Turn DVD Drives Into a CNC Laser Engraver

Hackster Staff
Aug 28, 2017 · 2 min read

Since you’re reading this blog, you know that laser engravers are really cool. As Constantine (aka “How To Do”) shares in his YouTube video below, building a laser engraver out of optical drives is not the easiest, and probably not even the cheapest, way to get one. On the other hand, creating one should be an interesting undertaking.

The DIY CNC machine made from two old DVD drives and an Arduino Nano. (📷: How To Do)

Constantine’s write-up goes over how the engraver’s frame was constructed, but the heart of the build is that both axes move via carriages recycled from a pair of DVD drives. The laser can also be recycled, though he used one he built in another video here.

For this engraver, Constantine is using a 1.5w 445nm laser module. (📷: How To Do)

Processing power for the device is provided by an Arduino Nano running Grbl, and he spends the latter half of the video going over how to set everything up. He notes he tried a few options, and is using LASERGRBL to control (send GCODE to) the router. It looks like a great option to check out, as it can work with prepared GCODE or normal image files.

Hackster Blog

Hackster.io, an Avnet community, is the world’s largest network for hardware & software developers. With 1 million members and 17,000+ projects, beginners and professionals can learn and share how to build robotics, industrial automation systems, AI-powered machines, and more.

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Hackster Staff

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Hackster Blog

Hackster.io, an Avnet community, is the world’s largest network for hardware & software developers. With 1 million members and 17,000+ projects, beginners and professionals can learn and share how to build robotics, industrial automation systems, AI-powered machines, and more.

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