We call this unmodified, GBC brand laminator our "Toner Image Applicator". With our 'DirectEtch' process, we're not actually laminating anything, rather, we're using it as a controlled envelope of TIME, PRESSURE and HEAT... the three basics of manipulating how to make toner sticky without melting it. This particular model called the "H-220" at $129.95 is the lowest cost device from GBC that works absolutely perfectly for our application.
We are a direct distributor for this particular unit directly from GBC. We selected this unit after a thorough review of all laminators available in the USA.
Only the GBC brand provided the level of pressure and heat necessary to give you years of performance making quality PCB's time after time plus GBC warrants this unit for 1 full year against failure!
What makes GBC the ONLY laminator manufacturer that works with our process is because of the way they redesigned the ordinary pouch laminator heaters. The ordinary laminator uses two parallel heating plates after the rollers to seal the pouch. GBC mounted two curved heaters, one above the top roller and
one below the bottom roller and radiate heat into the neoprene coated rollers kind of like a rotisserie chicken cooker!
The term 'Pouch' by the way simply means you use pre-made envelopes instead of two large rolls of laminating film that would come together to seal the item (shown here) which is used only for the large, expensive, high volume "hot roller" laminators. These $2,500+ units have heaters INSIDE the rollers. A much more expensive way to heat rollers but necessary to keep up with high volume production.
THE IRON vs. LAMINATOR:
The objective of a laminator over using a household iron is to have a controlled environment of heat & pressure to cause the toner image printed on the transfer paper to re-fuse in perfect detail to the circuit board being passed through the unit. Every board will come out with a perfectly fused image which is what differentiates it from using the household iron.
COMPARED TO THE HOUSEHOLD IRON...
an iron can be made to work but it's up to the operator to calibrate the iron (and maintain calibration) as well as being able to remember how much pressure to apply to effect a good toner fusing. The main problem with the iron is that you don't really know for sure that you've attained the proper temperature and pressure ratio until the board has been put in the water bath. Only then, after the paper has floated away (and parts of the toner image) does one know for sure if the transfer was done properly. It'll always be a surprise! If there is a failure of any part of a trace, one normally wipes off the entire toner image with acetone and starts all over again. The "TIA" (or laminator) concept is worth it's weight in gold for the serious hobbyist through engineers.
WILL OUR COMPETITOR PRODUCTS WORK?
We get a few calls a month from users of Teckniks "Press-n-Peel/Blue" who want a better option than to purchase their 12" T-Shirt Press at $339, plus heavy shipping charges. You might want to consider using our TIA fuser unit but the picture isn't all rosey! Due to the thickness of the very heavy carrier used on their product, it's possible to get enough heat through their heavy Mylar carrier down to the toner and copper contact point in one pass the same asyou can with our transfer medium. To get a proper fuse of your circuit image you will have to insert the board almost a half-dozen times to eventually get enough heat and pressure to transfer the image successfully. Also, with the same Toner Transfer Paper AND laminator along with a few inexpensive support items, you can now make real "dry-transfer" graphics for your panels, enclosures... anything, in full color, metallic or even white using our newest product "DecalPRO". Same transfer paper... same TIA laminator device. Something unfortunately "Press-n-Peel/Blue" will never be able to do for you.
ABOUT PC LAMINATE THICKNESS...
Our system process and technique is a balancing act between the objectives of trying to make the best, fastest and lowest cost printed circuit boards for single and double-sided requirements. In doing so it resulted in a limitations we had to work around. One is the thicknesses of the PC laminate being used and the
maximum thickness the pouch laminators can accept. With the advent of "surface mount" (SMT), .032" thick board has become (or we should say, is becoming) the new standard over the older .064" thick boards. The good news is that the thicker board laminate can be inserted into the TIA and physically can pass through without damage, however, they need a bit of help from the user due to the very high torque load placed on the motor/geartrain. The user merely has to apply a small "push" then a "pull" at the end of it's travel to prevent the motor from stalling. The .032" board was adopted as our standard. All of our board is .032" thick with 1/2oz copper for very fast etching. (The faster the etch the lower the "undercutting". The lower the undercutting, the smaller your traces can be!) This is how you can make .005" traces on our 1/2 copper that you can't with 1oz!)
AVAILABILITY OF OUR "TIA" (GBC BRAND "PERSONAL" MODEL) AT RETAIL STORES:
This "Personal" model is normally not found in stores other than a few very large "mass marketers" like K-Mart, Staples, Target, etc. however, not all of these mass-marketers elect to stock this particular unit from GBC. For most of these mass-marketers, carrying an inexpensive laminator doesn't necessarily require stocking the best working laminator made, thus, many of the "mass marketers" will stock inferior models since quality isn't the issue at that price point - basic functionality is and there are a lot of other brands that can fill that requirement. This problem has in fact resulted in unavailability of this unique model at your local stores. This is why we elected to carry this model exclusively. Good news for our overseas customers. This exact model is available through out all of Europe and "down under" by the model name of "H-65". This infers the 220v wired version.
Because of lack of unavailability in the USA, we have been allowed to buy directly from GBC for this particular unit. We also supply all of our dealers in the USA with this unit. It's simply the best laminator giving you the greatest "bang for the buck" for a reliable solution. The unit also comes with a full year "replacement" limited warranty! We've been selling this model for years with great success. It's a very dependable unit. It's also important to point out here that any brand of GBC laminator will work for our purposes here, so if you already have a GBC unit that has been purchased recently, there is no need to buy another one. It'll work just fine!
GBC 9" Wide
"H-220" Model