Interesting optics allow this laser engraver to fit in a pocket

We'll start this article with a stern warning: building a laser engraver that can fit in your pocket is probably not a good idea. Without any safety locks and made from lightweight components, this thing could easily topple over and burn a retina before you even have time to react. You definitely shouldn't be building it, or even being in the same room with it. Got it?

Safety concerns aside, [DAZ] took a pretty neat approach to making this engraver, eschewing the traditional X-Y gantry design in favor of something more like the galvanometers used for laser projectors, though completely homebrew and much, much slower than commercial galvos. Constructed primarily from 3D printed parts, this engraver's scan head uses a single mirror mounted on an angled block attached to two degrees of freedom gimbals. The laser module and mirror gimbals are mounted on a lightweight aluminum stand so the assembly hangs directly above a workpiece; the steppers rotated the mirror to weave the beam across the workpiece and etch a pattern.

The video below shows it in action, and again we have to point out that it's about as close to this build as you should get. However, it shouldn't be too difficult to add safety features - at a minimum, we'd like to see a toggle switch that shuts off the power if knocked over, and maybe some sort of enclosure. Sure, that would probably mess up the burner's pocketability, but is it really a valuable enough feature to risk your eyesight?

If there's laser building in your future, please read our handy guide to homebrew laser cutter safety - before you can.