Monday 5 September 2011

Foiling Nuggets




Grinding of the edges of the nuggets is not required for foiling. Roughing up the surface helps some adhesives hold better, but it depends on the viscosity of the adhesive and the degree of "roughness" of the surface. The adhesive on copper foil sticks better to a smooth than a rough surface. Try sticking it both to glass and to fine sandpaper and see which is easier to scrape off, for example. You will find the foil easily comes off the sandpaper, which is the texture of the surface you leave when grinding.
So you do not need to grind. You may need to wash them with soap and water to remove any oil that may be on the surface to ensure a good contact, however. Just put the foil on the clean nuggets. Then put a bunch of the foiled nuggets in a plastic container and shake around until all the nuggets are nicely burnished.
Check each one to ensure they are fully burnished to the nugget. Smooth any lifted parts of the foil with a fid and they are ready for soldering.

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