Watch the complete MADE HERE
video series on YouTube. MADE HERESound engineers produce the lacquer or copper discs
that are electroplated to make nickel copies that will act
as top and bottom molds. Those discs—or stampers—go into our
presses. We sandwich extruded polyvinyl chloride, co-polymer
preforms in between them, and heat and compress them. Finally,
we cure the finished product and trim the excess material.HOW
IT’S
DONE
W
HEN I VISITED A
vinyl plant in Queens
in 1998, the product
consumed my life.
Something about
seeing the process
up close and holding
a record captured my soul.
I didn’t have a career at the time,
making money working for electri-
cal and mechanical contractors. I
solicited money from family and
acquired the equipment needed
to make vinyl, including two over-
100-ton hydraulic presses. Their
condition wasn’t great, but they
allowed me to get started.
That first batch took a tremen-
dous amount of energy. The system
crashed after making two records. It
was, of course, disheartening, but I
knew it wouldn’t be easy. Ever y thing
I’d read indicated that it was like
jumping through hoops on fire that
got higher and smaller as you went.
Once you get through them, though,
the feeling is beautiful.
I may not be the artist, but I do
feel connected to the art through
what I do. You are creating the vessel
for an artist to generate their idea.
When it goes out into the world and
people enjoy it, nothing could be
more rewarding.POP^ MECH^ VIDEO^ EDITORS14
THOMAS BERNICH, 48, OWNER OF BROOKLYNPHONO, BROOKLYN, NEW YORK