Is there a good way to move wireing from front to back

Layout
1

Hi, made (yet) a beginners mistake; made my wireing on the front of the board,while I want a singlesided bord with the wireing on back. (think the default copper brown layer is actually the front). Got a tip to go into the scematic file (.scm I have it) with text editor and “change”.
Well, Im not sure what to change (Ok, some experimenting might do…). There are some F’s for what i think is the pads (on the components) that is it what I can see. (the wireing seem not to spell out what layer (possibly from the pad location ?)

Georg

2

Im not quite shure if i understand correctly but if so:

  • open the board in PCBnew
  • unselect everything besides F.Cu layer (in the Tabs Layers and Elements)
  • click the cursor icon (upper right side bar, left of elements and layers)
  • mark all the traces
  • press ‘‘e’’
  • select in the dropdownmenu for LAyers ‘‘B.Cu’’
  • Click ‘‘Ok’’

Does that the trick?

1 Like
3

No didnt succeed. with “mark…” you mean to embrace them with a “rectangle” whereupon you get the “block operation” y/no question ? but then nothing happens with “e”…

4

Ok, now I have edited the KICAD_PCB-file and substituted F.Cu occurencies on lines beginning with ‘segment’
(but not where F.Cu appears in a ‘module’ line…) for B.Cu

This actually makes the wires I have (with effort) drawn now become on the color of B.Cu when looking in pcbnew.

However, Im a bit worried about the PADS, they have a different color than of the wireing also for the previous variant with wires on F.Cu. Guess the pads need to be in place on the back plane. Is that the reference of F.Cu for “module” ??

is there more layers that should be like B. (the mask ? or …)

5

i forgott to mention that your Canvas has to be switched to “OpenGL”.

If the Pads are on another layer as your traces, they will not be connected but THT will. Please make yourselfe a bit clearer i cant quite follow what your asking for exactly.

Greetings
Detzi

6

HI Detzi, well I think I have the grip on the issue. I went into the KICAD_PCB and substituted the F.Cu to B.Cu for the segment denoted lines. That moved all the wireing.

My “impression” is that the Through-hole pads will be connected to the wires (seem to generate copper on both sides ?). Having had a look in the gerber-files for F.Mask and B.Mask they are identical, which I guess means that the same “masking-finsish” is made on both sides for a through-hole pcb, at least as set-up for my board.

7

If you are using Through-Hole-Terminals they are, unless you configure them else, able to connect, on any copper layer, to traces (same as with normal Vias). Pad’s can’t do that, they are only on the Layer you have placed them ( B.Cu or F.Cu). You are correct the masking Finish of the THT should be the same for both sides.

Glad that your Problem is solved!
Greetings
Detzi

8

Thanks ! However, I guess its not really “solved” until I get back a solderable and functioning pcb.( I also think I have had “language problem” in that until now “pad” was the solderable surface for both throughhole and surface, while I now get that pad is only for surface)
Thanks for support.
/g

9

Well then i really don’t understand your problem here.
Please Upload a Picture or your Board file itself so i can have a look at the fault.

10

Language again. I think I have it fixed as you said earlier!
(I was just taking out on possible future discoveries that I would have missed something important)

/g