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Laser engraver?

Jamie Straw

Jamie Straw

Joined
May 28, 2015
Messages
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Location
Bainbridge Island, WA
There's a shop on Etsy that sells kitchen utensils that can be customized with laser engraving (name, for instance). Choice of several different fonts, and size of lettering. There are a number of machines on Amazon that are under $250 with decent reviews. Has anyone had experience with these, or know someone who does?
 
Yeah, I know about those to some extent -- a friend of mine used those when he was a designer for Disney. These are small units that hook up via USB to a computer and can engrave wood and other non-metallic materials. Hoping someone has some knowledge of these small units.
 
They probably have a small work area which might be OK for your needs. The position resolution could be a problem if the steps are noticeable. Also, the bit depth is a consideration... It might be just on or off or only have a very limited number of shades of gray which would be a concern if doing graphics or copying photos. If you are just wanting to sign your name my opinion would be to not do it. I had my signature laser engraved on a few pieces and while it is flawless, it's like having "mass produced by a machine" written all over the piece. If you are wanting to put company logos and other commercial stuff on pens and bottle stoppers the it is probably a good use. I'll bet that the software for the cheap engravers can't compensate for a cylindrical surface. Finally, laser power is important even for engraving wood.
 
The reviews I've seen on the low end eBay laser marking machines are bad with zero support in case of problems. The ones on Amazon appear to be very low power, 300 milliwatt, making wood marking almost impossible.

The least expensive and reliable way that I know of to laser mark is adapting a laser head to a 3D printer. Barnes and Noble even sells 3D printers in the $300 range. For another $300+ you can buy an adaptable laser head kit from J-Tech Photonics in Texas.

Small 3 watt diode laser heads from J-Tech will do a very acceptable job marking wood. They'll mark on non-flat surfaces with up to maybe 1/4"+ difference in surface height. You could even hand hold the laser to "write" with, although laser are dangerous so better mounted somehow to prevent accidental eye contact.

The picture shows a laser marked image I did with my 3 watt laser head mounted on a CNC machine . The image is a downloaded jpeg line drawing. Coloring was done with fine tip acrylic markers. The paint doesn't bleed across the burn lines. The image is less than an inch square so poor quality coloring is not apparent at that size.

Celtic-painted.jpg.jpg .
 
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A member of my club uses a different technique to mark his turning.

He prints on a laser printer in mirror text what he wants on paper. He then transfers this to the wood using an iron or other heat source. I have tried it and it does work but it a PITA for me so I have not adapted it.

Stu
 
stu senator said:
A member of my club uses a different technique to mark his turning.

He prints on a laser printer in mirror text what he wants on paper. He then transfers this to the wood using an iron or other heat source. I have tried it and it does work but it a PITA for me so I have not adapted it.

Stu
Click to expand...

I've used that method for transferring full-size patterns to flat work (e.g. scroll-saw projects). It needs perfect registration (staples, not glue or tape), and it's time-consuming, but it's less messy than spray adhesive and cleanup. Use the maximum setting on the iron (usually "Linen").
 
Just found this whilst looking for other things and I have had the same question. Does anyone have first-hand experience with the $250 - $350 3W - 5W laser engravers found on Amazon?

All of the responses listed here seem to say "No, but I've tried other things", which is a little frustrating. Sort of like the answers to product questions on Amazon that say "I don't know, I don't own this product". I've actually seen that one.
 
The maker space I belong to has this machine. https://www.amazon.com/Mophorn-Engraving-Engraver-12x8Inch-300x200mm/dp/B07F8TMC7Z
It works well, but it has a fan and focus upgrade that cost as much as the machine. The software is also difficult to use.
If you have time and don't mind a lot of tinkering it does what it is supposed to do. I know you are looking at even cheaper models, but this isn't far from your price point. It also has the added safety of the enclosure and ability to vent the smoke out of your breathing area.

I did these handles for a friend on the amazon laser.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BinQK21AW8P/?igshid=1orxw936bws9n
 
I have in the past taken urn shapes to a business that has an Epilog system with the rotary axis that did an excellent job and that only cost me $20.00.
The low cost units don't have the fourth axis capability and most don't have any way to to put a small mark on the bottom of a bowl for instance. My advice would be to pay someone else to do it unless you can justify the expense with other projects.
.IMG_0873.JPG
 
The 4th axis isn't important unless you want to go around the piece. For just text or images that stay on one side, the image will distort the closer you get to the edge(from the perspective of the laser). Just stay to the center, and the distortion will not be noticable.
Don has a good point about finding an engraving shop. It will likely be cheaper and less of a headache to find someone with a good laser.
 
Thanks for all of the feedback, and apologies to anyone annoyed at the resurrection of this long-dead thread.

For $300, I might just try one of the 3-5 watt systems sold on Amazon, as long as it's returnable if it doesn't work or I blind myself. Seems like everyone complains about the included software.

I also looked into custom metal coins to embed in the bottom, but thought it would be cooler to be able to add details about date, wood, etc along with my name.

I'm still a turning newbie, so my stuff isn't up to the standards of most posting on AAW, so I may be getting ahead of myself in thinking anyone will curious about the "artist". Most of my stuff so far has gone to family, who so far seem to remember my name.
 
