How can I cut then mold duplicate records at home?

[DeanLach]

Hi, I see allot of folks are using lathes to cut dubs but I'm more interested in producing quantities of records (50-200 or so.)

So I guess I'm looking for a record cutter that would make a master from my audio file...Then allow me to make a mold from that master...And then pour a liquid-plastic or press a donut in order to make record copies.

I'd settle for a MONO cutter.
A One-Sided record would be okay.
Most any size.
33rpm prefered.

I hope someone out there can point me in the right direction.
I'd like to buy a Kit or blueprint/direction and parts for a cutter. And the same for record stamping.

(I hope I don't have to mention that I'm not interested in commercial record pressing or buying a 4,000 dollar record/dub maker...)

Cheers!

[Bahndahn]

Hi there,

So I guess I'm looking for a record cutter that would make a master from my audio file...Then allow me to make a mold from that master...And then pour a liquid-plastic or press a donut in order to make record copies.

The idea of casting records after creating a mould from a cut record is certainly possible and has been proven by members of this forum. The truth of the matter seems to be that the materials for moulding/casting [such as the high-precision moulding resin and the casting resin] are generally pretty expensive, and as far as the many experiments seem to show, the moulds don't last forever [or very long for that matter].

Note: Experimenters were able to squeeze more life out of their moulds by warming them in the oven a little before casting, and being sure to use a good mould release agent.

Experiments also suggested that a vacuum chamber is absolutely necessary for 'good' results.

The resins used for casting typically take a good amount of time to cure, many should be left over night before removing them from the mould. This parameter, and many others, seem to suggest against moulding records as an effective way of increasing production output.

I'd like to buy a Kit or blueprint/direction and parts for a cutter. And the same for record stamping.

(I hope I don't have to mention that I'm not interested in commercial record pressing or buying a 4,000 dollar record/dub maker...)

Currently no kits or blueprints are available for a record cutter, as far as I know, and if you were to obtain some good blueprints you would need some serious machinist skills and equipment as well as materials-hunting skills to bring the machine to life. It's more than possible to do, don't get me wrong here, but know that it is a serious temporal, monetary, and intellectual investment. You will be either very crafty or very lucky to produce your machine (and cutterhead) for under $4000 when the dust settles– not counting the hours you will put in.

All said, everything you need to know to do any of this is available here on lathetrolls. Be sure to use the search feature to find out more about ideas you have. A lot has been done by people who hang around here, and even more has been discussed.

Refine your searches down to keywords as the search engine here is quite literal.

Try out:

moulds (or) molds

casting

emory cook

etc.

Best wishes on your project!