a simple question how do you tell the difference between styrene and vinyl

thanks

It's easy when you know how, but can be baffling if you don't

There are several threads on here explaining this is a high level of detail with technical descriptions etc.

Try searching the look 'at your box' forum with key words

Failing that I'm sure someone will post up the link

Cheers

Richard

Edited December 23, 201014 yr by Premium Stuff

a simple question how do you tell the difference between styrene and vinyl

thanks

Styrene Have Stuck On Paper Labels That Look Like You Could Lift Around The Edge & You Can! Vinyl Have Pressed Paper Labels That Are Pressed On To The Hot Vinyl !! The Other Thing Is if You flick A Vinyl Record You Get A Dull Thud If You Flick the A Styrene Record You Get A Crisp Ring like Like Sound!!

... If You Flick A Styrene Record You Get A Crisp Ring ...

I'm sure there's a childish joke in there somewhere

Styrene is also brittle and if you try to bend it it will snap in no time, viinyl is a bit more flexible and will give before it snaps.

Styrene (properly, Polystyrene).

Hard, relatively inflexible plastic used to press records, mainly 7-inch

singles, mainly using the Injection Moulding process. The material is heated

to a liquid form and is then squirted or injected into the closed stampers

in the press. This requires that the labels be either glued or painted on

after the record leaves the press. The cost savings to the manufacturer

comes from the extended life of the stampers because of the lack of a

heating cycle to the stampers. The material can also be reused without

noticeable change to its moulding properties. Styrene records will therefore

usually have very quiet surfaces when found in an UNPLAYED Mint condition,

but unfortunately they will wear to a noisy condition rapidly, especially if

played with a bad stylus or an improperly tracking tonearm. They also are

more prone to Cue Burn. The Columbia Records Pittman, New Jersey pressing

plant was once the major source of Injection Moulded Styrene pressings, and

pressings from this plant are found on MANY small labels. Look for the

glued-on labels. Painted-on labels can be found on records from the

Amy/Bell/Mala group.

Vinyl (properly Polyvinyl Chloride).

Relatively flexible material used since the early 1930s to make

non-breakable records. Its fumes are an acknowledged carcinogen, so don't

breathe in deeply when you have your next holy burning of Beatles or

back-masked devil-worship records. :-) Usually pressed by Compression

Moulding which allows the label to be an integral part of the pressing

itself. This process also requires that there be extra material which spills

out the sides of the press, therefore this extra material is routinely

ground up and re-used. Because vinyl does not re-heat and re-cool to a

smooth, glossy surface, the excessive use of re-grind mixed in with Virgin

Vinyl can account for the inherently noisy surface of even Unplayed Mint

examples of the cheap pressings that some record companies used. Noise can

be seen AND HEARD by looking at and/or playing the un-grooved surface of the

lead-in and lead-out areas. If this area looks or sounds grainy, then the

grooves will also have some of this grainy background sound. The stampers

used for the compression moulding process will start to break down after

only 1,000 pressings because they are forced to expand and contract when

heated by steam at the start of the pressing cycle and then cooled to

solidify the record. Some companies routinely overused their stampers for

their pop record series.

I'm sure there's a childish joke in there somewhere

I Don't Think I Meant It To Sound Like That Pardon Pun I Will Rephrase That!! It Sounds Like A Lead Crystal Glass

a simple question how do you tell the difference between styrene and vinyl

thanks

Chalky has kindly just listed the technical Differences I Think This Was The Link Referred To Earlier!!

Styrene is also brittle and if you try to bend it it will snap in no time, viinyl is a bit more flexible and will give before it snaps.

Styrene (properly, Polystyrene).

Styrene records will therefore

usually have very quiet surfaces when found in an UNPLAYED Mint condition,

but unfortunately they will wear to a noisy condition rapidly, especially if

played with a bad stylus or an improperly tracking tonearm.

Vinyl (properly Polyvinyl Chloride).

Because vinyl does not re-heat and re-cool to a

smooth, glossy surface, the excessive use of re-grind mixed in with Virgin

Vinyl can account for the inherently noisy surface of even Unplayed Mint

examples of the cheap pressings that some record companies used.

Intersting point Chalky. I think in the past I've been guilty of linking a "noisy" track with styrene and making the assumption that it's styrene because of background noise. Never really thought about the use of re-grind mix in some cheaper vinyl pressings. Good info.

As already mentioned, the best way to spot the difference is to check if the label has been glued on or pressed into the vinyl.

It is easy to tell the difference when you have the record in your hand, but you can often also spot the difference in a label scan.

Here is an example of a styrene record with glued on labels.

And here is an example of a vinyl record with the labels pressed into the vinyl.

Most styrene records have glued on labels, but some also have painted labels. Check the scan above.

thanks guys i got it stuck on labels are styrene, moulded are on vinyl.

thanks