Design Rules

Manufacturing constraints for our hobbyist single-layer FR4 service. Design within these limits to ensure your board is produced correctly.

Quick Reference

Min Track Width 0.5 mm Rec: 0.6 mm+

Component Drill 0.9 mm Single size

Mounting Drill 3.0 mm Single size

Mask Clearance 0.5 mm From copper

Board Edge Gap 2.0 mm From all edges

Min Drill Pad 1.2 mm Diameter

Track Width

Min: 0.5 mm Rec: 0.6 mm+

The minimum manufacturable track width is 0.5 mm. Tracks narrower than this will not etch reliably and may open-circuit during production.

We strongly recommend keeping signal tracks at 0.6 mm or wider for high reliability. Use 0.5 mm only where space is absolutely critical and accept that yield may be lower.

Drill Sizes

0.9 mm Components 3.0 mm Mounting

We offer two fixed drill sizes for this hobbyist service — no custom drill diameters are available.

0.9 mm For component through-holes (resistors, capacitors, ICs, connectors, etc.). Design all component lead holes to this size.
3.0 mm For PCB mounting holes used to fix the board to an enclosure or standoff.

Any drill hole in your design that is not 0.9 mm or 3.0 mm will be snapped to the nearest available size. Verify your component footprints accept a 0.9 mm drill before ordering.

Minimum Drill Pad Size

Min: 1.2 mm diameter

The copper annular ring around each drill hole must be at least 1.2 mm in total pad diameter. After a 0.9 mm drill, this leaves a 0.15 mm annular ring on each side — the minimum needed for a reliable solder joint.

Pads smaller than 1.2 mm risk having no copper remaining after drilling. Larger pads (1.5 mm+) are safer and easier to solder by hand.

Solder Mask Clearance

Min: 0.5 mm from copper

Keep a minimum 0.5 mm gap between any copper feature (track, fill, pad) and the edge of the solder mask opening. If the clearance is smaller, the mask may bleed onto pads during application, causing poor solderability.

Most EDA tools set this automatically via the design rule checker (DRC). Run the DRC and ensure no mask clearance violations are flagged before exporting.

Board Edge Clearance

Min: 2 mm from all edges

Keep all copper, tracks, and components at least 2 mm away from the board outline. Boards are cut by a milling bit — material within 2 mm of the edge is at risk of mechanical damage during slicing.

This is especially important for edge connectors, test points, and mounting pads placed near corners. Violation of this rule is the most common cause of track damage on delivered boards.

Before You Export

✓ Run your EDA DRC with minimum track width set to 0.5 mm.
✓ Confirm all through-hole footprints use 0.9 mm drill with 1.2 mm+ pad diameter.
✓ Confirm mounting holes use 3.0 mm drill.
✓ Check solder mask clearance is 0.5 mm or greater on all pads.
✓ Verify no copper is within 2 mm of the board outline.

Go to Order Page

Also review file requirements before uploading.