# Mini laser engraver



## Neededwill (Feb 13, 2015)

So I decided to purchase a mini laser engraver today.  Can't wait to get it and try it out.  Will mainly use it for engraving a name on a pen, logo on a bottle stopper or some type of design on a floating wine bottle holder.

Will update once I get it and try it out.


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## Dan Masshardt (Feb 13, 2015)

Which one did you buy?


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## magpens (Feb 13, 2015)

Lucky you !  Please keep us informed of your progress with it.


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## Neededwill (Feb 13, 2015)

I am starting out with a benbox to see how it works.  I am not made of money.


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## Dan Masshardt (Feb 13, 2015)

Neededwill said:


> I am starting out with a benbox to see how it works.  I am not made of money.



I don't know anything about that.  What is the rough price range of something like that?


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## Neededwill (Feb 13, 2015)

Just search benbox on Google, it's a mini laser engraver.  Cost was $113 on sale.  I saw one being used at a mall cell phone store, he was engraving someone phone case.  I got close enough to see the name benbox on it, so I researched and found it.


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## wyone (Feb 13, 2015)

wow...  113...  I am VERY interested in seeing how it works.  I am an electrician and often have to have things engraved and if I can do it myself it would be awesome


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## jewellmd (Feb 13, 2015)

I'd be interested in how that works too.  I've had a lot of customers who ask me if I can do engraving (names mainly).  Keep us posted and provide pics when you get some samples out.


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## low_48 (Feb 13, 2015)

So you have seen it work? I watched a video on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0UmMffg46E that made it look painfully slow just engraving paper. Software really looks odd. It looks like it uses a laser diode compared to a CO2 laser and lenses. How fine will it engrave? I can't see that there is any focus on it, so I wonder about how it will do when you add a pen. I use a v block in my laser to hold the pen. Think this will send it way out of focus? I'll watch to see how it works. Do they have a website? Couldn't find one on the Google search. I saw somewhere that these have 400 mw diode? That's less than 1 watt and my laser is considered a really small machine at 25 watts. Are you sure it will engrave wood? Sorry, lots of questions, but really cheap Chinese lasers were around $2,000. Now a $113 anything seems too good to be true.


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## Tom T (Feb 13, 2015)

Wow, great stuff, congratulations .  Hope it works well as others said please keep us posted on the out come.


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## Neededwill (Feb 14, 2015)

Rich, I understand your concern.  I saw it work and it is slower than a $2000 laser but this is a hobbiest tool not a business for me.  This stuff is my fun and stress relief.  But as my dad always said to me "don't say can't till you try".  

Once I get it and test it I will post what I find.


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## darrin1200 (Feb 14, 2015)

I am very interested in hearing what you think of this. 

For the amount of lazering that I would be doing, this may be the answer.


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## hanau (Feb 14, 2015)

Where did you find it for $113?

I wouldn't mind trying one out if they will engrave wood.


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## Neededwill (Feb 14, 2015)

So this is the one I bought, I will only be doing small things so didn't care to spend more.

Freeshipping ! 300MW laser power DIY laser engraving machine,Mini laser engraving machine ,best gift for Christmas,advanced toys-in Laser Equipment from Industry & Business on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

They have it other places that I found but with free shipping why not.


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## Ed McDonnell (Feb 14, 2015)

Could be fun to play with for not a lot of money.  Just be careful.  It's a relatively low power laser, but you don't want to take chances with your eyesight from reflected exposure.  I would not let my kids, friends or spouses out in the shop to watch the thing work.  I would consider building a protective enclosure with power venting to the outside.  I would never leave the thing running unattended.  But that's just me.

Have fun.

Ed


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## Neededwill (Feb 14, 2015)

Agree Ed, safety first!!!


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## gbpens (Feb 14, 2015)

These small engravers travel on a two axis bed which is fine for engraving on boxes. A pen is a curved surface which implies the need to turn the cylinder shape at a rate conducive to the right to left movement of the engraving head. Even if it only does logos on boxes it's a real find. Good luck with it.


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## pesto126 (Feb 15, 2015)

Seems like these are having lots of problems.. overheating being the #1 issue.  Good luck and let us know how it goes!


