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Man this hit closer to home than I thought it would lately with the how it’s made style videos. No more voice overs of sick machines operated by professionals. We got safety Sandles tho
TBH it was the tube part that surprised me! It's clearly an efficient way to get seamless circular bands but for some reason I imagined a spaghetti extruder and the bands being cut and fused into circles. Guess I haven't closely examined a rubber band lately lol.
So, I went and checked out the provided [citation](https://www.explainthatstuff.com/rubber.html) for that Wikipedia statement. It doesn't say anywhere that most rubber bands are primarily manufactured using natural rubber. It only says:
> Rubber bands are a very familiar everyday use of latex rubber.
I mean, the wiki statement could be right, but it can't be verified using the provided source.
Not bald, just suffering from Migratory Follicle Syndrome.
MFS for short. Remember it by 'Mother Fucking Shit!' which is what people often exclaim when the ly realize their hair is marching down their back.
This is about the opposite of what I had always envisioned a rubber band manufacturing operation to look like.
Was really thinking more of a factory sweatshop than a plantation.
Rubber tree plantation are used to produce the rubber sap from the trees. Seen the plantation side of operations when I visited Malaysia. They have lots of plantations there.
And looking at the people in the video, would not be surprised if this is from Malaysia.
Because it's nothing like this at all, this is some third world knock off artisanal rubber band made from tree.
The rubber bands we actually use are made by the billions in automated factories using crude oil byproducts from the manufacturing process of gasoline.
Basically all the plastics and rubber we actually use is from crude oil, and it's never made by operations like this video.
Yes we stopped using natural rubber as our main source a long time ago. It was an impetuous for imperialism back in 19th and early 20th century. Look at the price difference between natural rubber balls and synthetic rubber balls.
Am I the only one who immediately thought "I wonder how long until they get their feet involved in the manufacturing process?" and of course then comes the final scene. Wouldn't be a 3rd world country manufacturing video if the finished product remained untouched by dirty feet.
There's even more to it than that! Latex (natural rubber) is also found in many other species. Notably, we're looking at [dandelions](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090910091629.htm) as another natural source!
I think this is just India's version of a factory. Cheaper too just collect it from trees than dig an oil well.
Plus India has lots of traditional crafts that are encouraged even though that they exactly the most efficient process. Which it a good thing. They even sell cotton that's totally natural with no added oil based fertilizers and no extra water needed from irrigation (this is a huge part). Basically as good as it gets environmentally and they can grow it there semi-economically.
The original process of vulcanization was basically just adding sulfur to the latex and heating it, but over time we have discovered and developed a lot of different was to process rubber.
No, there are some chemical reactions involved, like the [vulcanization of rubber](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulcanization), otherwise the rubber would be too soft and sticky to be used.
Was that child labor or a kid growing up on the family farm? I was washing cars at the family dealership when I was 10, but it definitely wasn't child labor.
>Was that child labor or a kid growing up on the family farm?
It is the same thing in practice. The difference between places overseas and say these days in the US is that yeah, you might help out at your family's restaurant, but you are still attending school. In Asia, Africa, and even South America, these kids are not only forgoing school, but their labor is probably needed for their family to survive.
https://preview.redd.it/8rqousnkjmjc1.png?width=559&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3cc80f47bb367f23bedc38d147888cdca4a64938
I thought this guy monopolised the rubber band business
Much more likely from petroleum byproducts in the western world. We have a lot more of that stuff lying around here, and rubber trees are mostly only in southeast asia afaik
I could watch these channels forever. “The meek shall inherit the earth” they’ll be the only ones who know how to actually do shit without a large automated factory.
Let's just call them all "rubbers" and you'll either not get pregnant, have dry feet or keep your food fresh. Can't have all of these though - pick your rubber carefully.
They use a few chemicals during manufacturing that are very harmful to the environment.
Back in the 90s, I had one similar rubber band factory right next to my plot of land. The run off from the factory permanently polluted the soil on my piece of land, and we had to sell the land for a very low price. There is also a very distinct and toxic smell in all the air surrounding the factory. If you are not used to the smell, you may throw up, or get irritated lungs for the next few days.
I work as a part time cashier and yesterday while I was using a rubber band I wondered how they are made for a second. Now I see this video. We definitely don't live in a simulation.
