Whether you're looking to make a personalized gift for a friend, add a new product to your lineup, or just do something fun with your laser, full wrap tumbler engraving is a rewarding technique to master.
Full wraps utilize a design that goes all the way around the cup, so you can’t tell where it begins and ends. They can be simple or complex, tightly grouped or loose, but they will all require similar steps to ensure they come out the way you expect.
Learn how to start tackling this popular design style and make it yours.
What's a Chuck style rotary and why is it recommended?
There are two styles of rotary: Chuck and Roller. Chuck rotaries have adjustable jaws that grab and hold objects, while Roller rotaries have revolving rollers or wheels that objects are placed on top of.
Chuck rotaries are able to grasp objects very firmly, greatly reducing the risk of slippage, and allowing you to rewind and fix mistakes while guaranteeing consistent placement.
You can complete full wraps using a Roller rotary, but you need to take care to keep the tumbler from slipping on the rollers, and it's more challenging to rewind and go over mistakes.
Wrapping the rollers with a non-slip material, or placing weights inside the object can help reduce slippage.
A powder-coated tumbler (or any surface you're sure your laser can engrave on)
A full wrap design, either imported or made from scratch
Your choice of tumbler affects the difficulty level of completing a full wrap engraving. We recommend starting with the easiest — a straight-sided tumbler — and that's what we'll use for the rest of this guide. Below we've outlined some considerations for more challenging tumblers as well.
Straight-sided tumblers are the easiest to work with, and what we recommend for beginners. With a straight-sided tumbler, you don't have to deal with multiple focus levels, work around any tapers, or compensate for distortions.
Tapered tumblers are somewhat more difficult. You’ll need to ensure your laser is in focus at multiple distances from the cup's surface, and you may see some distortion of your graphics at the taper.
Tip
You can compensate for distortion caused by tapers using our Taper Warp tool.
Tumblers with step downs are the most difficult to work with. The dramatic differences in circumference make it more challenging to get all your measurements and focus right, in addition to distorting your designs.
In the steps per rotation field (mm per rotation if you're using a GCode-based device), enter the number of motor steps required to turn your rotary 360°.
In most cases, this value will be provided by the manufacturer of your rotary or machine. If you can't find it in their public resources, we recommend reaching out to them for assistance.
If you're still not sure, you can use the Test button to find the correct value. When it's correct, pressing the Test button will cause your rotary to make one complete rotation, then return to the start.
Once this value is set correctly, you never need to change it again.
See Rotary Mode for more information on configuring a rotary with your model of laser.
If you're using a Galvo laser, you'll see additional options to control Split Size and Overlap. See Rotary Mode (Galvo) — Split Setup for information on these settings.
If you’re working with a Chuck style rotary, you will also need to enter the Circumference of the object you’re placing in your rotary, to ensure your laser's output is scaled properly.
Note for Roller style rotaries
For Roller style rotaries, Circumference does not affect output scaling, but you'll still need to know this value when you set up your full wrap design.
You will also need to accurately enter the diameter of your rollers. This value is usually provided by your rotary's manufacturer, but you can measure it with high-precision calipers if not.
Use seamstress' tape to wrap around the tumbler and measure its circumference, then enter it in the Rotary Setup window.
If you're using calipers, measure the tumbler's diameter, and enter it in the Object Diameter field. LightBurn will automatically calculate the Circumference based on the diameter.
Make sure the Enable Rotary switch is toggled on, so LightBurn will tell your laser to use its rotary axis, and scale output appropriately.
Next we'll explain how to create a template for your tumbler, go over some important considerations to keep in mind when you're selecting or creating a design, and show how you can use Grid Array to duplicate a design within the template to make a full wrap.
Before laying out our design, we'll create a template to represent the engraveable area of our tumbler.
Measure your tumbler. In addition to the circumference measurement you took earlier (or derived from the diameter), you'll need to know the length of the cup.
Use the Rectangle tool to create a rectangle of any size.
Quick Reference: Draw Shapes
Create and edit rectangles, ellipses, polygons, or stars to build designs out of vector objects.
If you're using a Galvo laser, the correct orientation depends on whether you have set your rotary to the X or Y axis. See Rotary Mode (Galvo) — Rotary Axis for more information.