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## wood-of-1kind (Feb 15, 2015)

Looking forward to hopefully your positive review. A low cost unit like this would certainly help many members get in the laser game without spending a small fortune. Expectations relative to cost for this unit should be set out accordingly.


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## low_48 (Feb 15, 2015)

The one video I watched on EBay, showed it firing to burn each pixel. That's going to be crazy slow. I know that everyone is excited about a sub $200 laser, but come on guys, let's not expect much. $200 barely buys the laser tube in what was the cheap Chinese lasers.


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## Neededwill (Feb 15, 2015)

Just to explain, I will only be using this as a hobbyist having fun toy, not for a business.  It may or may not work but it will be my fun.  It's like buying my lathe I read and had so many turners saying buy this or that but you have to buy what makes you happy and what you can afford.  Have fun and try something new is what I have learned from this hobby. And patience is needed when try some of our wood work, trial and error.


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## TonyL (Feb 15, 2015)

Congratulations on your purchase - nothing ventured, nothing gained


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## oneleggimp (Feb 15, 2015)

I saw a YouTube video where one benbox  laser head melted down.  Caveat Emptor.


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## Kragax (Feb 16, 2015)

As far as I can tell you would have to make a flat on the pen and the body may be too thick. The white box has an adjustable head and focus but the pictures I've seen show it marking on the flat of a pencil. As you have to deal with a round object you would need some way to turn the pen to keep the laser in focus. Not impossible but tricky. My 2cents


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## sbell111 (Aug 9, 2015)

I realize that this is an old thread, but someone posted pics on facebook of pens that he engraved with a similar, but slightly less powered 250mw hobby laser.  His results looked pretty good.

A few things should be noted as they have been touched in in this thread.  First, a rotary attachment is not necessary to engrave one line of text onto a pen barrel.  The limited amount of curve is not an issue.

Second, the video that I saw of the laser burning out mentioned that he used the machine no-stop for thirty minutes when it burned out.  Using it for that long is contrary to the manufacturer's recommendations.  Based on the video, he was clearly running it way too slowly.  For our purposes, it would never run for more than a minute at a time to burn a line of text into a pen barrel.

Third, focusing with a larger laser is achieved by raising and lowering the work surface to give you optimal distance.  Many people will by or make a tool to allow them to quickly set it to the perfect distance.  Instead of raising and lowering the bed, you raise and lower the laser head to maintain the optimal distance (although from the videos that I've seen, many people don't bother).


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## low_48 (Aug 10, 2015)

The video I watched about one of these machines, burned a single pixel at a time. I think you've under estimated the burn time at one minute. The smallest commercial laser engraver is 25 watts, that thing would be .25 watts. Could you post a link or screen shot of that sample? I thought these things were just diodes. Can you really focus one? Is there a lens at the end of a diode?


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## keithbyrd (Aug 11, 2015)

Was there ever a final evaluation of this laser?


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## Skie_M (Aug 14, 2015)

Generally speaking, the laser light is "filtered" through a special lasing lens that is mirrored all around and at both ends, with just a very very tiny hole dead center on each end and then passes through a special refraction lens that only allows light that is traveling perfectly straight and at the same frequency to pass out through the other side.  This is true no matter what the source of the laser light is.  Having a lens that focuses the laser beam is not necessary ... it should be very thin and highly focused anywhere between 1 inch from the beam aperture to wherever it hits this side of planet earth.


I'ld be interested in getting something like this, myself, for engraving work on my pens ...


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## low_48 (Aug 15, 2015)

Skie_M said:


> Generally speaking, the laser light is "filtered" through a special lasing lens that is mirrored all around and at both ends, with just a very very tiny hole dead center on each end and then passes through a special refraction lens that only allows light that is traveling perfectly straight and at the same frequency to pass out through the other side.  This is true no matter what the source of the laser light is.  Having a lens that focuses the laser beam is not necessary ... it should be very thin and highly focused anywhere between 1 inch from the beam aperture to wherever it hits this side of planet earth.
> 
> 
> I'ld be interested in getting something like this, myself, for engraving work on my pens ...



Why does every laser engraver made have a lens that has to be a specific distance from the surface?


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## Sylvanite (Aug 15, 2015)

low_48 said:


> Why does every laser engraver made have a lens that has to be a specific distance from the surface?


