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Circuit/Trace cutting

Circuit/Trace cutting

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I have a trace about 0.060' wide and I need to place a chip... - Mar 14, 2002 by

Yer correctamuno!!! A 4 oz trace will pick-up both you and ... - Mar 14, 2002 by davef

I've been looking at buying a trace repair kit. The one I'm... - Mar 14, 2002 by Stephen

Assuming, you have nothing on the other board side, I would ... - Mar 15, 2002 by Stefan Witte

Check out ... - Mar 15, 2002 by Clark K.

First, you're correct. Trace repair and rework is not for t... - Mar 16, 2002 by davef

At a previous employer we used a pneumatic dental type drill... - Mar 18, 2002 by Steve Thomas

Where can you purchase Dentist tooling? ... - Mar 18, 2002 by

I would shy away from a Dremel. They are great for a hobby,... - Mar 18, 2002 by

Chuck

#19142

Circuit/Trace cutting | 14 March, 2002

I have a trace about 0.060' wide and I need to place a chip resister on it. * What is the best tool to use to cut the trace without slipping and scratching other traces or masking around it?

I have used X-Acto #11,#16,#24 blades without success. the trace is also a power run so it may be about 4oz copper.

Thanks Chuck

This message was posted via the Electronics Forum @

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davef

#19143

Circuit/Trace cutting | 14 March, 2002

Yer correctamuno!!! A 4 oz trace will pick-up both you and your x-acto knife, throw both across the room, and then come over there a kick yer ... . Go to Wal-Mart and buy a Dremel Tool [ http://www.dremel.com/ ].

Do yer best not to breath the dust.

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Stephen

#19144

Circuit/Trace cutting | 14 March, 2002

I've been looking at buying a trace repair kit. The one I'm looking at includes some nifty little bits for a dremel or whatever. What I was wondering is, if someone is going to cut traces with a dremel, would you reccommend getting the stand for it. Also is the stand good for controlling just how far down you drill? I can just picture the wrong person trying the repair and getting the board back with a hole all the way through.

Stephen

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Stefan Witte

#19152

Circuit/Trace cutting | 15 March, 2002

Assuming, you have nothing on the other board side, I would drill a hole through the trace and board with a step drill and a drill press. If you adjust the depth control carefully the wider step of the drill scratches the surfaces of the trace to make two landing pads. The hole is covered with the chip resistor and nobody will notice the oops.

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Clark K.

#19154

Circuit/Trace cutting | 15 March, 2002

Check out

http://www.circuittechctr.com/index.htm

They have kits and training for making pcb mods. And no, I don't work for them. But they have saved my butt once or twice with handy repairs for damaged pcb's. Good luck!

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davef

#19163

Circuit/Trace cutting | 16 March, 2002

First, you're correct. Trace repair and rework is not for the faint of heart or novices.

Second, our "girls" prefer a dental drill type tool [Dremel Flexshaft], rather than the clumsy Dremel type from Wal-Mart. They also like a vice with a unversal ball thing that can be positioned accurately. They use a burr bit that is shaped a little like a head on a miller. So, it really doesn't remove material as a saw or a drill bit.

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Steve Thomas

#19166

Circuit/Trace cutting | 18 March, 2002

At a previous employer we used a pneumatic dental type drill with nice results. The 1/4" hose is much more flexible than a flex drive cable, there's no motor module on the work surface, and the foot pedal for the air a little more elegant than two-handing an on/off switch on the standard Dremel type. The only limitations were speed and the turbine exhaust ...it was either fast or off, and sometimes the exhaust would blow dust around if the operators waved it around too much.

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Chuck

#19167

Circuit/Trace cutting | 18 March, 2002

Where can you purchase Dentist tooling?

This message was posted via the Electronics Forum @

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John Z.

#19169

Circuit/Trace cutting | 18 March, 2002

I would shy away from a Dremel. They are great for a hobby, but produce too much spin off at the tip to be reliable. A micro-drill is the appropriate tool. The cheap way out would be tweezers scissors. That is if you can get under the trace.

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