You can orient the rectangle however you'd like while you design, but remember which side is which, and, if necessary, take care to rotate it 90 degrees later, before sending the job to your laser. In the final orientation, the rectangle’s Height should match the cup’s circumference, and its Width should match the cup’s length.
Set the rectangle to a Tool Layer. Tool Layers are special layers that are never sent to your laser, so this rectangle will now serve as a guideline only, with no risk of accidentally engraving it onto your tumbler.
If your tumbler has a logo you'd like to work your design around, get a rough measurement of its dimensions, and its distance from the top of your cup.
Tip
If you're using a CO2 laser and your tumbler has a logo that you don't want to work your design around, you can cover it with aluminum tape instead. CO2 lasers can't penetrate aluminum.
Create another rectangle, also set to a Tool Layer, and set its dimensions to match the measurement of the logo — making sure that the Height and Width values are entered correctly for your template's current orientation.
With the Selection tool active, hover over the side of the logo outline that is oriented parallel to the side of the template representing the cup's circumference, until you see the midpoint Snapping icon appear.
Quick Reference: Snapping
LightBurn's automatic Snapping tools help align objects to other shapes in your Workspace, or to the Workspace grid itself — when you move objects close to a valid location, they will snap to that point.
As you hover your cursor over an object, the icon will change to indicate when it is over a node, line, midpoint, center, or intersection. Use these Snapping points when selecting, moving, or creating objects to ensure exact alignment.
The cursor is over any node in a vector graphic, or the corner of an image.
Midpoint
The cursor is over the exact halfway point between two nodes.
Center
The cursor is over the center point of an object.
Intersection
The cursor is over the intersection of two lines.
Line
The cursor is over a line, but not a node, midpoint, or intersection on that line.
Click and drag the logo outline from that point, until you see the midpoint snapping icon appear again on the side of the larger template, then release to place the outline there.
In the Numeric Edits Toolbar, adjust the X Position or Y Position of the outline to move it as far in from the side of the template as the logo is from the end of the cup.
Without overwriting the existing value, use the + or - symbols to add or subtract the distance you took from edge to logo. Press Enter once you've input the symbol and value.
Whether you need to add or subtract depends on the position of the logo outline relative to the edge, and where your machine's origin is.
If the logo outline moves the wrong way, press Ctrl+Z to undo the move, then use the opposite math operation.
Before moving forward, it's a good idea to test the template to make sure it is sized correctly, and the logo outline is positioned appropriately.
Create a thin rectangle that spans the length of your template in the dimension matching your cup's circumference.
You can use Snapping to make sure the rectangle starts at exactly one side and ends at exactly the other.
Set the layer the thin rectangle is on to appropriate Speed and Power settings to lightly etch the surface of the painter's tape, without going through.
The precise settings for that will depend on your laser, but we recommend starting with a very low power to begin with. If it's too low, you can always increase and test again. But if it's too high, you'll burn through the painter's tape and might waste a tumbler.
What cutting/engraving settings should I use?
The exact settings required to achieve good engravings, or to cut through material, are highly dependent on your type of laser.
While we can provide some rough guidelines, the best source for specific recommendations is usually your laser's manufacturer.
Always pay attention to units of distance and time when entering Speed settings
When entering Speed values recommended by your laser's manufacturer or other LightBurn users, make sure to use the same units of distance and time as those from the recommendation, or to convert the values to your preferred units.
A given number of millimeters per second is much faster than that same number in millimeters per minute. Mixing up units can lead to reduction in power output due to unexpectedly high speeds, or excessive power output — and even fire — due to unexpectedly slow speeds.
Change your units of speed in the Dimensions / Units tab of the Device Settings window. LightBurn automatically converts any existing values when you switch between units.
The two primary settings controlling the depth of a cut or the darkness of an engraving are power and speed.
Power controls the laser's intensity. Higher powers allow you to cut deeper or make darker marks for engravings, but at the cost of potentially charring or melting edges, producing excessive smoke, and making a wider kerf.
Speed controls how fast the laser moves. Lower speeds will deliver more power and heat to the material, as the laser takes longer to pass over any one point. Higher speeds can complete a job faster, but will require higher power. High speeds can also exacerbate or make any existing mechanical issues more apparent.
Info
For a deeper dive into the relationship between these settings, see Speed vs. Power.
