Re: [EE] PCB Manufacturers.
Dwayne Reid <[email protected]>
| Newsgroups | gmane.comp.hardware.microcontrollers.pic |
|---|---|
| Message-ID | <[email protected]> |
Hi there, David. I'm in Canada - my results may not jive with where you are. We currently use: JLCPCB KINGCREDIE JLCPCB gets by far the majority of our work. But Linda at KingCredie is a joy to work with and I still do all of the flex circuit boards we build with them. They are somewhat more expensive than JLCPCB but the help Linda have give to us in the past has to count for something. JLCPCB offers several different ship options: DHL, UPS, FedEx. FedEx is alway the most expensive, so we don't use them. DHL and UPS seem to see-saw back and forth as to who has the better ship price. I just go with whoever is the least expensive at the time of order. Be aware that ordering a SMT stencil results in two packages. This approximately doubles the cost of shipping as compared to just getting the bare boards. But the stencils are always perfect and it is far simpler to just accept the extra cost of shipping. I used to send RFQ's to several dozen different PCB suppliers. I quit doing that when I found that I was mostly ordering from JLCPCB. It looks like you are in the UK. Maybe check out PCBWay. Also - maybe check out the current version of KiCAD for your layouts and schematics. Although I have dabbled with it, I still stay with my old standbys: EE Designer II and CADint. But I would be all over KiCAD if I wasn't so heavily invested in my current tools. dwayne At 10:56 AM 2/22/2025, David C Brown wrote: >I know that this has been done to death but there might be new ibformation. > >Since retiring I have been building circuits on stripboard which is never >very satisfactory. > >So I have resurrected the copy of PROTEL which fell into my cardboard box >when I required and designed proper circuit boards. It is convenient that >the schematic editor, Tinycad, can output Protel nelists. > >Now I need a cheap manufacturer. In the first instance I will put price >above quality since, in my experience, first attempts usually contain some >flaw that necessitates a redesign.. > >Also can anyone recommend a free Gerber viewer now that GCPreview is no >longer free? >__________________________________________ >David C Brown -- Dwayne Reid <[email protected]> Trinity Electronics Systems Ltd Edmonton, AB, CANADA 780-489-3199 voice 780-487-6397 fax 888-489-3199 Toll Free www.trinity-electronics.com Custom Electronics Design and Manufacturing