Engraving mugs and bottles: setting up a rotary axis

Accessories7 min readUpdated: 10/2026

are explained briefly when you hover over or tap them.

A gantry laser only moves in X and Y over a flat surface. For a mug, a bottle or a wine glass you therefore need a rotary axis: it turns the workpiece under the laser head while the laser only moves in one direction. This guide shows which rotary to use for what, how to set it up and which materials can be engraved with diode, CO₂ or fibre lasers.

Roller or chuck rotary

There are two designs. According to the LightBurn documentation, a chuck rotary holds the workpiece with adjustable jaws, while on a roller rotary it rests on driven rollers and is turned by friction.

	Roller rotary	Chuck rotary
Principle	Item rests loosely on rollers	Item is clamped
Strengths	quick to place, large diameters, nothing is clamped	does not slip, good for mugs with handles and non-round items
Weaknesses	smooth or heavy items can slip, handles can get in the way	diameter must be entered exactly, clamping too tightly endangers glass
Typical for	bottles, drinking glasses, straight tumblers	cups, thermal mugs, stemmed wine glasses

Some rotaries can do both. According to the manufacturer, the xTool RA2 Pro takes diameters of 3 to 198 mm in roller mode and 0 to 100 mm in chuck mode. Which rotary suits your machine is listed in the data sheets, for example for the xTool S1 20W (RA2 Pro), the xTool P2S (RA3) or the open Creality Falcon2 22W (its own Rotary Kit). The article Laser accessories gives an overview of further accessories.

Making room: risers and laser class

With open diode lasers you simply place the rotary under the frame and raise the laser with risers if needed. Enclosed machines have a fixed floor and little height. For larger diameters you then need a riser base that the whole machine stands on. For the P2/P2S, xTool states that items under 42 mm work on the base plate without a riser, and from 42 mm the riser is recommended. For the xTool S1, the diameter range of the RA2 Pro is explicitly given as requiring the additional riser.

Important: a riser can change the laser class. The Bambu Lab R1 is class 1 as delivered, but with the riser base or conveyor belt it is class 4 according to Tom’s Hardware’s test. You then need suitable laser safety glasses, which are not included. Before buying a riser, check in the manual which class your machine has with it. What this means in practice is covered under Laser safety.

Setting up in the software

The software has to know how far the rotary should move for one full revolution. Otherwise the design is compressed or stretched.

LightBurn: In the rotary setup you choose the rotary type. The documentation lists these values:

mm per rotation: the distance the controller has to travel for the rotary to turn once completely. If the value is wrong, the output is compressed or stretched. Some controllers work with steps per rotation or per degree instead, depending on firmware and rotary.
Roller diameter: on roller rotaries you measure the driven roller accurately once, after which the value stays the same.
Object diameter: on a chuck rotary it has to be correct for every new item. On a roller rotary it does not affect the output; LightBurn only uses it to calculate the circumference.
Test: the rotary turns once through 360 degrees and back. If it turns too far, you reduce mm per rotation; if it turns too little, you increase the value. On roller rotaries, what counts is the rotation of the roller, not that of the mug.

xTool Studio: Here you choose the mode, for example “Roller” or “Chuck”, and in chuck mode you enter the circumference or diameter of the item. Before the first real job, a test run at low power on an offcut or with masking tape on the mug is worthwhile.

Measuring the diameter: Use a calliper and measure the outside at the point where you will engrave. On mugs with thickened walls or grooves, the value can differ between top and bottom.

Design width: the circumference

The unrolled surface of a mug is as wide as its circumference:

Circumference = diameter × π

Schematic illustration. On the left, a mug from above with the measured diameter d. On the right, the unrolled surface: its width equals the circumference d × π, and the design stays narrower and keeps a gap to the seam.

Example: A mug with a 76 mm outer diameter has a circumference of 76 × 3.1416 ≈ 238.8 mm. A wrap-around pattern can therefore be at most 238.8 mm wide, in practice slightly less so that the start and end do not overlap.

Diameter	Circumference (rounded)	Visible from the front (half the circumference)
60 mm	188.5 mm	94.2 mm
76 mm	238.8 mm	119.4 mm
90 mm	282.7 mm	141.4 mm

From the front you see at most half the circumference, and towards the edge the design narrows in perspective. A logo that should be easy to read from the front should therefore be made clearly narrower than half the circumference. LightBurn points out that for wrap-around designs the total width of the graphic should match the circumference exactly.