There's another crucial setting for layers set to Fill Mode — Line Interval. The Interval setting determines the distance between the parallel lines your laser scans as it engraves your graphics. Smaller Line Intervals lead to lines that are closer together. As a rule, you want the scan lines to be as close together as possible without overlapping (which can lead to overburning).
While we've noted that manufacturer recommendations are the best place to begin looking for cut settings, LightBurn also has a built-in Material Test that you can use to test different combinations of Speed, Power, Passes, Line Interval, and other settings. The Material Test works by automatically setting up a grid of boxes that will be cut or engraved at a range of different settings.
To get a good engraving on your tumbler, it will need to be perfectly level on the rotary. Place the tumbler on the rotary, then a level on top of the tumbler, and adjust the angle of the rotary until it's precisely level.
Lasers need to be focused correctly to achieve good results — the space between the laser and the surface of your material must be set to precise distance. Focus the laser according to your laser's user guide — we used a DSP laser, with auto-focus capability.
Learn More: Focusing Methods by Laser Type
GCode-based Diode lasers usually have a focusing spacer to set the distance between the laser and the material.
DSP-type CO2 lasers may require manual focusing with a focusing spacer or may support auto-focus, either through the controller, or with the Focus Z button.
Galvo lasers usually require manual focusing. Many galvo lenses are marked with their optimal focal distance, and you can use a ruler to set the correct distance between the lens (or mirrors) and your material. Some are equipped with a two red dot focusing system — adjust the height of the scan head until the dots meet, then the laser is focused. Finally, see our guide on Galvo Laser Focusing for a manual method of determining optimal focus.
In the Laser Window, set the Start From mode to User Origin, and the Job Origin to either the center-right or center-left.
With these options selected, the rectangle will be engraved to the left (for a center-right Job Origin) or the right (for center-left) of your custom origin, at the same distance from the edge of the cup as the edge of the template.
Learn More: User Origin
User Origin works almost exactly the same as Current Position, except that the starting location is programmable. To set a User Origin, you must first jog your laser to the location you want your job to start from, then set the origin.
Some lasers with digital displays, such as those with Ruida controllers, have an Origin button which you press to set the origin. GCode-based systems use the Set Origin button in the Move Window in LightBurn to do the same thing.
For supported systems, use Clear Origin to remove and reset a custom-set origin.
After setting the origin, you are free to jog your laser around its work area. With User Origin selected as the Start From mode, the laser will always move back to start the project in a position relative to the programmed location.
You can also use the Go to Origin button in the Laser Window to command your laser to travel back to the origin you've set.
As with Current Position, the Job Origin setting determines how output will be oriented relative to the user-defined origin.
Here, the Job Origin is set to the lower left:
Notice the location of green Job Origin indicator. This represents whatever location you've set for your custom origin. When you start the job, the laser is going to move from wherever it is currently located and cut the four hexagons up and to the right from the programmed origin location.
Why is the Job Origin offset from the graphics?
When using Current Position or User Origin, the green Job Origin indicator is always located on a corner, side, or at the center of an imaginary box — the smallest possible rectangle that can fully contain all graphics you're sending to the laser.
Below, we've added a Tool Layer to represent that imaginary box. Notice how the Job Origin moves around the box as we change the location in the 9-Dot selector.
Now imagine that you want to etch this four hexagon pattern onto a coaster or a phone case. Lining it up from the lower left is not easy. If you change the Job Origin setting to center, you get this instead:
The job will be centered around the custom origin you set. If you position the laser head directly over the center of the item you want to etch before setting the User Origin, the output will be centered on the item.
Jog your laser to edge of the engravable area of your tumbler. If you selected the center-right Job Origin position, jog it the right edge. If center-left, jog to the left edge.
If your laser has a controller display and keypad, you can use the buttons there to jog. If not, use the buttons in the Move Window.
Quick Reference: Jogging
You can use the arrow keys in the Move Window to move your laser up, down, right, or left. You can set the amount the laser travels with each click in the Distance field, and the rate at which it travels in the Speed field.
If you have a DSP laser you can also jog your laser using buttons on its onboard controller.
Each keyboard shortcut will move your laser by the amount entered in the Distance field, at the rate set in the Speed field.
