Single Sided Arduino Is A Great Introduction To PCB Etching

After you’ve taken the plunge and decided to learn how to etch your own circuit boards, you’ll quickly find even the simplest boards are still out of your grasp. This is due mostly to the two-layer nature of most PCBs, and turn making a homemade Arduino board an exercise in frustration and improving your vocabulary of four-letter words.

After looking around for an easy-to-manufacture single-sided Arduino board, [Johan] realized there weren’t many options for someone new to board etching. He created the Nanino, quite possibly the simplist Arduino compatible board that can be made in a kitchen sink.

Billing it as something between the Veroduino and the Diavolino, [Johan]’s board does away with all the complexities of true Arduinos by throwing out the USB interface and FTDI chip. A very small parts count makes the Nanino much less expensive to produce in quantity than even the official Arduino single sided board.

For an introduction to etching your own PCBs at home, we couldn’t think of a better first board. As an Arduino, you’re guaranteed to find some use for it and the ease of manufacture and low parts count makes it the perfect subject for your hackerspace’s next tutorial series.

20 thoughts on “Single Sided Arduino Is A Great Introduction To PCB Etching

    1. Yeah, I know. Usually that extra ground pin for the FTDI cable is not necessary. This allows you to choose if you want the extra pin or the hole (actually you can have both, but part of the pad will be cropped…)

      The track being on the edge is in order to maintain the original form factor and maximize the distance from the pads (makes it easier to etch). If you don’t mind a slightly bigger board – cut 1mm outside ;)

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