bkgoodman wrote:I don't know if you can - but I wouldn't
Greetings BKG,
New to this forum? The board house that SFE uses (via BatchPCB) is a special hobby level service for low cost, low options, and long delivery. (Which is great for my hobby needs!).
bkgoodman wrote:You're never going to get it totally covered, because the soldermask will fall through the hole in the via.
The OP wants to expose the vias, not cover them.
RonnyM wrote:Is there a way in Eagle, to create a via without the stop layer opening? It would make it easier to solder down modules with exposed pads that may be grounded without insulating.
I haven't done this (yet) but any custom designed EAGLE library part could be made non-insulating by removing the stop layers. My concern is that the solder mask and silk screen have a finite thickness, and soldering modules to the top (or bottom) layer foil would require solder to fill this void. Probably not an issue if the area is open to one edge of the device (or module). TO-262 devices can be soldered this way.
Another issue would be how much heat is required to bring the entire contact area up to temp for good soldering? I've reported earlier about my hot-air PCB assembly, where large parts (SMT inductors and SMT electrolytics) are best soldered by hand (and not by a hot air gun).
Comments Welcome!