Speaking of a rigid nature. (Not so flexible - Sorry Joe)
     
     RF and Microwave boards are laced with ground 
     vias/straps/bussing...etc. (Capacitance related) It's not uncommon for 
     these boards to have edge plating requirements for EMC/EMI-RFI 
     Shielding. These parts do in deed have a lot of routed thru holes. 
     These however, are anchored with internal ground planes and wont budge
     when cut into to. A signal via on the other hand could be an issue.
     Especially if the hole and pad size (Keep non-functionals out of this
     gang. HeHeHe   :))are extremely small. (ie. <.022pad/.010hl) I haven't 
     seen much of this type of design on PCBs (except for PC cards and 
     CSP). It's never been a yield issue. I would think that for high speed 
     boards you could encounter some undesirable electrical issues. 
     
     I hope others have some more input also.
     
     Groovy


______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Re: Hole to board edge
Author:  [log in to unmask] at SMTPLINK-HADCO
Date:    10/27/95 3:08 AM


There have been a number of products built over the years where the plated 
through holes have been routed in half. They seem to have served well the 
needs of the customer. I don't know if this serves as an adequate gage for 
you but it places a stake in the ground for you to reference. 
     
Cheers
J. Fjelstad