the best way to cut mobos?

[Kyo]

I tried searching because I am almost positive this has come up before, but I didn't find anything, so;

What is the best way to cut motherboard? Be it of psone screens, ataris, super nintendos, anything. What I've done is slit it a little with a knife or other utensil, and then break it off. Sometimes, just break it off. However, this leaves fairly messy cuts and can cause accidents (as in ruining a board). I see all these clean cuts, and I want to know yer secrets! What do you use? A saw? A dremel? Some secret other utensil?
I hear using a dremel will cause dust which you should not inhale to fly around everywhere, so I'm kind of resistant to try.

[hailrazer]

Yea Dremels are messy but do the job perfectly.

Most of the time I just use snips. I will score it with a utility knife if I need to be more precise.

[Jaruff]

The Dremel works perfectly. If you're worried about any particles, invest in a pack of dispensable respirators. They're cheap and easy to find, especially with the H1N1 craze.

[JariV]

A paper cutting machine.

[collinE]

Kyo?

[Kyo]

Hi.

[collinE]

VERY good to have you back. And I'll concur, dremel for areas that don't need to be precise and utility knife for other cuts. Make sure to cut from both sides if using a utility knife. If you try to snap it after going so far on only one side, it may crack in a line you don't want.

[Kyo]

Thanks. Yeah, I've had my outtime, now it's time to catch up. I can't believe I still haven't finished that atari.

The good news is that I now have big funds available to use high-end materials. 's good to see you all as well.

[Jaruff]

I'm going to make another suggestion to you:

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/8792/ ... ipped.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I know a guy with the original Nibbler (which is also available on their website). It takes a while to use (due to the small cuts) but it is VERY precise. Intended for metal but works great with Plexi, plastic, and other materials.

[collinE]

question about the nibbler or any kind of snips: wouldn't it just crack the board? or cut it and then you couldn't make another cut because the board doesn't flex and make room for the next cut?

[Jaruff]

I've never used one on a circuit board but have used one on more delicate material (thin Aluminum, for example). I've never had an issue like that. You would definably want to try it out on a "throwaway" board to make sure it could make the cut before going to the real thing, but I don't see why it wouldn't work. If it can cut through metal, it should be able to slice through a board with no problems.

[Kyo]

I'm going to make another suggestion to you:

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/8792/ ... ipped.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I know a guy with the original Nibbler (which is also available on their website). It takes a while to use (due to the small cuts) but it is VERY precise. Intended for metal but works great with Plexi, plastic, and other materials.

I bought one of those from ebay germany (well, a normal nibbler), and I do have to say it does a very good job. Due to the nature in which it does the work it may not be recommendable to be used on boards that have components near the cutting line on both sides of the board, but other than that it does a fantastic job. picture below.

[collinE]

Ah, I see. I thought they worked like scissors with two moving blades. Thats kinda cool.

[Erlex]

Wow looks like a nice tool. I would prefer that over a Dremel. One question though, how long did it take you to make that incision?

[Kyo]

not long at all. It's very easy to use. Obviously not as fast as other tools, but not really time consuming either