Breadboards are great, but as the world moves more and more to having SMD as a standard, prototyping straight PCBs is becoming more common. If you’re mailing off to China for your PCBs, it’s shockingly quick for what it is, but a one-week turnaround is not “rapid prototyping”. [Stephen Hawes] has been on a quest on his YouTube channel for the ideal rapid-prototyping PCB solution, and he thinks he’s finally got it.

Now, if you’re only doing single-layer PCBs, this is a solved problem. You can mechanically mill, or laser cut, or chemically etch your way to PCB perfection, far faster than the Chinese fabs can get you a part. If you want a double-sided board, however, vias are both a pain in the keister to do yourself, and a rate-limiting step.

[Stephen Hawes] hit on the idea of buying a bulk set of PCBs from the usual vendors. The boards will be simple copper pours with vias in a grid with just a bit of etching. PCB Vendors are good at that, after all, and it’s not going to cost much more than raw copper. [Stephen] then uses the template of this “viagrid” board to lay out the circuit he’s prototyping, and it’s off to the races. Continue reading “Is This The Last PCB You’ll Ever Buy?” →