A bit off topic but same soap box..in a similar vein (for plastics)...

e.g. The use of a chrome yellow to colour a beach bat would be illegal (in EU) if the product was classified as a toy. If defined as sports equipment however, this would be acceptable!

and...

A nylon moulding coloured with food-approved cadmium yellow would be acceptable in a food processing product...but could not be used in electrical, automotive or packaging appplications because it would offend recycling conventions.

I could go on ad nauseum.......

Harry

It is fustrating and so much has been said about this already. If RoHs had allowed only about 2% lead in solder, many of the lead-free solder issues we now have would not exist, and the amount of lead in electronics would have still been cut tenfold.

Interesting Pud.  I had not even thought of all these non electrical problems. Yikes!

Excellent point too Comcokid!

Keith Cress
Flamin Systems, Inc.- http://www.flaminsystems.com

You don't expect the morons in Brussels to actually know anything do you?

Most couldn't tell their arse from their elbow.

Sure, they know that lead is BAD.  What more should they care about?

TTFN

Is 12L14 steel RoHS compliant?

Uggh...that sounds like a horrible mess from a manufacturing standpoint.  It would really be expensive to stencil on lead-free solder paste in some areas of a PCB and leaded solder paste in other areas.