pcb-kit (somebox)ECADConfidence: Medium

pcbkit fab always exported Gerbers with --subtract-soldermask, erasing silkscreen placed in mask openings on purpose. One black-mask diffuser board with white numerals in the windows had to bypass the tool and call kicad-cli directly.

Impact Analysis

Persona

Electrical Engineer

Team Size Impact

5x Multiplier

Prototype Delay

3 Days

Est. Annual Cost

$30,000

1 user · 1 month240 min
Rest of team960 min
Rest of year13,200 min

monthly_minutes × 12 × team_multiplier ÷ 60 × $75/hr = $30k/yr

$75/hr assumed rate.

Annual team-minutes decomposed from the reported monthly inputs.

Evidence & Sources

1 Sources

somebox/pcb-kit PR #17: release: keep silkscreen inside mask openings (fab --keep-silk-in-mask, keep_silk_in_mask profile setting)

github.com

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Analyst Notes

From the Grok pain-radar digests, Oct 26-27 2026 (Oct 26 12:41 PM ET through Oct 27 7:41 AM ET digests plus the Haitch editions). Verified live 2026-10-27: issue/PR/thread read; title and state confirmed.