What material do you use for your boards?

[Joe L]

Wow, I can't argue with other people's experience with FR4/G10 but I've never had a problem with it. I do have a table saw with plenty of "junk" blades that I use to cut mdf, aluminum and fiberglass and a dust collector that keeps my lungs clean. Also, I have a tabletop Delta drill press which makes even a dull bit cut quickly because of the pressure you can apply. When my bits get sluggish, I just touch them up with a small diamond impregnated stone I got for $10 at Harbor Freight. I do have some carbide bits, but I haven't had to sharpen them yet.

I just do one-offs so I have only done 10-15 boards so far. Maybe the other guys are doing production runs?

[jpfamps]

I use 3mm PTFE board.

Very easy to work. We machine it in our CNC engraver, but it's very easy to drill.

Very low DC leakage.

The only down side is that it not rigid like FR4, so requires more stand offs.

[Mick Bailey]

HSS bits vary quite a bit, as the composition of the steel varies. I have some old Dormer ones from the early 70s, which are good for three or four amp boards before they need a touch on the grinder. My dedicated PCB drilling machine takes solid carbide drills, but one tiny twitch and they easily snap. It's ex-ICL (International Computers) prototyping equipment and the original bits that it came with were straight fluted, not a helix, and ground with a very shallow angle.

I've tried re-profiling decent quality carbide-tipped masonry drills intended for impact use and they've proved to be extremely durable on FR4, but not as clean a hole as HSS. This doesn't matter with eyelets, though. Again, tungsten carbide varies in composition - some will take an edge much better than others.

The thing with glass-epoxy boards is.....glass. You can't get away from its abrasive nature.

[J M Fahey]

Wow, I can't argue with other people's experience with FR4/G10 but I've never had a problem with it. I do have a table saw with plenty of "junk" blades that I use to cut mdf, aluminum and fiberglass and a dust collector that keeps my lungs clean. Also, I have a tabletop Delta drill press which makes even a dull bit cut quickly because of the pressure you can apply. When my bits get sluggish, I just touch them up with a small diamond impregnated stone I got for $10 at Harbor Freight. I do have some carbide bits, but I haven't had to sharpen them yet.

I just do one-offs so I have only done 10-15 boards so far. Maybe the other guys are doing production runs?

[ATTACH=CONFIG]23766[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]23768[/ATTACH]

Can't talk about others, but I typically try to make boards in batches of 50 or thereabouts, with 60 to 120 holes each, so tool wear or breaking is one of my nightmares.

Here's one batch of 100W (SS) power amps.



Here I'm drilling them in stacks of 3 or 4 , to save time.

[Mick Bailey]

That's some serious building!

[J M Fahey]

Thanks.
*Used* to be, to the tune of 250 to 350 amps a year average, since 1969 ... but in the last 5 or 6 the Chinese onslaught has been felt, big way, and now I'm practically retired.

Back to working alone, basically for some "grayhairs" , but kids (98% of the market) don't know me and couldn't care less; they "know all" since they have read "everything" in the Net.

Oh well.

[Mick Bailey]

That's a really good point you make. I've noticed whenever I try to explain anything these days I get repeatedly challenged by "Yeah, but I read on the net...."

Then why bother asking me then?

Everyone is a 5 minute Google expert where barely informed ignorance trumps experience.

[big_teee]

That's a really good point you make. I've noticed whenever I try to explain anything these days I get repeatedly challenged by "Yeah, but I read on the net...."

Then why bother asking me then?

Everyone is a 5 minute Google expert where barely informed ignorance trumps experience.

Nothing is truer than in the pickup world.
Everyone wants to tell us how to make pickups.
Tell you what magnet does what, cause they are magnet swappers, and read it on the Internet!
Sorry if I did a Hijack!
T

[Mick Bailey]

I'm reminded of this quote;

"It’s not the critic that counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood.....” (Teddy Roosevelt)

[Zozobra]

I'm a PTFE convert. It's not as cheap as other materials but it is much easier to work with.

[Mick Bailey]

I'm a PTFE convert. It's not as cheap as other materials but it is much easier to work with.

Unless you're a parrot. I guess that's why not many parrots make amps

[Chuck H]

What Mick is referring to is a report of people's pet birds dying due to PTFE overheating on stovetops (Teflon skillets). Sorry I can't offer providence, but I do remember the news.

I don't build many amps. So take from this what you will... Back in about 1998 I bought two four by four sheets of FR4/G-10 at 1/16". I still have most of the second board and no problem so far. I HAVE used this material to replace old black, resin impregnated fiber board that had become conductive on three occasions. I'm not saying black = bad. I'm saying that the vintage material and vintage correct material in black should be avoided. Too much carbon in the composition. Problems. Take it for what it's worth. I have my MO. I don't trust the old, black paper boards or anyone who sells them. I've just seen too many problems. FR4/G-10 has NEVER given me any trouble. I prefere to create. I don't have time to abide trouble. The blach paper fiber crap has annoyed me enough for a lifetime.