Mastering UV Glass Engraving with the ComMarker Omni 1

I’ll admit it: when I first unboxed the ComMarker Omni 1, I didn’t believe it could really engrave glass. “A laser that etches inside the material? Cuts holes without shattering it? Yeah, right.” But after weeks of testing, singed fingertips, and one very surprised local glassblower, I’m here to tell you: UV lasers are glass witchcraft. Let me walk you through the messy, magical reality—no hype, just hard-won lessons.

The “Aha!” Moment That Changed Everything

It happened at 11 PM on a Tuesday. I’d spent hours battling blurry engravings when I accidentally left a fingerprint on a test tile. The laser fired—and etched both the smudge and a crystal-clear dinosaur beneath the surface. My jaw dropped. Suddenly, I understood: UV light doesn’t just scratch glass—it dances through it.

Dialing In the Magic: Focus, Wobble & “Business Card Engineering”

🔍 The Focus Wars: 332mm Was a Lie

The manual claimed 332mm was ideal. Reality? My engravings looked like they’d been etched through Vaseline. After 37 failed tests, I finally cracked the code:

The “Sizzle Test”: Lower the laser until the beam creates a sharp, bright spark on the glass (like a tiny supernova).
The Big Scary Focus Stick: Printed this genius tool – slid it under the laser head until sparks flew precisely at 330mm. Game-changer.

Pro-Tragedy: My first “level” laser bed? A stack of business cards and washers. Shimming the Omni 1’s feet took 45 infuriating minutes… but suddenly, engravings went from fuzzy to forensic.

⚙️ Wobble Mode: Slow Magic vs. Fast Regret

Testing wobble mode felt like choosing between a sports car and a scalpel:

Mode	Speed	Result	Best For
OFF	2000 mm/s	Speedy but jagged edges	Simple text, bulk work
ON	1500 mm/s	Buttery-smooth depth	Art, portraits, fine detail

My Sweet Spot:

markdownSpeed: 1500 mm/s Frequency: 80 Q-Pulse: 5 Dot Size: 800

Result: Etched a stray cat hair onto glass (don’t ask). Crisp enough to count the strands.

Subsurface Sorcery: Where Mistakes Become Masterpieces

That accidental fingerprint? It sparked my favorite project yet:

Pressed my kid’s thumb onto a heart-shaped glass pendant.
Engraved his print + a subsurface monster truck “driving” beneath it.
Sealed it with resin – now he wears his “superhero fingerprint” everywhere.

⚠️ Raw Truth: Subsurface is fragile magic. It works best on:

Optically clear glass (no tints, textures, or recycled imperfections)
Lab-grade borosilicate (cheap glass cracks or clouds)
YOUR test pieces (never trust customer-supplied glass!)

Cutting Glass: The 2-Minute Miracle (That Almost Broke Me)

I laughed when ComMarker claimed “glass cutting.” Then this happened:

⚡ The Breakthrough Settings:

markdownShape: Filled circle (NOT outline) Diameter: 10mm circle + 0.3mm INSET Passes: 19 Focus: 330mm Time: 2 minutes flat

Why it works:

Fill mode distributes heat evenly (line mode = thermal shock = cracks)
Inset prevents “crater edges”
High frequency (80kHz) vaporizes glass layer-by-layer

First Success: A confetti pile of shattered glass.
Triumph: A perfect 10mm hole in 1mm pane – smooth enough for jewelry.

Real Talk: Who Should (and Shouldn’t) Get This Laser

✅ BUY If You:

Crave detail CO₂/diode lasers can’t touch (think: eyelashes on glass portraits)
Make gifts/art (personalized perfume bottles, wedding goblets, pet memorials)
Love tinkering (this is not a “load and go” machine)

⛔ AVOID If You:

Want to engrave wood/metal primarily (diode/fiber lasers win)
Need production speed (subsurface = slow, deliberate magic)
Fear calibration (this laser demands patience + coffee)

My Unfiltered Verdict

The ComMarker Omni 1 isn’t a tool—it’s a portal to glass alchemy. Can it be fussy? Absolutely. But when you nail that subsurface portrait or slice through glass like butter? Nothing compares.

Final Tip: Wipe glass with 99% isopropyl alcohol twice. That “mysterious fog” in your engraving? It’s your thumbprint. Ask me how I know. 😉