Laser engravers are widely used in the manufacturing industry for laser marking and in some cases laser cutting a material as well. Desktop Laser engraving machines can be used for marking on wood, glass, metal or leather depending on the type of laser engraving machine available with you. This article covers various types of Laser engraving machines, their applications and How to select them?
Don’t miss this article on the difference between laser marking vs engraving vs etching.
Table of Contents
What Material Can be Laser Engraved ?
Laser engravers are used to cut, etch, mark or engrave following materials.
- Metals such as Aluminum, stainless steel, copper etc.
- Thermoplastics such as ABS, PC etc.
- Jewelry
- Coated metals
- Wood Parts
- Acrylic and glass
- Paper and cardboard
- Stones
Applications of Laser Engraving
Laser engraving is extensively used in the manufacturing industry and by hobbyists for marking and cutting materials. Compared to stickers, screen printing or pad printing, laser marking has the advantage of printing variable information at low cost. Here are the applications of laser engraving in manufacturing:
- Marking variable and fixed information such as QR code, Serial number, Mac ID on products.
- Mark brand name or logo on products.
- Used to create artwork on jewelry (Gold and Silver).
- Marking on printed circuit board (PCB).
- Artwork printing : Printing photographs on acrylic.
Selection of Laser Engraver Machines
Various types of Laser engraving machines are available in the market. Each type of laser engraver machine has its own advantages and limitations. Therefore before purchasing, it is always recommended to analyze engraving machines on following parameters.
Bed Size (Engraving Area)
Laser engraving machines are available in various engraving area options. Engraving area is the maximum area where a laser engraver can print in one go. Bed size selection is done according to part maximum printing area.
Materials to be Engraved
Laser engraving machines come with different technology and power options. One machine can not print all materials. Therefore it is always recommended to check machine capability to engrave the type of material before buying the machine.
Cycle Time and Speed
How frequently you want to engrave your parts has a direct impact on your machine selection. For example laser engraving machines for production are very costly ($ 15000). Whereas for home you can buy it for approx. $500.
Laser Engraving Machine Technology Available
Following technologies are used in Laser engraving machines to engrave a material. Each of these technologies has their own advantages, limitations and applications.
- Fiber Based Laser Engraving Machine : They are used to engrave metal, anodized aluminum and Plastic.
- CO2 Based Laser Engraver : Used for engraving jewelry, rubber stamps, name plate, rating plate, thermoplastic materials etc.
- Green Laser Engraving Machines : Green laser engraver can do marking on reflective materials (such as copper, silver and gold), plastic materials, glass and ceramic.
- Hybrid Laser Engraving Machines: They are used to engrave organic materials and metals.
Best Laser Engraving Machines
We recommend you to discuss your application with the machine manufacturer before the selection of laser engraver machine for your application. Having a detailed discussion with the manufacturer is the best way to select the machine. Here are some of the best affordable laser engraving machines available in the market.
Snapmaker 3-in-1 Engraver and Printer
Snapmaker is a complete metal open Design. If you are looking for a 3D printer, CNC Carving and Laser Engraving. This is one of the best budget laser engraver option available. With this one device you can do 3D printing, CNC Carving and Laser Engraving. It was started as a kickstarter project.
Features:
Work Area : 125 x 125 mm
Laser Type : Blue Laser Diode
Laser Power : 200mW
Supported File Types: SVG, JPEG, PNG etc.
Supported Materials : Wood, bamboo, leather, plastic, fabric, paper, non-transparent acrylic, etc.
Click Here for More Details on Snapmaker 3-in-1 Engraver and Printer.
Cubiio Laser Engraver
Cubiio is a portable laser engraver that you can control remotely with a smartphone. As claimed this is the first laser cube started as a kickstarter Project. Apart from engraving it can also cut materials upto a limited thickness.
Cubiio Laser engraver features
Work Area : 100 x 100 mm
Laser Type : Blue Laser Diode
Laser Power : 1600mW Adjustable
Supported File Types: G-CODE, BMP.