Another option is a branding iron to burn a logo onto the bottom of a piece, several companies make custom made tools for burning logos, names, etc. onto wood pieces. If you really want to use laser engraving there are Maker Spaces that have equipment like this that you could reserve the use of the machine for your personal projects on a weekly or monthly basis. Trophy and Sign shops usually use laser engraving these days, they may be able to help you out on a piece by piece basis. It would be fun to have a laser machine but most people would need to justify the expense or have an intended long term use for the machine in which case you would look at a machine able to do various projects cost effectively.
 
Mike Johnson said:
Another option is a branding iron to burn a logo onto the bottom of a piece, several companies make custom made tools for burning logos, names, etc. onto wood pieces. If you really want to use laser engraving there are Maker Spaces that have equipment like this that you could reserve the use of the machine for your personal projects on a weekly or monthly basis. Trophy and Sign shops usually use laser engraving these days, they may be able to help you out on a piece by piece basis. It would be fun to have a laser machine but most people would need to justify the expense or have an intended long term use for the machine in which case you would look at a machine able to do various projects cost effectively.
Click to expand...

I tried a branding iron. Not a good tool.
Rich
 
If your goal is to put your name, date, species of wood, etc. on the bottom of your finished work, you could go slightly lower tech and use a hand held engraving tool. Cindy Drozda uses one for that purpose, then fills the engraved writing with gold metallic wax (I forget the brand of wax pencil she uses), with a very attractive result. Others on the board here use one of a dozen or so other methods which have been extensively discussed and can be searched for, but the hand held engraver result would be somewhat similar to the laser tool.
 
Matthew Ferriter said:
Most of my stuff so far has gone to family, who so far seem to remember my name.
Click to expand...

That's a good sign that your work has developed a following. :D

The engraver solution that Dean mentioned is an easy way to do it and the results are excellent. The way that I do it is to first apply a finish to the bottom. A fast drying finish like shellac is what I like. When the shellac has dried I use my Dremel engraver with light pressure and writing slowly and carefully. It would be a good idea to spend some time practicing because it's not quite the same as writing with an ink pen. In addition to what Dean mentioned about filling in the writing with color, you can also use furniture touch up pencils such as Minwax Blend-Fil pencils. I use a dark walnut to simulate woodburning. Rub the surface with a paper towel to clean it up and then apply a top coat of shellac.

blendfil.jpg
 
Bill Boehme said:
That's a good sign that your work has developed a following. :D

The engraver solution that Dean mentioned is an easy way to do it and the results are excellent. The way that I do it is to first apply a finish to the bottom. A fast drying finish like shellac is what I like. When the shellac has dried I use my Dremel engraver with light pressure and writing slowly and carefully. It would be a good idea to spend some time practicing because it's not quite the same as writing with an ink pen. In addition to what Dean mentioned about filling in the writing with color, you can also use furniture touch up pencils such as Minwax Blend-Fil pencils. I use a dark walnut to simulate woodburning. Rub the surface with a paper towel to clean it up and then apply a top coat of shellac.

View attachment 30586
Click to expand...
Bill,

Have you tried using a light color on dark woods? Or is something like caulk or white wax needed (that’s often done on metal like dials to bring out the engraving)?

Rich
 
Matthew Ferriter said:
Just found this whilst looking for other things and I have had the same question. Does anyone have first-hand experience with the $250 - $350 3W - 5W laser engravers found on Amazon?

All of the responses listed here seem to say "No, but I've tried other things", which is a little frustrating. Sort of like the answers to product questions on Amazon that say "I don't know, I don't own this product". I've actually seen that one.
Click to expand...

Having tried to or three of them, I gave up. Everyone I ended up returning save one which I threw away because it failed shortly after the return window. The software is incredibly bad and generally in Chinese of some kind be at Mandarin or Cantonese I don’t know or the new unified standard but whatever it is of course is unreadable here unless you know it.

On the positive side did usually include some kind of a pictogram so you can figure out what you’re doing from the pictures but it’s pretty much a basic platform to operate the machine. Speaking of machines, their quality is so poor that it is practically impossible to replicate more than a few of an item with any degree of precision.

I ended up buying a boss LS1416. Essentially a Taiwanese machine brought here to the states and gone through and modified and bundled with better software. Unfortunately their base model cost about 12 to 15 times with those inexpensive engravers cost.

Having said all that though, it wouldn’t hurt to get a $300 one if you realize that it’s going to be more or less disposable because it will give you a good idea of what’s involved and you can consider it an inexpensive class.

I would love to have an epilogue and be able to take the classes and such but you’re talking about $15-$20,000 and unless you’re going to go into the business and intend to make $$$...

If I were doing it over again, I would buy something in the hundred dollar range, play around with it and see if I was interested at all, and then when it broke – which it will – then I’ll know whether I want to step up to a really good laser or just ditch the idea altogether. Hope this helps
 
RichColvin said:
I tried a branding iron. Not a good tool.
Rich
Click to expand...