Jog Laser Left: Alt/Option + Ctrl/Cmd + [
Jog Laser Right: Alt/Option + Ctrl/Cmd + ]
Jog Laser Up: ShiftCtrl/Cmd + ]
Jog Laser Down: ShiftCtrl/Cmd + [
Press the Set Origin button in the Move Window, or the Origin button on your machine's display, if your laser has a Ruida controller.
Where's the Set Origin button?
The Set Origin button is presented in the Move Window, which is docked behind the Cuts / Layers Window by default. If you don't see it, go to Window → Move to re-enable.
This button is only available if you are using a GCode-based laser. If you're not sure what kind of laser you have, see Identifying Your Laser.
Press the Start button in the Laser Window to run the job.
If your rotary set up is correctly, and you've measured your object accurately, the starts and ends of the thin rectangle engraving should line up perfectly.
If they come up short, you need to increase the Height of the template. If they overlap, you need to decrease it. Then run the test again. This may require some trial and error, but once you've got your template sized correctly for a particular tumbler, you can Save and reuse it in the future.
Before we move on, we'll go over some important considerations to keep in mind when you're selecting or creating a design.
The level of complexity of your design affects how easy it will be to complete your engraving successfully. You can create your design completely from scratch, or Import multiple design elements into LightBurn, and then pattern them appropriately, as we will do in this guide.
This guide will focus on an easy design, while incorporating one intermediate element — we'll show how to work your design around a logo on the tumbler.
Very loose, meaning all graphics in the design are well spaced apart, with little risk of elements overlapping or crashing into each other if your object slips on your rotary.
No shapes that will look obviously distorted if your rotary setup isn't perfect, or there is a taper to your cup that you haven't compensated for.
Distortion will be most obvious on standard geometric shapes like squares or circles.
No logos on the cup that you need to work your design around.
No seamless patterns. Seamless patterns are meant to line up at specific distances that won't necessarily match your tumbler's length or circumference. Fitting them onto your tumbler without distorting them can be a challenge (unless you design your own from scratch).
Now we’re ready to place our elements into our design. First we'll place our graphics, and then we'll use Grid Array to make a repeating pattern from them.
You can use any graphics you like for this step — Import SVG artwork, or create shapes, text, or custom paths using LightBurn's Creation Tools.
We chose to work with imported artwork.
We'll keep all of these shapes assigned to the same Fill Mode layer, since we're going to engrave them all with the same Speed, Power, and Interval settings.
What cutting/engraving settings should I use?
The exact settings required to achieve good engravings, or to cut through material, are highly dependent on your type of laser.
While we can provide some rough guidelines, the best source for specific recommendations is usually your laser's manufacturer.
Always pay attention to units of distance and time when entering Speed settings
When entering Speed values recommended by your laser's manufacturer or other LightBurn users, make sure to use the same units of distance and time as those from the recommendation, or to convert the values to your preferred units.
A given number of millimeters per second is much faster than that same number in millimeters per minute. Mixing up units can lead to reduction in power output due to unexpectedly high speeds, or excessive power output — and even fire — due to unexpectedly slow speeds.
Change your units of speed in the Dimensions / Units tab of the Device Settings window. LightBurn automatically converts any existing values when you switch between units.
The two primary settings controlling the depth of a cut or the darkness of an engraving are power and speed.
Power controls the laser's intensity. Higher powers allow you to cut deeper or make darker marks for engravings, but at the cost of potentially charring or melting edges, producing excessive smoke, and making a wider kerf.
Speed controls how fast the laser moves. Lower speeds will deliver more power and heat to the material, as the laser takes longer to pass over any one point. Higher speeds can complete a job faster, but will require higher power. High speeds can also exacerbate or make any existing mechanical issues more apparent.
Info
For a deeper dive into the relationship between these settings, see Speed vs. Power.
There's another crucial setting for layers set to Fill Mode — Line Interval. The Interval setting determines the distance between the parallel lines your laser scans as it engraves your graphics. Smaller Line Intervals lead to lines that are closer together. As a rule, you want the scan lines to be as close together as possible without overlapping (which can lead to overburning).
While we've noted that manufacturer recommendations are the best place to begin looking for cut settings, LightBurn also has a built-in Material Test that you can use to test different combinations of Speed, Power, Passes, Line Interval, and other settings. The Material Test works by automatically setting up a grid of boxes that will be cut or engraved at a range of different settings.
