SparkFun Electronics Stenciling

Materials by Bob Hunke & Linz Craig

 Why Stencil?

Smaller footprint means smaller board

Tight pitch components
Multiple boards at a time
Greater efficiency
Hidden connections
 Materials Needed

Stencil
Paste
Reflow capability
(oven, hot plate, iron)
Stencil frame
Squeegees/putty knife
Plastic vs. Metal Stencils
 Plastic vs. Metal Stencils
Cost
The metal stencils SFE gets are laser
etched & sold by the 15 x 15 sheet at
$125

Plastic stencils are $25 plus shipping per

board
 Plastic vs. Metal Stencils
Durability
The metal stencils SFE gets are good for
thousands of uses

Plastic stencils are good for 50 100

uses
 Plastic vs. Metal Stencils
Ease of Use
Make sure that your stencil extends over
the end of your frame or framing scrap
PCBs

Stiffer stencils are easier to pick up off of

the board, hence metal is easier to work
with
 Plastic vs. Metal Stencils
DIY
Cut your own plastic stencils fairly easily
Chemically etch your own metal stencils
not so easily
Machine cut your own stencil if youve got
the hardware and software (this is
becoming more and more common)
 Plastic vs. Metal Stencils
Quality of work

Metal stencils tend to make for better

paste placement
 Paste Types

Leaded vs. Lead free

Flux: Clean vs. no clean
Size: SFE uses Type 3, average solder
sphere of 36 microns
Five-ball rule for choosing type:
Smallest component footprint should be no
smaller than five times the width of average
solder sphere
 Type 3 Paste Cost

SFE, leaded: $9.95 for 50g

SFE, leaded Lead free, $63 Syringe style

Larger quantites: 500g $100 - $150

 Paste Storage and Handling

Store your paste in

a cool place such
as a refrigerator
For short term
storage room
temperature is
okay
 Applicators: Squeegees

Professional,
designed
specifically for
paste, machine
ready
Possible to
change blade
Expensive
($35 - $350)
 Applicators: Putty Knives

Inexpensive
($1 - $20)
Sharp edge (may
damage stencil)
More flex than
Squeegees
 Safety Concerns
Sharp edges
Lead, tin, silver,
copper
Eye irritant
Extreme temps
(re-flow)
Fiberglass shards
Occupational hazards
(Pasters Elbow)
 Setup

Frame your PCB

 Setup
Apply paste to your applicator evenly
 Setup
Align your
stencil

Apply steady
pressure on
one side

Make sure
the surface
is flat & even
 Apply the Paste
Proper grip 15 45 degrees Even
distribution

Cleanup 60 - 80 degrees Hold & lift off

 Populating
Tweezers and steady hands
Placement diagram (build sheet) to make
sure everything goes onto the right spot
Careful with polarized components
Start with lower profile components first
 Populating
Small margin of error (surface tension)
Dont smear the paste
Nudge with tweezers, dont push down
Reflow: Professional re-flow oven
Big and costs a lot ($1500 used on ebay
to $50,000 and up)
Reflow: Desktop re-flow unit
Small unit, IC controlled cooking
Mid range price ($250 to $800)
 Reflow: Hot plate
May yellow silk screen
May cook unevenly
You have to time it yourself
Cheap ($40)
 Reflow: Soldering Iron
Can be difficult to reach components
Useful for rework and PTH
Price ranges ($10 - $200)
 Reflow

Heat sinks, PTH and heat sensitive

components should be added after re-flow
 Paste Cleanup

Paste isnt cheap, save paste by scraping

it back into your container
Clean off your stencil and tools with water
or isopropyl alcohol
 Creating a PCB and Stencil
Layout Software
Eagle: www.cadsoftusa.com
Free trial download available, robust, what SFE uses

KiCad EDA: www.kicad.sourceforge.net

Free opensource schematic & PCB layout software

Fritzing: www.fritzing.org
Free educational virtual prototyping tool, only one
layer of traces available, great for beginners
 Creating a PCB and Stencil
Gerber File Formats
.GTP (top paste aka stencil file)
.GTO (top overlay aka white ink)
.GTS (top soldermask)
.GTL (top layer aka actual copper)
.GBL (bottom layer aka actual copper)
.GBO (bottom overlay aka white ink)
.GBS (bottom soldermask)
.TXT (drill aka any holes in the board)
 Creating a PCB and Stencil
or Make Your Own
Ferric Chloride etching:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Making-stencils-for-solder-paste-at-
home/
Laser Cutting:
http://www.zblob.com/solder_paste_stencil.html
Milling:
http://www.millpcbs.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=36

Photo etching is also a possibility

 More Info
Stencil manufacturers:
Ohararp.com, Soldermask.com, Pololu.com
Paste manufacturers:
Techni-tool.com, Kester.com, Zeph.com
Squeegee manufacturers:
Ntscope.com
PCB manufacturers:
BatchPCB, Gold Phoenix, Advanced Circuits, PCB
Universe
Questions?
 www.sparkfun.com
6175 Longbow Drive, Suite 200
Boulder, Colorado 80301