>>>     I've had a bit more of a read up about Cupric Chloride and it
>>>     seems that it can be made with HCl, Scrap copper and Air:

>>>     http://members.optusnet.com.au/eseychell/PCB/etching_CuCl/index.html#...

>>>     So I might just bite the bullet and go straight to that. Just
>>>     need to find somewhere to buy concentrated hydrochloric acid.
>>>     Did you manage to source some locally?

>>> Yes, the best bet is an old-fashioned hardware store. They usually
>>> have it in 500ml bottles (sometimes labelled as Spirits of Salt) by
>>> manufacturers such as Kilrock. Do NOT buy concrete cleaner from
>>> Wickes - it's weak and full of detergent. You may find they only
>>> have 2 or 3 bottles in stock. If you find someone with bigger
>>> bottles (they are available) you're doing well.

>> After a bit more searching I discovered Toolstation
>> (www.toolstation.com) who have stores through out the UK, including a
>> newish store on St James Trade Park, stock Spirits of Salt in 500ml
>> and 1l bottles. They are a 32% solution. The 1l bottle was £4.19.

>>> I got rather impatient trying to get it going on oxides alone. It
>>> took me the best part of a week even using conc H2O2 and doing
>>> titrations to avoid accidentally diluting it. you may have more
>>> patience ...

>> If it saves me buying H2O2, I'm game. Tanks on order, better dig out
>> some old copper cabling to strip down.

>> At least Sodium Hydroxide (needed for the titration and otherwise
>> known as caustic soda) seems to be easier to get a hold of. I seems
>> that Boots stock that as a drain cleaner.

> Ok, I've got a bit further with this now :-)

> I think I have my etch tank setup. After stripping down quite a few
> metres of old coax cabling I had the nearly 300g of copper I needed
> for the volume of solution in my tank. My tank is about 2.3L by the
> time I have put the heater in it.

> I managed to kick-start the process with just oxides. It took a few
> days for the process to really kick in, but over one night the
> solution turned pitch black (so thick that I couldn't shine a torch
> through the 1-2" thickness of the clear sided tank. I could just about
> see some of the copper against the side of the tank, which slowly
> disappeared over a few days, then the solution slowly turned emerald
> green. I think this is the colour it should be (anyone know?).

> I haven't managed to test the concentration yet, I need to get some
> accurate scales to mix up the sodium hydroxide for the titration.

> I was hoping to get a chance to give the etching a bash this weekend,
> but I've been rather busy doing other things :-(