For years we used branding irons to mark wood products. Not something I would recommend for items that you value. You only get one chance to approach the work with a direct, straight on contact. Without that you have a partial burn, more severe on one edge that looks bad. You almost need the brand iron to be mounted in a fixture similar to a drill press and the surface to be branded has to be flat and level.
 
My laser'ing has been with a 4th axis to hold and rotate the work. As turners having a rotary axis seems the best solution.

If you want a project buy one of the $300+/- lasers units from Amazon. Throw away the control and associated software, you're left with a small three axis machine tool powered by stepper motors. The stepper motor driver electronics likely will be able to be re-used. That's a whole lot of hardware for the price.

Add one of the very capable CNC control packages that can be free or low cost (Mach, LinuxCNC, or Centroid Acorn). Cobble together a rotary axis with another stepper and you've really got something.

This isn't beyond a novice in complexity, it's actually not so difficult. Stepper motors are easy to hookup and control by computer. Home-built CNC'ers have paved the way making it not much more than hook the red wire to terminal #1, etc, etc.
 
RichColvin said:
Bill,

Have you tried using a light color on dark woods? Or is something like caulk or white wax needed (that’s often done on metal like dials to bring out the engraving)?

Rich
Click to expand...

I haven't, but it should work if the wood is really dark. Minwax makes a white Blend-Fil pencil.
 
I bought a Neje Master 3500 laser that works very well for pens and other stuff. The software is easy to use, you can import and laser pictures, line art or just about anything. I got mine within a week from China but there's a woman in CA that has a website, https://nmclasers.com/, that sells them for $167. Attached is a picture of a mini disc (used as a marker in disc golf) that I made and laser engraved. The machine will engrave a 150mm x 150mm area with it's 3.5w laser, there is also a 7w & 20w laser head available.
There's also a Facebook user group that has a ton of tips and ideas.
 

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Doug Rasmussen said:
My laser'ing has been with a 4th axis to hold and rotate the work. As turners having a rotary axis seems the best solution.

If you want a project buy one of the $300+/- lasers units from Amazon. Throw away the control and associated software, you're left with a small three axis machine tool powered by stepper motors. The stepper motor driver electronics likely will be able to be re-used. That's a whole lot of hardware for the price.

Add one of the very capable CNC control packages that can be free or low cost (Mach, LinuxCNC, or Centroid Acorn). Cobble together a rotary axis with another stepper and you've really got something.

This isn't beyond a novice in complexity, it's actually not so difficult. Stepper motors are easy to hookup and control by computer. Home-built CNC'ers have paved the way making it not much more than hook the red wire to terminal #1, etc, etc.
Click to expand...

Doug, that sounds like a pretty cool project.
 
I've used epoxy dome inserts and epoxy resin covered digital art to mark turnings for years. And, if your insert measures a standard diameter (3/4", 1" etc...), you can use a forstner bit to make the counterbore for a precise fit. All you need is a printer, a circle punch, epoxy and some imagination to come up with pretty cool stuff.
2019_BoxSet_31d.jpg 2017_20a.jpg 2017_17e.jpg 2016_Maple_40a.jpg
 
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Don Wattenhofer said:
The guy that I first used to engrave a turning had powdered colors that he could put on the initial engraving then run the engraver a second time to burn in the color.
Click to expand...

That reminds me of a process I've often used for coloring laser engraved elements...put a coat of varnish on the piece before lasing, so whatever you use for coloring won't bleed into the un-lased areas. After lasing, wipe off the smoke film with a wet cloth and apply color, wiping off the excess coloring quickly. The best laser color medium I've found, that will not bleed into un-lased (varnished) areas is pebeo Fantasy Prisme paint.

Here's an example:
1cc57295a49135b548e6bf62290ab2a8.jpg
 
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Ed Davidson said:
Here's an example:
Click to expand...

nice techniqie

“Colorful Colorado” Brought a smile. It’s sort of running joke with the Amigos but
Colorado is brown Florida is green.....
Except for when Colorado is white we have only had one visit when we did not see some snow and we have not been there in the winter.

I was able to visit valley of the gods - colors and colors
 
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hockenbery said:
nice techniqie

“Colorful Colorado” Brought a smile. It’s sort of running joke with the Amigos but
Colorado is brown Florida is green.....
Except for when Colorado is white we have only had one visit when we did not see some snow and we have not been there in the winter.
Click to expand...

I'm ducking for cover. :D
 
Jon Behnke said:
I bought a Neje Master 3500 laser that works very well for pens and other stuff. The software is easy to use, you can import and laser pictures, line art or just about anything. I got mine within a week from China but there's a woman in CA that has a website, https://nmclasers.com/, that sells them for $167. Attached is a picture of a mini disc (used as a marker in disc golf) that I made and laser engraved. The machine will engrave a 150mm x 150mm area with it's 3.5w laser, there is also a 7w & 20w laser head available.
There's also a Facebook user group that has a ton of tips and ideas.
Click to expand...
Yea, I have the Neje 1500 and just ordered the 3500. I like the 1500 but it's working space is limited. The 3500 has a larger working space. For the price, I can't complain one bit of what it does. I created my own little brand that I put on some of my Christmas gifts going out this year. Lol
 

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