Laser Etching Vinyl Records

I think the first place i saw it was on the make magazine blog.

Laser etching vinyl records. The dark objects in the grooves are tiny particles of dust. In 2016 austrian company rebeat patented a new method for producing vinyl records through laser engraving and with a recent increase in their funding they are now hoping to bring the records to market in 2019. The company is calling the new records hd vinyl and as new atlas reports the records have longer. It seems like a great idea especially if you choose an image that fits the record you are cutting.

This is a close up image of a vinyl record taken with an electron microscope. The laser cutter cannot make such precise cuts because the width of the beam is too large so the grooves on my records are about 1 2 orders of magnitude larger in every dimension than these grooves. The machine exhaust ducting fan and vent area were all in similar condition. Everywhere i look these days i see a blog article about someone laser cutting old vinyl lps.

I decided to give it a try. Laser engraving on vinyl. It also fits the recycle upcycle trends. Like coloured vinyl etched records are among the most collectable and visually exciting you can get your hands on.