“It takes a lot of people and a lot of machines to make erasers,” Mister Rogers summarizes at the end of this eraser factory tour video. “And I think it’s fun to watch.”
“I think it’s fun to see how people make different things. There are so many helpful people in this world of ours. Every day, you’ll find somebody who’s helping with something.”
See how a doughy mix that includes vegetable oil and rubber transforms into flat slabs that are cut and beveled into small rectangles that we recognize as classic pink erasers. Completed with a company stamp, the erasers are packaged up by hand and sent out to stores.
This Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood eraser factory tour aired in a 1987 episode about Making Mistakes. Watch it while you can; Mister Rogers videos are quick to disappear from YouTube. The full episode can be found on PBS.org.
Then watch these related factory tours:
• How Crayons Are Made – Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood
• How pencils are made at the Derwent Pencil Factory
• How are pencil sharpeners made?
• How Ink Is Made: Pigment powders, varnish, & big machines
Plus: Painting and erasing a clock in real-time.
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