Help with my enclosure etch??

[das234]

Inspired by pryde's Harbingers (and others) I decided to try my hand at etching. So, I etched a few PCBs and they came out fine.  I planned a nice etched enclosure for a simple mxr dist+ with a Randy Rhoads theme, got my graphics ready, printed, transferred, tried a couple sample etches, reversed the black and white in the picture to see if I liked it better and etched again.  I'm not getting what I want.  I'll attach the last photo of what I got to see if anyone has any suggestions.  I know there are myriad variables involved. 

A couple things I considered are the fact that my FC etchant had been previously used with copper, my laser printer didn't lay down enough toner and my design is just too detailed to get it right at tall.  Here's the photo:


Here's what it's supposed to look like:



I'm about done with this whole thing (at least for a while); I just want my polka dot Randy Rhoads dist+ done.   

[jimilee]

I'd probably reverse the image and try again if it's possible to sand it all down. Also it looks like it's not deep enough but that could be an optical illusion.

[Stomptown]

This is a pretty complex etch! My guess would be that the toner is the main issue here. I would find a better laser printer and try again. If in the US, FedEx office laser printers work great if you don't have access to another printer. Just make sue to print in black and white and set the black toner to max setting. Don't give up on this! You will be super happy when you get this method down.

[hoodoo]

I agree with Jimi on this one, i'd make the black bits white and the white bits black and give it a shot like that. That way there is far less material to remove from the box and you'll still end up with the same image. Have you tried running this over some wet and dry just to see how much of your image is actually there, you might be surprised, Matt.

[pryde]

@das234

As already said, this is a pretty extensive etch with ALOT of material being etched away. BUT, you still can get a better result than that so don't give up.

Did you download my recent etching tutorial? Give it a go and see what you end up with.

http://www.madbeanpedals.com/forum/index.php?topic=11078.0

[das234]

I agree with Jimi on this one, i'd make the black bits white and the white bits black and give it a shot like that. That way there is far less material to remove from the box and you'll still end up with the same image. Have you tried running this over some wet and dry just to see how much of your image is actually there, you might be surprised, Matt.

I originally tried a sample on the bottom plate with the black and white reversed.  It did seem to etch a little better but I wasn't sure I'd like how the picture in the middle looked so I flipped it.  The top picture is after a good amount of wet sanding to reveal what's underneath.  It's clear that the mask isn't masking completely so maybe a better printer/toner would do the trick. 

Those of you with more experience: do you always get the crusty, rusty-looking scale on the box when you etch?  It sure makes it hard to see your progress but I suspect it's normal and just has to get cleaned off every so often.

[das234]

@das234

As already said, this is a pretty extensive etch with ALOT of material being etched away. BUT, you still can get a better result than that so don't give up.

Did you download my recent etching tutorial? Give it a go and see what you end up with.

http://www.madbeanpedals.com/forum/index.php?topic=11078.0

Checked out the tutorial.  I know that I and many people like me really appreciate your hard work to teach us how to do this. 

[Stomptown]

Those of you with more experience: do you always get the crusty, rusty-looking scale on the box when you etch?  It sure makes it hard to see your progress but I suspect it's normal and just has to get cleaned off every so often.

This is totally normal!  I typically place the enclosure in etchant for about 30 seconds, then pull it out and scrub it with a toothbrush to remove the grimy rusty residue. I then dip the toothbrush in the etchant and continue to gently scrub the surface for a minute or so before placing it into a water bath. Then I return it to the etchant and repeat the whole process until I get a nice deep etch.

I should mention that I use PNP blue for most of my transfers. I recently tried using laser paper instead of PNP blue and the results were not as good (at least I haven't figured it out yet). I used the same printer from FedEx Office that I use with the PNP Blue and it did not adhere well enough to withstand the scrubbing. The end product looks cool but there is a lot more pitting than I normally get. All other things held constant I have found that PNP blue transfers adhere better and would recommend trying it out.

Obviously Pyrde and others have great results with paper as opposed to PNP blue so it is not out of the question. I am hoping to get some advice to figure it out and bring my cost down (PNP Blue is about $2 a sheet), but I just wanted to throw out this option as well, which may work better with your printer...

PS: I personally think a reverse image (although easier to etch) would look odd; like a photo negative. Just keep on trying til you get what you want!

[pryde]

Hey stomptown that's a good idea you shared about using a toothbrush to scrub off the crusty scale during an etch. I will try that.

I have never tried the PNP blue but from what I see/read it does seem to work the best overall.