Focus on the highest point

The laser always focuses to one height. On a mug that is the highest point, that is, the top of the curve directly under the laser head. xTool describes it the same way: place the red positioning dot on the highest point of the item, then measure. Align the mug so that this line is level across the whole height of the design. How to set the focus manually is explained in the article Laser focus.

Tapered tumblers

Many thermal mugs and glasses are tapered, narrower at the bottom than at the top. If such a mug lies level, the top is sloped and the focus is only correct at one spot. The solution: raise the narrow end until the top edge is level. J Tech Photonics describes it this way in its rotary manual, and many rotaries have a height-adjustable support for this.

Even then the design is slightly distorted on a cone, because the diameter changes over the height. For the chuck, LightBurn recommends entering the diameter at the largest end, and for more accurate results it offers a taper correction tool (Taper Warp). UV printing has the same problem, see Printing on round objects.

Which material with which laser

Material	Diode (blue, approx. 450 nm)	CO₂	Fibre / infrared (1064 nm)	Result
Powder-coated stainless steel	yes, coating is removed	yes	yes	bare steel under colour
Bare stainless steel	only with marking spray	only with marking spray	yes, directly	dark mark
Clear glass	only with a coating	good	not usual	matt, frosted
Wood, bamboo	good	good	not usual	dark burn engraving
Ceramic, glazed or coated	limited, test first	good	unsuitable according to Thunder Laser	glaze matt or removed

Powder-coated stainless steel mugs: The laser burns the colour away and the steel shows through underneath. According to Snapmaker, CO₂ lasers and more powerful diode lasers can do this. You wipe off residue with isopropanol. Know your coating, as some paints release hazardous substances when burned. Details in the article Laser cutting and engraving metal.

Bare stainless steel: Fibre lasers and infrared modules at 1064 nm, such as the optional 2 W IR module of the xTool S1, can mark it directly. With diode or CO₂ it only works with laser marking spray, which is washed off afterwards. Pay attention to the laser class: Snapmaker explicitly calls its 1064 nm module class 4, with mandatory safety glasses.

Glass: A CO₂ laser frosts glass well, with the typical look of sandblasting. Clear glass lets the blue diode light through almost completely, so you need a dark coating. To prevent chipping, Epilog recommends laying a thin damp paper towel or a layer of washing-up liquid on the glass, lowering the resolution and working with dithering. On the roller rotary the towel has to lie flat and must not slip. More under Laser engraving glass, stone and slate.

Wood: Wooden mugs and bamboo bottles engrave with diode and CO₂ just like flat wood. Watch out for varnish or oil whose composition you do not know.

Ceramic: According to Thunder Laser, the laser mainly acts on the glaze, not on the body underneath. CO₂ is considered the best choice, while diode lasers tend to give lighter, uneven results. For cups there are special laser-engravable versions with a colour coating. Too much power at low speed can cause cracks.

Dishwasher

There is hardly any reliable information here. Thunder Laser writes that engraved ceramic cups are generally dishwasher safe, but the contrast of light engravings can fade. For powder-coated mugs and coated glass it depends on the coating and the manufacturer of the blank. Only state dishwasher safety if the blank’s manufacturer confirms it or you have tested it yourself over many wash cycles.

Typical mistakes

Mistake	Cause	Remedy
Design compressed or stretched	mm per rotation wrong, wrong diameter on the chuck	Test run, correct the values, measure the diameter again
Seam: start and end overlap or leave a gap	Design as wide as the circumference, small calibration error	Make the design narrower, put the seam on the back
Mug slips or wanders	smooth surface, acceleration too high, mug lies crooked	Lower the rotary’s acceleration (LightBurn tip), align the mug, use the chuck
Design too wide	Width greater than the circumference or visible area	Calculate the circumference, adjust the design
Blurred at one end	tapered mug lies level	Raise the narrow end, set the focus again
Small offset in lines	Backlash in the rotary’s gearing	LightBurn recommends a faint helper line under the design that takes up the backlash

Before you engrave an expensive mug, run a material test on an identical offcut or on an inconspicuous spot.

In short

Roller rotary for bottles and glasses, chuck rotary for cups with handles and stemmed wine glasses.
On enclosed machines, check whether a riser is needed and whether the laser class then changes.
Check mm per rotation with a test run, and enter every diameter anew on the chuck.
Circumference = diameter × π: make the design narrower and leave a gap to the seam.
Focus on the highest point, and tilt tapered mugs.
Only promise dishwasher safety if it is documented or tested.

Continue with: Laser accessories and Laser cutting and engraving metal.