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Date: Mon, 19 Mar 2012 05:07:08 -0400
From: Dave McGuire <mcguire AT neurotica DOT com>
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To: geda-user AT delorie DOT com
Subject: Re: [geda-user] soldermask and edge connectors
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Reply-To: geda-user AT delorie DOT com

On 03/19/2012 04:52 AM, David Griffith wrote:
> On Mon, 19 Mar 2012, Dave McGuire wrote:
>
>> On 03/19/2012 04:30 AM, David Griffith wrote:
>>>>>>> I'm trying to make an edge connector footprint. First, I want to
>>>>>>> make sure that the soldermask is clear of the fingers except at the
>>>>>>> root where traces connect.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Do the connector footprint with two pads per finger. Reduce mask size
>>>>>> of one pad to zero vie the command line interface.
>>>>>
>>>>> I tried this and the result was soldermask going everywhere but the
>>>>> finger. I want the entire area where the fingers are clear of
>>>>> soldermask. I can do that by increasing the mask clearance, but I get
>>>>> scalloped edges.
>>>
>>> I think I garbled myself with this one. When I converted the buffer to
>>> an element, I then changed the pins from round to square. This cured the
>>> problem of scalloped edged of soldermask. I still have a problem with
>>> the need to cover part of the fingers with soldermask. There's also an
>>> issue with soldermask. Two fingers are longer than the rest, extending
>>> to the very edge of board whereas the other fingers are set back
>>> slightly. How can I make sure the empty area between the fingers and the
>>> edge is kept clear of soldermask?
>>
>> This is just an off-the-wall idea, but would it make sense to use an
>> unused layer, place a polygon on it, tell pcb to clear the soldermask
>> around that polygon, and then just don't use that layer for anything
>> else? Make it a sort of "soldermask keep-away layer". Then just don't
>> send that gerber file to fab.
>
> That looks like the ticket... Now how do I toggle soldermask clearing
> for a layer? The layer area of preferences doesn't seem to have anything
> applicable.

   I'm not sure off the top of my head...perhaps flags on the object 
itself?  I'm about to crash for the night; I recommend looking in the 
File Formats section of the PCB docs and see what flags and other values 
a polygon object has.

             -Dave

-- 
Dave McGuire, AK4HZ
New Kensington, PA