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Manish Naik and Eric Astor, of Furnace MFG, watch the vinyl-processing conveyor belt at Furnace's Fairfax, Va., shipping facility. (Photo: Joshua Yospyn/TBD)

If you buy vinyl, there's a good chance you've enjoyed the handiwork of the Fairfax, Va.-headquartered record pressing company Furnace MFG. The vinyl manufacturer has pressed for the likes of Metallica, the Beastie Boys, Neil Young, and a slew of independent artists.

Unlike the cut-and-dry, completely mechanized way in which CDs are made and duplicated, pressing vinyl is craft. "It's still magic to me," says Eric Astor, president and CEO of the 15-year-old company.

It is definitely a magical process, but Astor and Furnace COO Manish Naik have demystified it a bit, with a detailed explanation (with pictures) of how, exactly, their record pressing process works, from start to finish.