This looks great! I've ordered stencils and do 3D printing... kicking myself for not thinking of it.
On the other hand, it gave me a great idea. What if you could 3D print the solder paste right onto the PCB using a tool that swaps out the hot end?
On the other hand, it gave me a great idea. What if you could 3D print the solder paste right onto the PCB using a tool that swaps out the hot end?
Also for 3D printing solder paste, this technique is called solder jet printing. But it isn’t very popular in the industry (despite being less wasteful) due to it being slower than stencil solder printing.
Laser etching plasticized Mylar (anti-static plastic bags electronics get shipped in) worked well too; because there’s a metal grid embedded in the plastic so you vaporize plastic but small features hold together.
When I manually try to squeeze solder paste from a syringe it often doesn't stick on the board (unless I preheat it but that is more cumbersome if there are components on the flip side of the board).