Because (contrary to previous statements) laser tubes do not emit light collimated to pinpoint size.  My laser engraver tube (60W) produces a beam about 1/8" diameter.  At that size, it is barely energetic enough to burn paper.  It certainly won't cut or engrave wood or plastic.  The engraver has a series of mirrors that reflect the light down through a condensing lens that _does_ focus the laser beam down to a dot tiny enough that I can set the engraver resolution to 500 DPI (although practically speaking, I usually engrave at 300 DPI).

The lens has a fixed focal length, meaning that the engraved surface should ideally be that distance from the lens.  I am able to raise or lower the worktable so that the item I'm engraving is at the right height.  The beam diverges above and below the focal point, but there is some leeway for curved surfaces.  If I'm within about 1/8", I can still get good results engraving flat.  For images that wrap around a pen barrel, however, I have to install a rotating fixture.

I hope that helps,
Eric


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## low_48 (Aug 15, 2015)

Thanks Eric, well said. I have an older ULS25 watt with rotary. I have two lenses, 1 1/2" and 2" that shoot a dot of .003" and .005". Pretty sure it won't hold that dot until it hits planet earth. I have trouble explaining the process, and was surprised with the previous comments. I've posted on here before about these tiny laser toys with the hopes that people understand just how far down the line of what is called a laser engraver, they really are. $150 is not a big deal for some to spend on an experiment, but I personally don't like throwing that kind of money away.


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## Skie_M (Aug 16, 2015)

Mmm ... true, with such meager power output, you need additional focus for pinpoint accuracy and energy transfer.  The appropriate focal length should still be at least an inch long, with a few millimeters of extremely accurate focus.  I assume it's this extremely accurate range you are wanting, for very precise image transfer onto a curved surface.


I've gotten too used to reading about ruby laser upgrades and such with 1000 watt lasers .... for deep well drilling.


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## rmcctr (May 15, 2016)

so i recently bought the benbox mini laser engraver.
After doing some tests in scrap wood i can say i am pleased with the results i got in 2 pens i engraved.
Each pen takes about 10 minutes to be engraved.


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## NLAlston (May 29, 2017)

sbell111 said:


> focusing with a larger laser is achieved by raising and lowering the work surface to give you optimal distance.  Many people will by or make a tool to allow them to quickly set it to the perfect distance.  Instead of raising and lowering the bed, you raise and lower the laser head to maintain the optimal distance (although from the videos that I've seen, many people don't bother).



I know I'm picking this up from nearly two years ago, but it is very interesting that I found this.

I'm a very recent owner of a Neje 1000mW Laser Engraver and, just last night, ordered another one, for a spare.

I knew nothing of making vertical adjustments to the laser module, until yesterday, when I saw a YouTube video of someone doing that very thing.  The instructions that came with my unit had NO mention of that.  The only adjustment that had been touched on was within turning the focus ring to obtain a sharper dot.  

So, now, I guess it is all about playing around with the vertical settings of the module.


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## larryc (May 30, 2017)

Do you have a link to that YouTube?


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## NLAlston (May 30, 2017)

larryc said:


> Do you have a link to that YouTube?



No, Larry.  I sure don't.  But I'll look for it and, if I happen to run across it, I will most certainly get back to you, with it.


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## NLAlston (Jun 1, 2017)

larryc said:


> Do you have a link to that YouTube?



Hey Larry, I found that video.  I don't have a link, to supply you, because of the manner by which I am viewing it.  I'm on a Roku tethered tv, right now, but can give you what info was shown.  It is as follows:

Neje DK-8-KZ 1000mw Laser Engraver Printer
By Game On
5 months ago


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## larryc (Jun 2, 2017)

This is the link

https://youtu.be/XoCnfkrVC2U


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## PMBROTH.NY (Jun 21, 2017)

I added a fan that lays on top of the laser stand blowing down onto the laser .   It plugs into powered hub. 


Sent from my iPad using Penturners.org mobile app


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## TonyL (Jun 21, 2017)

My second one came in less than 7 calendar days. I order the replacement laser diode for my first Neje two days before ordering the second Neje and I still haven't received the diode. Funny.


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