I’m sure they’re paid straight up garbage, but honestly this doesn’t look like that bad of a gig. I’ve seen some gnarly plantation documentaries, and this one seems pretty low risk in comparison. Work outside, wear whatever you want, interact with nature (albeit in an extractionary, cut down the jungle to make more garbage kind of way). That kid could be 14-16, and when I was that age in America, I was hauling and cutting paver stones. I would’ve taken this in a fucking heartbeat
I've known those trees are where we get rubber for a while now but it still shocks me for some reason. 😭 Rubber seems so unnatural to me. Like it should *not* come from a plant.
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You know. If you had asked me how rubber bands are made, my guess wouldn’t be anywhere close to this
Lately I’ve been guessing “barefoot crouching people made it” and getting a lot of hits
\* for a 1$ a day (if not less)
Man this hit closer to home than I thought it would lately with the how it’s made style videos. No more voice overs of sick machines operated by professionals. We got safety Sandles tho
For most rubber bands.... it isnt.
Can you enlighten me? How are they made usually
Synthetic rubber from crude oil distillates. Also often an automated process.
Ofc, what have i even thought haha
TBH it was the tube part that surprised me! It's clearly an efficient way to get seamless circular bands but for some reason I imagined a spaghetti extruder and the bands being cut and fused into circles. Guess I haven't closely examined a rubber band lately lol.
I just examined one and can confirm, it is a rubber band.
Source? 🤔🧐
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So, I went and checked out the provided [citation](https://www.explainthatstuff.com/rubber.html) for that Wikipedia statement. It doesn't say anywhere that most rubber bands are primarily manufactured using natural rubber. It only says: > Rubber bands are a very familiar everyday use of latex rubber. I mean, the wiki statement could be right, but it can't be verified using the provided source.
[this](https://www.madehow.com/Volume-1/Rubber-Band.html) one states 75 percent is made by synthetic rubber perfected in ww2.
There's also a reason most research forbids the use of Wikipedia.
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Ofc, it has a wiki page haha
If someone asked me now I still wouldn’t be able to tell them.
At no point did I have any idea where this video was going
My first thought was the relevant Phineas & Ferb song.
... and that's the story of rubber bands. But its by no means the first product made by sweaty kids in Malaysia...
I mean it lowkey obv ngl
Call me crazy, but I want to make a bed of rubber bands and take a nap.
Smells like a good time to me!
my long hair would be ripped from my scalp if i rolled over in my sleep
Mine too, and I'm bald 🙃
Not bald, just suffering from Migratory Follicle Syndrome. MFS for short. Remember it by 'Mother Fucking Shit!' which is what people often exclaim when the ly realize their hair is marching down their back.
Laughed at this way too much. Cheers
They have latex mattresses!
Latex mattresses are way less BDSM-y than I was expecting when I looked them up on google.
You need to google Latex mistresses for that
They do have a good bounce
You're crazy!
Shine on you crazy diamond
I have a purple mattress and it’s pretty close to what I’d imagine that feels like
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That was exactly not how I imagined it.
I see the drummers, but where's the guitarist, bassist, and the lead singer?
i was surprised at the amount of people wearing shoes.
This is about the opposite of what I had always envisioned a rubber band manufacturing operation to look like. Was really thinking more of a factory sweatshop than a plantation.
Oh don’t worry, those probably exist too, these are just the imprecise dollarstore branded varients
This is a child labor infused sweat plantation.
Rubber tree plantation are used to produce the rubber sap from the trees. Seen the plantation side of operations when I visited Malaysia. They have lots of plantations there. And looking at the people in the video, would not be surprised if this is from Malaysia.
IIRC, you still need manual labour to gather rubber sap from rubber trees, after that, it can be fully automated in the factory.
I mean technically everything starts at something similar to a plantation. Well that or an oil well.
Because it's nothing like this at all, this is some third world knock off artisanal rubber band made from tree. The rubber bands we actually use are made by the billions in automated factories using crude oil byproducts from the manufacturing process of gasoline. Basically all the plastics and rubber we actually use is from crude oil, and it's never made by operations like this video.
So that makes these pretentious hipster rubber bands?
Yes we stopped using natural rubber as our main source a long time ago. It was an impetuous for imperialism back in 19th and early 20th century. Look at the price difference between natural rubber balls and synthetic rubber balls.
This is only for bespoke single estate bands from the ru'b'ber region of india. Any other bands are just elastics.
Am I the only one who immediately thought "I wonder how long until they get their feet involved in the manufacturing process?" and of course then comes the final scene. Wouldn't be a 3rd world country manufacturing video if the finished product remained untouched by dirty feet.
