[drum303] remembered those days and used them to assuage his buyer’s remorse when the laser module on his brand new CNC engraver crapped out after the first 10 minutes. A cheap magnifying glass ...

After reading tales about cutters of such size going out of alignment when someone as much as walked nearby, he dropped the idea – and equipped the CNC head with a high-power laser diode module ...

However, the 5W diode laser is a nifty add-on and a steal at $149. This module attaches to the CNC spindle just like milling bits do, except for the addition of a short communications cable.