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Bright Tin Finish vs. Matte Tin Finish

Q. I have a potential customer that has their part Tin plated using a process where bright Tin is plated over by matte Tin. Is this a "normal" process and could there be issues with the plating by using this process?

Richard Steves
Quality - Seattle, Washington
February 11, 2022

⇩ Closely related postings, oldest first ⇩

2006

Q. Hello,

I am trying to determine the difference between a "Bright Tin Finish" and a "Matte Tin Finish" I'm not an engineer (obviously) and a customer is asking if we are suppling any parts with a Bright tin finish.

Please advise!

Thanks,

Ruben Ramirez
Electronics Supplier - Tustin California

A. In one way, it's as simple as it sounds: bright tin is bright and matte tin is dull. But your question really seems to be "what is my customer getting at?".

The brightness comes from the addition of organic brightening agents that can cause soldering problems and high temperature brittleness. So it sounds to me like your customer may be asking for assurance that there are no organics in the tin plating that might cause him such problems.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2006

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