know your opinion

[ElectricDruid]

guess its time to break down and spend the 100 bucks on a weller or a hakko. Havent done it yet cus i just got serious about wanting to be able to prodce a all around quality pedal vs justdo whatever to get it working and shove it in enclosure.

You don't have to spend so much to get something quality. I used one of these for years:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Antex-XS25-Powered-Mains-Soldering/dp/B00862W052

Fairly cheap iron, but there are various tips available and it provides a solid temperature. My original Antex iron was bought in the 1980's, and back then was just called the "X25". Somewhere since then it gained an extra S and became the "XS25", but the fact they're still making the same product thirty years later tells you something.

Also one reason why professional boards are easier to solder is that they have a solder mask layer on the parts you *don't* want solder to stick to. Could you cover the ground plane areas somehow to prevent solder sticking to those bits? Even just colouring it in with a permanent marker might work. Just a thought - I haven't tried it.

HTH,
Tom