Connected : Yes Through BLE
Supported Materials For Engraving : Paper Board, Cardboard, Fabric, Leather, Felt, Wood, non-transparent acrylic
Supported Materials For Cutting (upto limited thickness): Paper Board, Cardboard, Fabric, Leather, Felt, Wood, non-transparent acrylic
Morphon 40w Laser Engraver
It is a low cost DIY Laser engraving machine.
Features:
Work Area : 200 x 300 mm
Laser Type : CO2
Laser Power : 40w
Supported File Types: Corel Draw
Connected : Through USB Port
Supported Materials For Engraving : Bamboo piece, double-color planks, boulder, horns, Leather, crystal, wood, organic plastic, abrics, paper ,film, canvas , acrylic and plastics.
Qiilu 1500mW Mini
This Laser engraver is a high power laser engraving machine that can be controlled by a laptop or smartphone.
Features:
Carving Space : 42 x 42 x 78 mm
Laser Type : CO2
Laser Power : 1500mw
Image Resolution: 550 x 550 px
Connected : Through USB Port and Smartphone Bluetooth
Supported Materials For Engraving : Wood, Plastic(fire-proof material not included), Acrylic, Bamboo, Rubber, Leather, Paper and other Flammable Materials
NEJE Master 3500mW
Its a low cost affordable open structure Laser engraver with moderate laser engraver.
Features:
Work Space : 150 x 150 mm
Laser Type : CO2
Laser Power : 3500mw
Image Resolution: 2000 x 2000 pixels.
Supported File Type : nc, dxf, bmp, jpg, png
Connected : Through USB Port and Smartphone Bluetooth
Supported Materials For Engraving : Acrylic, Aluminum, Stainless Steel
Emblaster 2
This is one of the advanced IoT enabled 3D laser cutter and engraver with a relatively large bed area. It comes with an in build camera for material alignment.
Features:
Work Space : 500 x 300 x 50 mm
Laser Type : Class I Solid State Diode Laser
Laser Power : Equivalent to 15-20w CO2 laser.
Supported File Type : nc, dxf, bmp, jpg, png
Connected : WiFi and USB
Supported Materials For Engraving : Cotton Fabric, Leather, Corrugated Cardboard, Acrylic (except transparent), Plywood, Balsa, Anodised Aluminium, Corkboard, Rubber.
Other Features: Automatic Laser Optic Calibration, Laser Height Set and Control, Built in Camera.
Insma Laser Engraver 3000mW
This is a low cost laser engraver for beginners.
Features:
Work Space : 80 x 80 mm
Laser Type : CO2
Laser Power : 3000mw
Supported File Type : JPEG, JPG, PNG, BMP
Connected : USB
Supported Materials For Engraving : Wood, Paper, Plastic Leather and non-transparent acrylic.
TEN-HIGH Laser Engraver
This is a high power laser engraver that can be used to engrave metal and plastics with relatively good quality.
Features
Work Space : 300 x 500 mm
Laser Type : CO2
Laser Power : 50W
Supported File Type : Corel Draw, bmp, dib, jpg, jpeg, png, gif, wmf, emf, pcx, tif, tiff etc.
Connected : Through USB
Supported Materials For Engraving : Organics or NON-metal materials such as acrylic, Plywood, Density board, Leather, Wood, Double color plate, Glass, Cloth, Bamboo, Paper etc.
To sum up, Laser engraving machines are widely used for marking on organic and non organic parts. Nowadays this technology has become so affordable that the even hobbyists can buy desktop laser engravers for home use.
We will keep updating this article on the best affordable laser engraving machines available. You can ask questions and give suggestions on laser engraver by sending a message in the comment box. We will do our best to add it in this post.
I’m looking for a low cost laser marking machine to mark 3 numbers on a stainless steel part 7/8 in. diameter x 3/16 wide.