The 5 Best Metal Laser Engravers

A laser engraver is a tool that uses a powerful beam of light through optical magnification to leave stunning marks on hard surfaces. The technique involves firing a high-energy beam of light at a targeted area to vaporize material and leave a permanently visible mark. Color changes can also be due to chemical reactions between the material and heat from the laser beam, foaming, charring or ablation.

Choosing the Right Laser Engraver

While laser engraving is one of the most advanced and accurate methods of marking fine surfaces, the choice of machine will determine the success of your project. Here are the top 5 laser engravers you should be using. We've based our list on the latest customer sentiment data through November 2022 and recommendations from our community of metallurgists. The following products can be purchased in the HTPOW online store, and have very high cost performance.

1. LaserPecker 2 Laser Engraver

Unlike ordinary routers, the LaserPecker 2 is a well-polished high-end machine with smooth surfaces, a small ergonomic handle, and a touchscreen control panel. The panels and handlebars are on top. The front is an indicator light, and the back is two USB ports, a power port, and a Type-C port. One USB port receives data and the other supplies power to auxiliary components. There's also a ventilation filter and a built-in fan on the back.

The unit has a 5W laser beam emitter. To use it, attach a portable shield (which filters out blue light) and a quarter-inch thread for attaching the unit to a motorized stand. The utility stand has an L-shaped distance rod that moves along the Y axis using a small motor. Another thing you shouldn't miss is a rollable stand or auxiliary booster. With it, you can print on cylindrical objects such as water bottles or wine glasses, giving you a wide range of engravable objects. This is great if you want to engrave it on your water bottle, wine glass or mug.

The rollable stand runs on batteries held in place by a magnetic strip.

Other accessories it comes with are an extra fan and a power cube, which is basically a 20,000aAh power bank that can power the device for 200 minutes.

Finally, LaserPecker engravers are extremely portable. You can lean it against a fixed surface such as a wall and carve on it. Set the machine to slide mode and it will roll across wide surfaces like tables as it carves.

2.xTool D1 Pro Laser Engraver

The xTool D1 Pro is sold with five main components, packed in a small box. All the electronics are usually in one enclosure; you just need to unpack and reassemble the frame and connect the wires, power and data cables. Unless you've built a machine before, it takes about 45 minutes to read through the how-to manual and actually set it up. And because every wire and part is unique in design, you can't interchange connections or parts.

The frame and rods are made of high-quality steel, which is resistant to warping.

The machine runs on two quiet stepper motors. One is for the x-axis and the other is for moving the laser head along the y-axis. Depending on the thickness of the material, focusing guides on the head move it along the Z axis, i.e. up and down.

The D1 has two diode emitters instead of the one we often see in many laser engravers. The main diode points directly at the material. The other emitter is perpendicular to the main emitter, but as the beam bounces, the composite lens is tilted at a 45 degree angle. This bends the beam through a 90 degree angle, connecting the beam from the main diode. The result is a doubly powerful router.

With a 10W beam illuminating the surface, heat buildup is unavoidable. Luckily, a fan on top of the unit cools the area down.

The engraving machine is compatible with LightBurn and customized LaserBox Basics software, which receives data via USB data cable, Wi-Fi or TF card.

3. ORTUR Laser Master 3 Laser Engraver

The new box with the Ortur Laser Master 3 laser engraver has four aluminum frames, an X-axis gantry, belts, brackets and some cables. You'll also find a 10W laser module, power cord, and electronics enclosure.

While setting up the device is a bit complicated, the manual and tutorial simplify the job. Build the frame first, then the belt and X-axis gantry. Finish by screwing the electronics housing and laser module in place.

The electronic shell adopts a 32-bit motherboard, and the design is professional and precise. The laser output power is 10W, the beam will cut the wood the size of a credit card.

The ultra-fine focus area of ​​0.08cm can produce works with clearer boundaries.

Safety is a major concern when using a laser engraver. To reduce the chance of accidents and eye damage, ORTUR has invested in three safety features: If the USB cable is accidentally unplugged, the machine turns off the laser beam to reduce the risk of fire. Another feature is the on-board G-sensor, which automatically turns off the lasers when the machine is tilted. Finally, the laser turns off automatically if left unattended for a long time.

4. ATOMSTACK A5 Pro Laser Engraver, 40W Wood Laser Engraving and Cutting Machine

The ATOMSTACK A5 Pro is a standard desktop engraver with a working surface area of ​​approximately 252 square inches, a 5W module and a compression point. The compression spot houses several crystal-clear lenses that compress the coarse, weaker laser beam into a narrower but more intense beam. A more focused laser can easily tear through 0.5" thick wood. If you want a generous work area, the extension kit effortlessly extends the length from 21 inches to 33.5 inches.

In addition, the high-performance lightweight aluminum structure consisting of one-piece lead-screws flexibly forms the guide rail of the laser module. On a smooth pole, the laser module can cover 430 inches per minute. This impressive speed is useful when working on complex designs and time is not on your side.

The UV filtering acrylic on the laser module filters out up to 97% of UV rays making it safe for your eyes and skin. This feature also allows you to have a clear 180 degree view of what the machine is doing from above.

Finally, the ATOMSTACK A5 is compatible with both Mac and Windows operating systems and software. You can use the free LaserGRB software or pay for an advanced design software called LightBurn. After coming up with a unique design, you can convert it to NC, BMP, JPG, PNG or DXF files. The machine has no problem with either of them.

5. ATOMSTACK S20 PRO Laser Engraver

Here is another functional yet gorgeous laser engraver of Atomstack S20 Pro. Its design revolves around bringing a compact and advanced machine capable of shaping parts from wood, acrylic and sheet metal. It can cut wood, acrylic, and metal 0.5, 0.3, and 0.002 inches thick, respectively. This is done with a 20W beam.

The beam is a combination of four 6W beams, reflecting the same target through laser coupling technology. It is one of the latest inventions in the industry and ATOMSTACK is proud to use it to boost the output of this machine compared to its predecessors.

The brain of the machine is a 32-bit motherboard. In real life, this motherboard is built with the same architecture as some of our laptops and computers. Similar to a laptop, the machine's motherboard can process up to 32 bits of data in parallel, delivering consistent results.

Backing the motherboard is an advanced 254-bit color scale and a laser spot covering an area of ​​0.000012 square inches. In retrospect, this tiny area is equivalent to a pixel (the smallest unit of an image). Therefore, the smaller the surface area of ​​the laser spot, the sharper the final work. Thus, the engraver creates delicate patterns with better contrast.

All of these features, including the air assist kit, are built on an aircraft-grade aluminum frame. The frame is durable, stable and lightweight.