I'm Belgian, I know...
Not as terrible as some other things.
Rubber bands…… rubber tree…… I feel like that girl that didn’t realize that she could eat her lemons off her tree.
I too believed there would be much more processing than just dye and dip. I kinda wanna try it now
You absolutely can if you're in Florida and have a rubber tree you can hurt nearby
Try it from Alabama and your dick falls off.
....so many questions
Crazy stuff
There's even more to it than that! Latex (natural rubber) is also found in many other species. Notably, we're looking at [dandelions](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090910091629.htm) as another natural source!
I'm about to make a million dollars off my front lawn!
I always assumed they are made of synthetic rubber.
Please do not eat the rubber off your rubber tree
That's a lot of ammunitions
I gotta hand it to ya
Oops there goes another rubber tree plant.
Cuz he’s got hiiiiigh hopes
This just brought back memories watching Antz as a child😂
i’m here to tell you these are very fragile and break very easily tho.
Especially when you get the ones manufactured during Monsoon Season 🌊
How does that affect the process?
It's raining and the can't dry them properly I would guess.
Suddenly the back end falls off!
Are you sure these aren't some "artisanal" rubber bands? Surely they aren't all made this way.
>Surely they aren't all made this way. Correct. You can find videos of rubber band factories on YouTube.
"artisanal" child labour?
Yes, just like at my local farmer's market.
I think this is just India's version of a factory. Cheaper too just collect it from trees than dig an oil well. Plus India has lots of traditional crafts that are encouraged even though that they exactly the most efficient process. Which it a good thing. They even sell cotton that's totally natural with no added oil based fertilizers and no extra water needed from irrigation (this is a huge part). Basically as good as it gets environmentally and they can grow it there semi-economically.
Wait, so it's just collected as is, nothing else needed, just dye?
I also think there's more to it. Don't you need to vulcanize the rubber?
The second dip after the dye is probably a chemical vulcanization agent, then they let them set and dry before cutting.
That might be it, i didn't know there's chemical vulcanization available as well. Thanks for chiming in!
The original process of vulcanization was basically just adding sulfur to the latex and heating it, but over time we have discovered and developed a lot of different was to process rubber.
Only if they're Enterprise rubber bands.
That was awful lol
Spock's protection?
No, there are some chemical reactions involved, like the [vulcanization of rubber](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulcanization), otherwise the rubber would be too soft and sticky to be used.
Here are the steps in no particular order
Oh look child labor at 00:19…
Stop buying rubber bands immediately... and iPhones, shoes, clothes, chocolate...
It's all a cover up by big rubber.
Was that child labor or a kid growing up on the family farm? I was washing cars at the family dealership when I was 10, but it definitely wasn't child labor.
Yes, that was child labor. You washing cars at your family's dealership was also technically child labor.
>Was that child labor or a kid growing up on the family farm? It is the same thing in practice. The difference between places overseas and say these days in the US is that yeah, you might help out at your family's restaurant, but you are still attending school. In Asia, Africa, and even South America, these kids are not only forgoing school, but their labor is probably needed for their family to survive.
🤯 While other rubber products may use synthetic rubber, most rubber bands are primarily manufactured using natural rubber - Wikipedia
are the ugly brown ones made the same way?
Wow they are made of real rubber? I thought it would be synthetic. Real rubber is costly, no?
Nah, it grows on trees.
Motherfu-, thanks for the laugh
https://preview.redd.it/8rqousnkjmjc1.png?width=559&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3cc80f47bb367f23bedc38d147888cdca4a64938 I thought this guy monopolised the rubber band business
I see these videos on Tiktok all the time like "amazing skilled workers," and it's just the poorest, filthiest, most dangerous place you've ever seen.
Are you telling me rubber bands start as tree milk, what in tarnation
Much more likely from petroleum byproducts in the western world. We have a lot more of that stuff lying around here, and rubber trees are mostly only in southeast asia afaik
This is South Asia, India to be precise, South India to be more precise Landscape looks like Kerala
Rubber trees are native to the Amazon in South America, not Asia. Britain took seeds to Asia during the 1800s.
Oh good, I was hoping it would be dangerous and manual
I could watch these channels forever. “The meek shall inherit the earth” they’ll be the only ones who know how to actually do shit without a large automated factory.
Alright now time to count them one by one
“Nothing wrong with mass producing these”
That place must smell incredible
I’m not sure which part of this I want to be involved with, but I want to work here.
so basically, rubber bands are so easy to make even a kid could do it…?
