Glossy vs matte solder mask

[derGoldstein]

A typical glossy solder mask is quite resilient to scratches and physical damage. Is a matte solder mask more or less resistant? I'm wondering if, given a lot of part reword and replacement, the matte versions are more susceptible to the solder mask scraping off.
In some close-up photos the matte solder mask seems to hide scratches better, while in others it looks like it's a scratch magnet. It's probably different between manufacturers, but I'm wondering if there's a rule of thumb.

[T3sl4co1l]

I've had the experience that glossy tends to be weak.  I've seen some strong glossy too though, so it's not a rule.

That's probably more just because, the matte boards tend to be from production lines, where they follow the specifications precisely.

Cheap protos usually use cheap soldermask, and the cheap stuff just happens to be glossy, no surprise there.

There might be something about a matte surface holding flux better, and therefore something or other about paste coalescence.  Idunno.

Tim

[Yellofriend]

I would always prefer matte. Glossy is irritating when you do manual rework on a PCB. Picture taking is also more difficult with all the reflections.

[Mattylad]

I found glossy to be too reflective and confusing the pick and place camera systems.
So insisted on a matt finish only. 

[zeqing]

the matte solder mask would be more expensive as they are not so pupular used.