Etched enclosures

[noobamp]

to hexjibber:

Awesome job on that last box....super clean lines....

now, I also did the 50g naoh to 100g water ratio, but i still didn't get a really "strong/fast" reaction...it took~15 minutes to get the etch to deepen even a little (<1mm), and some of my lines came out really rough.  how do you keep the etchant from creeping into the lines?  Is there anything else you do during the etch to keep the lines really clean/tight?

[Hexjibber]

Jeez, that turned out great.  Tip of the hat on that one.

wow, nice work!

Awesome job on that last box....super clean lines....

now, I also did the 50g naoh to 100g water ratio, but i still didn't get a really "strong/fast" reaction...it took~15 minutes to get the etch to deepen even a little (<1mm), and some of my lines came out really rough.  how do you keep the etchant from creeping into the lines?  Is there anything else you do during the etch to keep the lines really clean/tight?

Thanks guys

With that last etch I dipped the box face down in the NaOH for about 4-5 mins, then took it out, rinsed with water and cleaned the etched parts with a paper towel to get out the 'gunk', I did this three times in total so max of 15 mins.

Also when the enclosure is in the acid I keep moving it around to agitate it, I find this is important.

I think another important factor is the graphic format of the design, I use Adobe Illustrator so all my designs are vector based which in general gives sharper lines than using things like bitmaps/rasterised graphics.

I hope that helps, let us know how you get on!

[Trippy Demon]

Thanx for all the tips Graham, I will try them out on my next etch!

[hylandren]

Yes, it's just mixed with water, I do an approx 50% solution, so 100ml of water and 50g of Caustic Soda. Be sure to only add Caustic to water and not the other way round, you get a more violent reaction otherwise. It will heat up when you mix the two together so be sure to do it in a sturdy plastic container and wear thick rubber gloves!

To reinforce and strengthen the resist mask, I use a lot of nail enamel. Is this caustic soda mix compatible with it?

[Hexjibber]

To reinforce and strengthen the resist mask, I use a lot of nail enamel. Is this caustic soda mix compatible with it?

Alas no unfortunately, the NaOH will eat straight through it, or at least it did when I tried it.

[ch1naski]

To reinforce and strengthen the resist mask, I use a lot of nail enamel. Is this caustic soda mix compatible with it?

Alas no unfortunately, the NaOH will eat straight through it, or at least it did when I tried it.

so, what is good besides toner for naoh? I've used industrial sharpies for ferric.....

[Jdansti]

Here's a quick and dirty way to take the plain sharpie a step further. I've started doing this on pedals for my own use when I don't care to do any fancy artwork. I found a micro engraver at Harbor Freight for about $8, and it uses two AA batteries.  I engrave the lettering and the  fill it in with a sharpie. It's no where as nice as the etches on this thread, but it serves a purpose if you just want to slap some labels on a box.

[hylandren]

Alas no unfortunately, the NaOH will eat straight through it, or at least it did when I tried it.

Yeah, that what I was afraid of. Thanks nonetheless for a speedy and informed reply.
I guess (for now) I will stick with ferric Chloride.

[deadastronaut]

@john:

if you have a laser toner printer just iron on the toner, without all the etching/chemicals faff....toner is pretty hardy stuff..

this was just toner ironed on...no etch, peel off while still just warm...comes off cleanly..

[ch1naski]

@john:

if you have a laser toner printer just iron on the toner, without all the etching/chemicals faff....toner is pretty hardy stuff..

this was just toner ironed on...no etch, peel off while still just warm...comes off cleanly..

astro, what paper did you use that came off so cleanly?

[Jdansti]

Great point Rob!  I can definitely iron better than I can engrave! Mrs. Danna has trained me well.

[deadastronaut]

^ me too . i have my own iron now

i used tesco's photo glossy 150 gsm..

i used the same 'just toner' no etch on this too...but i clearcoated this as well..

[ch1naski]

Tesco, huh.... Must be a British thing

[bluebunny]

Welcome to DIYironing.com.  I think I see a "Pictures (irons)" thread appearing anytime now...   

(OK, I admit it - I also do all my own ironing...)

[therealfindo]

^ me too . i have my own iron now

Do you have a schemo and build report for it? 

[tubegeek]

Preliminary info for another iron report: I pulled an iron from the trash a few weeks ago. I have been using it for pedal purposes ever since, and it's a good thing because this way I don't get toner and other gook on my wife's iron.

I guess I could post a photo of mine, too.

[bluebunny]

OK, here goes - iron pr0n:



And apologies in advance -- NSFW:

  ...this one's erect.  

[deadastronaut]

mine is like the blue one 4th from left.. my missus got sick of me nicking her iron, so she bought a fancy one for erm...ironing.

and gave me the ld one..now i can goo it up and not worry  

the one on the right is just too custom looking for its purpose.

talking of household crap, i 'm currently reparing my b..... hoover..

[bluebunny]

We'll be swapping knitting patterns next...   

[amptramp]

Then you fill the water tank in the iron with etchant and after the toner is on good and solid, hit steam and get an instant etch.    It would not be a good idea to fill your wife's iron with ferric chloride, so get your own.

Hey, somebody was going to come up with that idea eventually!