How To Pirate / Backup Vinyl Records

To give props where they’re due, I just saw this link on the Burnt Progress blog, when I was checking out the details of their CDR night collaboration next month, but more on that another time.

This is essentially a guide to duplicating records in to other records (if that makes sense), all from the comfort of home. I searched long and hard (for at least two and a minutes) for it’s creator but to no avail. From what I can tell it was originally done in German, then translated to English by qj.net, who took it down after time, and now it’s been revived by mikesenes.com, a DIY blog run by a guy named Mike. Brilliant.

Mike even goes far as to include an introduction to how records are made in a factory and Amazon links to the products you’ll be needing to complete this nifty project. I’m going to cut to replicating part, but if you’re not familiar with the original process it’s definitely worth checking out the above link.

This is too good not to try over the weekend, I’ll let you know how it goes.

via Mikesenes

So you thought you’ve pirated everything huh?
Step 1
Using the wooden strips, make a box around the glass plate. Seal off the edges using the window cement. Make sure everything is air tight.
Step 2
Place your record inside the box making sure that the portion to be copied is facing upward. Squeeze in some window cement to mark where the hole in the record is.
Step 3
Mix the silicone (Smooth On OOMOO 30 or OOMOO 25) for about 3 minutes before pouring in to the mold.
Step 4
Pour in the mixture. Start from one corner and let it fill-up the mold to about half a centimeter. Make sure it’s even. Let it dry for 6 hours.
Step 5
Peel off the silicone from the cast. Cut off the excess using a cutter.
Step 6
Pour the liquid plastic (Smooth On Task #4) on top of the silicone cast.
Step 7
Make sure that nothing spills over the round form. You can also brush off any air bubbles that might occur.
Step 8
Carefully loosen the plate from the silicone form. Using a drill press, bore a hole through the center of the plate. You can use the silicone form as a template to make more copies.
There you have it. Your very own pirated record.