Progress on the City Point Model Railroad layout has been stalled for quite some time while I figured out the best way to etch a PCB that I want to use for the switch control panel. I have etched many PCBs in the past, but this one is much larger than the small boards that I have etched in the past and didn’t have a large enough tank or enough etchant solution. Sure, I could have just purchased a suitable tank, but I really didn’t want to add to much to the clutter that seems to add up around here.

Finally I gave in and went to Walmart and purchased a large flat bottomed storage tub. This new tub would be large enough to hold the etchant and PCB while etching. However, I still didn’t have enough etchant to fill the tub high enough to cover the PCB. Yesterday, I figured out that if I cut the edges off of the cover, which had a large flat bottomed depression in the middle, that the cover of the tub might work better and require less etchant. As it turns out, all I had to do, was to pour warm ferric chloride etchant onto the PCB and roll it around a bit, catching any run off in the tub. After about a half dozen passes, the PCB was etched. This was much easier to accomplish than I had expected.

The result is far from my best work, but it will have to do.

The switches and connectors will be mounted on the reverse side of the PCB along with the graphics, which will be covered by a transparency that should help prevent wear and improve the look. I think these toggle switches will make selecting a route very intuitive. It also removes the need to add LEDs to indicate the selected route.

I need to print off a colored copy of the artwork before I frame it. Once framed, I’ll mount it on the fascia of the layout. After it’s mounted, wiring to the switch machines should be very straight forward.