Arrange the artwork until you have a grouping you're happy with.
Next select all the graphics and open Grid Array. Increase the number of rows and columns until the pattern fits across the Width and Height of your template.
Quick Reference: Grid Array
The Grid Array tool creates copies of an object (or objects) in regularly spaced rows and columns, and includes options to adjust spacing, mirror the shapes, randomize orientation, and more.
Delete any graphics that are overlapping with the logo outline box, and rearrange anything nearby, if necessary to make the graphics surrounding the box look more organic.
Once you're happy with the placement of your design, Select everything, then Group it and Duplicate it.
Quick Reference: Grouping
The Group tool combines collections of objects into single units, and the Ungroup tool splits Groups back into the individual objects that make them up.
Normally, all objects are independent of one another, and can be manipulated individually. But it's sometimes helpful to treat a collection of things as a single unit, to make sure they keep their relative position and size when you're moving them around.
We're going to Snap the Grouped copy to an edge of the original, so we can get a sense of how the design will look when it's wrapped around our tumbler, and make sure there is no obvious seam.
If we're not happy with how it looks, we can make some adjustments until we are.
Make sure to Delete the copy once you're done making adjustments.
Once you're satisfied with the layout of your design, it's time to verify the positioning of your graphics around the logo outline, and run the engraving.
If you aren't working around a logo on your tumbler, you can skip the rest of this section, and Frame your entire design before moving on to engraving it.
Using Cut Selected Graphics will tell LightBurn to only send objects currently in your Selection to the laser when you Frame or Start the job. For this test, we only want to Frame one thing — the outline that represents the tumbler's logo.
Keeping Use Selection Origin disabled will mean LightBurn still includes everything that isn't being sent when calculating Job Origin. We want to make sure we include the entire tumbler template when we calculate origin, rather than just calculating it based off the logo outline.
Learn More: Cut Selected Graphics and Use Selection Origin
By default, LightBurn outputs all graphics in your Workspace when you Preview, Frame, Start, Send, or save a project in a machine-specific file format. This works well if you have one design in each project, but is less ideal when storing multiple designs within the same file.
In order to output only specific design elements, you can enable Cut Selected Graphics instead.
Use Selection Origin allows you to choose whether to orient output relative to the entire project's Origin, or just the Origin of the graphics in your selection.
The Job Origin is indicated on your design as a green square. You'll see its position move as you toggle Cut Selected Graphics and Use Selection Origin on and off in different combinations.
Select the logo outline, and the logo outline only.
As before, set the Start From mode to User Origin, and the Job Origin to either the center-right or center-left — the same side of your cup that is closest to the logo.
Learn More: User Origin
User Origin works almost exactly the same as Current Position, except that the starting location is programmable. To set a User Origin, you must first jog your laser to the location you want your job to start from, then set the origin.
Some lasers with digital displays, such as those with Ruida controllers, have an Origin button which you press to set the origin. GCode-based systems use the Set Origin button in the Move Window in LightBurn to do the same thing.
For supported systems, use Clear Origin to remove and reset a custom-set origin.
After setting the origin, you are free to jog your laser around its work area. With User Origin selected as the Start From mode, the laser will always move back to start the project in a position relative to the programmed location.
You can also use the Go to Origin button in the Laser Window to command your laser to travel back to the origin you've set.
As with Current Position, the Job Origin setting determines how output will be oriented relative to the user-defined origin.
Here, the Job Origin is set to the lower left:
Notice the location of green Job Origin indicator. This represents whatever location you've set for your custom origin. When you start the job, the laser is going to move from wherever it is currently located and cut the four hexagons up and to the right from the programmed origin location.
Why is the Job Origin offset from the graphics?
When using Current Position or User Origin, the green Job Origin indicator is always located on a corner, side, or at the center of an imaginary box — the smallest possible rectangle that can fully contain all graphics you're sending to the laser.
Below, we've added a Tool Layer to represent that imaginary box. Notice how the Job Origin moves around the box as we change the location in the 9-Dot selector.
Now imagine that you want to etch this four hexagon pattern onto a coaster or a phone case. Lining it up from the lower left is not easy. If you change the Job Origin setting to center, you get this instead:
The job will be centered around the custom origin you set. If you position the laser head directly over the center of the item you want to etch before setting the User Origin, the output will be centered on the item.