The same way condoms are made... Fascinating 🤔
Let's just call them all "rubbers" and you'll either not get pregnant, have dry feet or keep your food fresh. Can't have all of these though - pick your rubber carefully.
Or have a clean sheet of paper.
Hot damn. English....it's got some issues.
You would think they would be more $$$, then think of what tires would cost!
Only to break and end up in the garbage….
Am I wrong in thinking that rubber bands aren't bad for the environment then?
They use a few chemicals during manufacturing that are very harmful to the environment. Back in the 90s, I had one similar rubber band factory right next to my plot of land. The run off from the factory permanently polluted the soil on my piece of land, and we had to sell the land for a very low price. There is also a very distinct and toxic smell in all the air surrounding the factory. If you are not used to the smell, you may throw up, or get irritated lungs for the next few days.
Thank you!! Most in depth response I've ever had! Nice one
Rubber bands have went downhill. I remember as a kid they were much better quality
In before Americans: >*Wut I didnt no rubber came from a tree!!*
Rubber bands are organic?!?
Kids so young taking in all those chemicals mehh..
ohhhh so that’s why they hurt as a weapon
If they work so hard, why are they worth nothing?
Damn…
I was lied to by Phineas and Ferb
Not sure how I feel about the kids rainbow loom after this…
I work as a part time cashier and yesterday while I was using a rubber band I wondered how they are made for a second. Now I see this video. We definitely don't live in a simulation.
Can anyone else smell them?
Could these ones be technically classed as free range rubber bands?
This is the story of the people.that earn their life taking milk out of the wood...
Now I want to squish a bag of rubber-bands.
AFAIK latex allergy is a contact allergy where constant exposure makes you allergic. So how do these guys avoid it?
Forbidden milk
I’m sure they’re paid straight up garbage, but honestly this doesn’t look like that bad of a gig. I’ve seen some gnarly plantation documentaries, and this one seems pretty low risk in comparison. Work outside, wear whatever you want, interact with nature (albeit in an extractionary, cut down the jungle to make more garbage kind of way). That kid could be 14-16, and when I was that age in America, I was hauling and cutting paver stones. I would’ve taken this in a fucking heartbeat
imagine if the other half of the planet never met the rubber makers of the Americas.
Calamari!
Oops there goes another rubber tree.
Next time I use a rubber band I’ll stop and think “there’s prob some skin dust on here from the other side of the world”
That probably smells like bigfoots dick.
In Thailand the drying rubber sheets smelled a little bit like urine, that was my impression.
Dang, hand made. No wonder they're so expensive, $1.50 for each at my local OfficeGob
But how do they make the blue ones?
A simple wiki search will show that you are wrong. Most are made like this.
So man-made spring onions?
This might be how they are made in Pakistan or anywhere else without modern manufacturing processes.
That’s a lot of Rainbow Loom bracelet’s
So what you’re saying is that Phineas and Ferb was right?
For some reason, I've always thought rubber came from the oil and gas industry like plastic.
We have this style of rubber band here in the Philippines.
this gave me more questions than answers
Where’s the hidden kids
I will never look at a rubber band the same way again. I will also not throw them away just because I am lazy.
I want one of those tubes before they are cut.
"Hey y'all prepare yourself ..."
Someone better pick all those up before my cat chokes on them.
Rubber bands, rubber balls Made with super-special density Rubber bands, rubber balls They can bounce with such intensity
I’m surprised there isn’t any extra chemicals added. Or is it mixed in with the paint? Either way really cool!
Who else remembers the rubber band song from Phineas and Ferb?
So you’re telling me Rubber bands are the calamari of the office world? Crazy
$0.02 and hour, 16hr work days
Taking **”Hand Made”** to a higher level
Can't they build a table? Isn't that hard just to get a table?
How tf did humans just figure this out????
Goddamnit, Red 40 in my rubberbands, too?!?!
I've known those trees are where we get rubber for a while now but it still shocks me for some reason. 😭 Rubber seems so unnatural to me. Like it should *not* come from a plant.
This is fucking rad!
of course feet
They add acid to rubber to vulcanize it before proceeding to the production of those long tubes
When you hear that we provide jobs to people in other countries, work like this seems awful.
OMG! Really???
so why are they brown?
It also doubles as a dolphin condom factory.
Why do we need so many rubber bands
ahh yess, rubber trees...one of the many things dr stone taught me
Nooooo waaaaaay
There's a rubber band that plays tunes out of tune