Hank, you're right on all counts. Fresh developer each day is a must (prepared the night before to stabilise), though I've found I can usually go on using ferric chloride until it's spent. But temperature control is very critical, and it took me a lot of experimentation to get it right. I was making boards for production then, not just prototyping, and scrap costs money.

Another nice thing about milling has just ocured to me: there's a big price difference between plain copper boards and pre-sprayed photo-sensitive boards (NB to anybody thinking of doing it: use Fotoboard 2. Don't even think about spraying your own photo-sensitive stuff on. You've got to spray it evenly with no missed bits, bake it dry at the right temperature, and never let it see daylight until you use it. You really don't want to go there).

A pick-and-place m/c for SMD is next on my list after PCB-making. Sounds as though you and I are travelling the same road. Are you using an "Archimedes Screw" device to dispense solder?

Ian