Jog the laser head so that it is to the right or left of the logo, and still roughly centered between its top and bottom.
If you're using a GCode-based laser, press the Set Origin button in the Move Window. If you're using a DSP laser, use the Origin button on your laser's controller.
Where's the Set Origin button?
The Set Origin button is presented in the Move Window, which is docked behind the Cuts / Layers Window by default. If you don't see it, go to Window → Move to re-enable.
This button is only available if you are using a GCode-based laser. If you're not sure what kind of laser you have, see Identifying Your Laser.
Press the Frame button in the Laser Window — you should see the laser trace a path around the logo on the cup. If it's off by a bit, jog the laser, update the User Origin, and try again, until you get it as close as possible, and are sure your engraving won't overlap with the logo.
Note on Framing with Tool Layers and Cut Selected Graphics
Normally, when you Frame a project that includes Tool Layers, the Tool Layers are used when calculating Job Origin, but are not themselves Framed — the laser will only travel around graphics that will actually be sent to the laser.
However, when Cut Selected Graphics is enabled, and a Tool Layer is selected, the laser will include the Tool Layer in anything it physically Frames around. In this case, since we only have an object set a Tool Layer selected, that is the only thing that's Framed.
Learn More: Tips for improving Framing visibilityHow to fire your laser at low power during Framing (diode lasers only)
If your laser has a red dot pointer, it makes framing easier to see. Otherwise, your laser will travel around with the laser turned off. LightBurn does offer the ability to run diode lasers at a very low power to aid in Framing. To do so:
In the Basic Settings tab, toggle on the Enable laser fire button and Laser on when framing settings. Click OK to apply.
The Move Window should now have a Fire button and a box to enter a power level. Keep this value very low to avoid burning the material — start at 0.25%, and only increase that value only if the beam is not visible.
The Fire button will toggle the laser on and off. Now you can use the Frame command with the laser visible.
Adjust the position of the material and/or the laser head until you're happy with the layout of the design.
Danger
The Fire button should only be used for diode lasers, which generally don't have a red dot pointer for Framing.
Always wear proper eye protection when Firing your laser. Consult your laser's manufacturer for information on the proper eye protection required for your laser.
This should never be used for a CO2 laser, which has an invisble beam that could blind you or start a fire.
Frame Continuously
Frame Continuously is an option in the Device Settings window that tells your laser to repeatedly Frame the same path until you tell it to stop.
Sometimes you won't get the positioning just right on your first try, but a little nudge of your material will do the trick. Other times, you'll just want to want to double or triple check the position. In either case, Frame Continuously will be a big help.
In the Basic Settings tab, toggle on the Frame Continuously setting. Click OK to apply.
Now when you click either of the Frame buttons, a dialog window will open, letting you know that continuous Framing is active, and to press OK when you're ready to stop.
Make sure your tumbler is still level on your rotary and your laser is still in focus. Refer back to Testing the Template Steps 5-6 if you're not sure.
This is the big moment — we're going to engrave our tumbler.
Ok, not quite yet. If you're nervous, you can keep the painter's tape from the earlier test on, and adjust your settings to lightly etch it, as a final step to verify your design, rotary setup, and alignment.
If you're ready, now it's really the big moment. Press Start in the Laser Window.
If you're using a DSP laser, you can also choose to Send the project to your laser, and start it from the controller.
How does it look? Prior to removing it from the rotary, make sure the engraving made it all the way through the powder coating. With a Chuck style rotary, you can run a second pass, if needed, to clean up any spots before you take it off.
After we remove the tumbler from the rotary, we'll give it quick spray with a cleaning product and a scrub with a magic eraser to clean up remaining powder coat residue, and we’ve got a great looking tumbler.
Next time, you can try upping the difficulty level and engraving a more challenging tumbler or design.
Try building names or other personalized features into your design — you can pattern the graphic elements into a full wrap, then add in custom text, and rearrange the graphics around it.
Instead of working around the logo completely, see if you can come up with any fun ideas for incorporating the logo into your design.
Try a seamless design. We mentioned before that they're the most challenging type of design to master, but they're also deeply satisfying to get perfect!
Check out our Seamless Tiling Patterns workshop video to learn how to make your own from scratch:
For more help using LightBurn, please visit our forum to talk with LightBurn staff and users, or email support.
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