Precision Records Labs Limited

1980s record pressing company in Chicago, Illinois. Precision Records Labs Ltd. started operating in the early 1980s and at the time provided Chicago with one of its only pressing plants. Run and owned by Larry Sherman, who would later go on to start Trax Records with the aid of Vince Lawrence, it provided a quick turn around of musical ideas onto vinyl. The pressing facility was situated on the bottom floor of a large three story building on W. 38th Place and shared the premises with the offices of Precision and Trax Records. There were multiple presses in operation at any given time and Precision Records Labs pressed records for many other local labels. Records labels that used the plant included at times Mitchbal Records, House Records, Jes Say Records, and of course Precision Records and Trax Records. Records pressed at Precision Records Labs Limited can often be recognized by PRL (followed by a works number) printed on the center labels or etched in the runout. However most of Trax Records and it's affiliated labels later releases, that were still pressed at Precision, lack this identifying mark. A helpful tool to decipher pressing year is found in these runout etchings. For example PRL-84 = the year 1984, PRL-85 = the year 1985, PRL-86 = the year 1986, etc. It is also worth mentioning, despite popular belief, the coloring on the center labels did not always indicate which pressing or run a particular release was from. Unused center labels from first runs or first pressings were commonly reused on later runs to cut down on costs and wastage. It was also not unknown for Precision to mix up or forget center labels entirely resulting in records with wrong center labels, switched center labels, or missing center labels. Their use of recylced vinyl, often resulting in a poorer quality of product, is also widely known.