# Tin Plating

> The solder-friendly finish: tin for bus bars, terminals and food-contact hardware.

- Process group: Plating
- HTML page: https://fabvector.com/finishes/tin-plating (Portuguese: https://fabvector.com/pt/finishes/tin-plating)

## Specifications

| Spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Coating thickness | 5–20 µm |
| Tolerance impact | Adds roughly the coating thickness per surface with typical electroplate edge build-up; thin enough to ignore on most non-precision hardware, but mask press-fit and toleranced features. |
| Corrosion rating | Moderate — primarily prevents oxidation and preserves solderability rather than providing structural corrosion protection. |
| Appearance | Matte gray-white or bright silvery tin. |
| Applicable substrates | copper-alloys, steel |

## Not suitable for

Fine-pitch electronics where tin whiskers can short circuits (pure bright tin is the worst offender — specify matte tin or ask about whisker mitigation); high-temperature joints above ~150 °C (tin softens and creeps); wear surfaces (tin is soft and smears under load).

## Typical applications

- Copper bus bars and power connection faces
- Electronic terminals and solderable contacts
- Food-equipment hardware needing a non-toxic plated surface