Dremel290 Engraver - Compact Engraving Pen Tool with 3 Engraving Tips and 4 Craft Stencils for Engraving Wood, Metal, Ceramics, Plastic, Leather

Remarkably good and great value for money. Much easier to use than the rotary Dremel when it comes to engraving on metal. The shape fits nicely in the hand and I found it went where I wanted it to go compared to the rotary which felt like it sometimes had its own mind. Not saying the rotary is bad (it isn't) just that, for engraving on metal, I found this to be better.

I bought the Dremel engraver so I could practice personalising items such as glasses, wood and other items.It arrived on time and came with a couple attachments. It is not cordless and comes with a lead. The attachments are good but I found I needed to buy the recommended burr, which I did not mind.It has five settings and you need to practice to see what it can do. Depending on the burr that you are using you may need to have it at an angle but have a practice. It is very comfortable to hold but would not want to do this for hours on end.Be careful that it chips the glass slightly so you may want a cover or safety glasses when starting. I don't use safety glasses myself but use a cover and always wash my hands after as the glass fragments are tiny.The Dremel itself is as pictured and is small so it does not take up much space. To change burr you need to a screwdriver.The only annoying thing about the Dremel is that it is very noisy and out of respect for my neighbours I can only do this during the day. The instructions are also annoying as it is a big booklet full of different languages so it takes time to find the English part and it does not give out information such as which burr to use or how to change it which I found annoying.The stencil do not work very well and I would advise drawing your own as the stencil it comes with are tiny and the burr are bigger. It's a shame as the stencil look good but the burr just about fits in but you cannot do it properly.If you are starting out there are plenty of tutorials on YouTube to help you out from how to do it, what burrs to use, how to change, reviews on Dremel.Despite the flaws I feel that this is a good product and is great for those who want to do this as hobby or as their own business.

I've never used an engraver before (I've used just about every other hand tool though) so wasn't sure exactly what it would do when I tired to use it in anger. I had visions of skimming across surfaces leaving lines like a tiny slug on a mission, this however didn't happen. I'd opted for this type (that vibrates rather than spins) thinking it would be easier to control than one that is spinning at the tip. As I haven't used the other type I can't compare the two types, but I'm happy with this purchase. I can use it more or less like using a pen, but then again I've got hands like a shovel with 5 butchers sausages on the end. My only 'complaint' (hence the 4 stars not 5) is the next to useless set of stencils (or the lack of instructions for their use. I presumed the idea was to put them on something and use that to guide the tip around. I tried one of the flowers on the bottom of a glass candle holder (wait until the good lady finds that !) It didn't look anything like the shape of the stencil because the tip is too fat to follow it into all the small channels/paths/slots. I wondered if maybe I was just supposed to use the stencil to put a marker pen in and then use the marked up lines to follow. This again doesn't work as the ink from the pen gets into the working surface (not a problem if you are just putting a serial number on a metal tray, but doesn't look clever on a plane glass you are trying to make look fancy). However the actual engraver works well, leaving enough of a mark on metal/glass to see it, but not going so deep its doing structural damage.

I will admit this purchase was somewhat whimsical. I just "wanted" an engraver for some reason best known to my inner psyche. Nevertheless, after purchase it remained in its' box for several days until I recalled I'd bought it and dug it out for a play. Having read some reviews reporting it as very noisy and vibrating excessively, I had low expectations, however it is perfectly acceptable and far less noisy than some reviewers would have you believe. Imagine a particularly loud electric shaver, and you'll get an idea of the noise. It comes with stencils, which I can't imagine using, and a spare bit, which is a great addition. There's also a poster or whatever with it, but I haven't had the urge to look at that yet.The engraver works by high-speed percussive indentation. In other words, it pokes its' very hard point into the surface to be engraved and the resultant hole is the result. As you move the engraver steadily over the surface to be engraved, the holes are effectively joined-up and you get a line. (A little similar to the way a tattoo is made.) The engraver allows the "poke" distance to be adjusted (from 1 to 6), but I've found "1" to be perfectly sufficient, and as it's the quietest I use that setting.In use, it is easy to get good results with the engraver. It does require a steady hand and a little skill in use. (For example, if you have trouble removing splinters, this engraver may prove equally troublesome). You should also bear in mind that it likes to work at a set distance, so if you move in close when engraving, you can find the engraver bounces in your hand slightly and you lose your neat line. This is just user error though as the engraver has a good rubber grip and is not unweildy to use at all.Initially I engraved an old plastic chopping board for practice and to get a feel for the engraver, then tried it on various tools I own. I was particularly impressed at how easy it was to engrave my name onto chrome-vanadium tools. This engraver has greatly exceeded my expectations and I'm delighted with it.

Acceptable tool that does the job after some familiarisation. A bit on the loud side (ear defenders help) and the vibration seems high. Templates not the best in the world to use.