Accuracy of milling PCBs for surface mount?

[mactec54]

RomanLini
Quote
I expect any of those small machines should be good enough for this job provided you snug up the travels so they have no slop and likewise snug up the leadnuts.

This is what I'm saying, to take the slop out you would have to rebuild the machine, with different rails & ballscrews, you can't take the slop out with what they have been made with

[mike2768]

Here a machine that offers great accuracy and the fit and finish is second to none. See link below. I believe this machine start at $1000. The pictures for the second link is a PCB that was done with these machine, scroll down to Post #237

http://www.m5050.8k.com/

http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showth...=109757&page=9

[microcarve]

Fireball machines...as well as my new small machine...which is yet
un-named do not have "slop" in them.

It'd be pointless to spend countless hours making machine with "Slop"
in them.

Doing ANY sort of extra fine traces like these examples has every bit as much
to do with operator experience....which means choice of spindle, bits, software
settings, and leveling the table. Speed, Feed, Depth of cut.

My machines...and those I've made in the past will certainly position and well
have enough power and accuracy to make these examples. But no inexpensive
machine will do them without some trial & error and practice. The problem
with the whole thing is the soft buttery copper laminated to the rigid, brittle
and highly abrasive fiberglass.

That's 2 separate kinds of material being cut at the same time. Bits wear
at different rates depending on what they're cutting. That's why PCB bits
have to be changed so often....there are different levels of wear on it after
even a few uses.

The right bit angle....the right depth of cut....High Quality bits. All those
will make a big difference. Again...speeds, feeds...etc. etc...

Operator experience.

John

[mactec54]

logik

The other thing is to see what other people are using, to do the job that you want to achieve

http://www.voodooengineering.com/ind...y-cnc-pcb-mill