Keith, I am perplexed, by "flax" do mean flat? (Quite a stretch for a typo, but I've done it.) Do you mean gold or OSP? (Being of yellowish color.) In either case there won't be a problem. Potentially some heart burn, but that will be for your assembly folks. For example, with OSP, Silver, Tin (and really all finishes) handling is very important. Fingerprints will cause solder joint problems. Workmanship issues as such I assume are not your problem. Gold finish seems to the topic lately. A non solderable condition called "Black Pad" just is the things nightmares are made of. It is a lose/lose condition. Personally I like Tin. I recommend Silver because it is more accepted (many folks feel tin is four letter word). In any case, I suggest you search the archives here. I strongly recommend a coffee and a "do not disturb" sign on the door as there is a lot of info on the subject. Make certain you confer with the folks that fab and/or assemble your product. But whatever you do, keep your fingers OFF the board... (man, I'll never do that again). Good luck and let us know what you decided, Boston Brad 781 858 0783 Brad Saunders Field Applications Engineer www.coretec-inc.com PCB Fabricator