A new demonstration revisits the toner transfer method by printing a circuit straight from an old magazine—showing how to scan, edit in GIMP, laser-print toner onto transfer paper, laminate onto blank copper PCB, etch away unprotected copper, and finally strip
It starts with a yellowing magazine and ends with a working copper pattern—no board house required. no waiting for mail. and none of the shortcuts that always come with “good enough.” In a new video. Bettina Neumryr demonstrates the toner transfer method using a circuit printed directly in an old magazine. turning something static on paper into something functional on copper.
The toner transfer process begins with an image you can print. Because the circuit is coming from a magazine, it’s scanned into a computer and imported into GIMP. From there. the image gets scaled to match the size of the components and sharpened to make sure the print comes out crisp rather than muddy.
Once the layout is ready, the next step is printing the image onto toner transfer paper. Neumryr stresses the practical detail that matters for the whole method to work: the printer has to be a laser printer that actually uses toner. A blank copper PCB sheet is then prepared.
The circuit pattern moves from paper to copper by heating. In this demonstration, the transfer is done using a laminator, pressing the toner onto the copper surface. After the transfer, the board goes through etching—removing all the copper not protected by the toner. When the toner itself is removed afterward, the protected areas are left behind as copper traces.
For people who remember when toner transfer was a go-to DIY approach, the method may feel familiar. But for beginners—especially those who can’t use a manufacturer for whatever reason or are looking for an alternative when boards take too long to arrive—a modern walkthrough can make the difference between “I saw it once” and “I can actually do it.”.
The video also sits in a bigger DIY landscape. Some older methods used similar processes with inkjet printers, while newer DIY options include approaches that use lasers or CNC machines.
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