4B EngraverHow deep should an engraving be on a 3D print?
Engrave 1.2 mm deep. On the 0.12 mm High Quality profile that is exactly ten layers: enough recess to read at arm's length, shallow enough to leave the wall behind it intact, and deep enough for a clean filament swap if you want two colours.
The useful range is 0.6 mm to 2.0 mm. 4B Engraver offers all of it and starts at 1.2 mm, and unless the part is unusually thin there is little reason to move off that.
Why does layer count matter more than millimetres?
A slicer does not cut a recess to a depth. It leaves the letter outline empty for a whole number of layers, then closes a floor across it. So the depth you get is the layer boundary nearest the one you asked for, and the number of layers is what decides how cleanly the floor and the letter edges come out.
On the 0.12 mm High Quality profile, 1.2 mm is ten layers, and 0.6 mm, the practical minimum for a clean, visible recess, is five. Every figure here was measured on that profile with a 0.4 mm nozzle. Print the same file at a coarser layer height and the millimetres do not change, but the layer count does: the floor lands on a coarser grid and the steps down each letter edge get bigger. If you change profile, carry the layer count across rather than the millimetre value: five layers is 1.0 mm at a 0.2 mm layer height.
Count layers, not millimetres. Divide the depth by your layer height before you commit. Ten layers is the depth that works without thinking about it, five is the floor, and 1.2 mm and 0.6 mm are those two numbers on a 0.12 mm profile only.
Which depth should I choose between 0.6 mm and 2.0 mm?
| Depth | Layers at 0.12 mm | Layers at 0.2 mm | Suitable for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.6 mm | 5 | 3 | Thin walls. The measured minimum at 0.12 mm |
| 0.8 mm | 7 | 4 | Thin walls where 0.6 mm looked faint |
| 1.2 mm (default) | 10 | 6 | Names, logos, serials, filament swaps |
| 1.6 mm | 13 | 8 | Large lettering, parts with material to spare |
| 2.0 mm | 17 | 10 | Maximum. Only with real material behind the face |
Only 0.6 mm and 1.2 mm are whole multiples of 0.12 mm. The rest land on the nearest layer boundary, so the printed depth sits a little above or below the number you typed. Choosing a multiple of your layer height removes that guesswork, which matters most when you are planning a colour change.
How much wall do I need under the engraving?
Leave at least depth + 0.8 mm of material behind the recess. A 1.2 mm engraving wants 2.0 mm of wall under it, a 2.0 mm engraving wants 2.8 mm. Below that the floor of the recess is the outside of the part in all but name: it flexes, and an impact goes through it.
Measure under the glyphs, not under their bounding box. On a real part that box can straddle a screw hole or a connector pocket, so it reports the thinnest point near the text, not the material beneath it. The engraver measures inside a 0.3 mm halo around the letter and logo outlines and refuses any depth that breaks the rule. For scale: 16.4 mm sits under the logo area on the bundled 1 m USB-C-to-USB-C winder, about 39 mm on the MagSafe spooler. Neither notices 2.0 mm. A 2 mm box lid does.
Two checks then run on the output: it is verified watertight, and each engraved floor is verified to exist at the requested depth, with at least 80% of the intended shape area coming back as real floor.
Recessed or raised lettering?
Recessed, in almost every case. A recess keeps the outer surface flat, has nothing to catch or shear off in a bag, and is the version a filament swap can colour. Raised lettering stands proud and takes the wear first.
The limit on a recess is width, not depth. With a 0.4 mm nozzle the narrowest stroke that comes out clean is 0.8 mm, and no amount of extra depth rescues a stroke below it. If the warning in front of you is about stroke width, change the size or the letterforms: see minimum text size for 3D printed text.
How does depth give me two-colour lettering?
Pause the print at the layer where the recess floor sits and load a contrasting filament. Everything printed after the pause comes out in the new colour, which fills the engraving and leaves it reading against the face around it. No AMS and no multi-material setup, just the one swap.
Depth decides how much second colour there is. At 1.2 mm on a 0.12 mm profile the recess is ten layers deep; at 0.6 mm it is five, and there is that much less new filament to cover the old cleanly. If two colours are the goal, treat 1.2 mm as the floor rather than the default.
What goes wrong if I go too shallow or too deep?
- Too shallow. Below five layers the recess reads as a surface mark rather than an engraving, especially on a matte or textured face where it only catches the light at a raking angle. Handling wear takes it out first, too.
- Too deep. Past about 2 mm legibility stops improving and the extra depth comes straight out of the wall behind it. On a thin face the depth + 0.8 mm rule refuses the cut first, which is the right answer rather than an obstacle.
Depth is also the setting people reach for when the problem is elsewhere. Faint text is usually too small or too thin; a logo that prints as a blob is usually a tracing problem, covered in adding a logo to an STL. Keep depth fixed across a batch so one pause height works for every plate, and export a project file rather than a bare mesh if the profile and painted supports must survive: 3MF versus STL.
Try it on your own model. Upload an STL or 3MF, add a logo, a name or a serial number, and download a print-ready file.
Open the engraver — freeFrequently asked questions
What is the best engraving depth for a 3D print?
Use 1.2 mm. At a 0.12 mm layer height that is ten layers, deep enough to hold a clear shadow line, shallow enough to keep the wall behind it strong, and enough layers to fill with a second colour at a filament swap. The workable range runs from 0.6 mm to 2.0 mm, but 1.2 mm needs no thought on a normal part.
Does engraving depth need to change with layer height?
A depth is realised as a whole number of layers, so the same millimetre figure means different things on different profiles: 1.2 mm is ten layers at 0.12 mm but six at 0.2 mm, and 0.6 mm drops from five layers to three. Fewer, coarser layers mean a rougher floor and bigger steps down each letter edge. Carry the layer count across when you change profile, not the millimetres.
How thick does the wall under an engraving need to be?
Keep at least depth plus 0.8 mm of material behind the recess, so 2.0 mm of wall for a 1.2 mm engraving and 2.8 mm for a 2.0 mm one. Measure under the letter shapes themselves rather than their bounding box, which on a real part usually crosses a hole or a pocket and reports material that is not under the text at all.
Can I get two-colour engraved text without a multi-material printer?
Yes, with one filament swap. Pause the print at the layer where the recess floor sits and load the contrasting colour: everything printed after the pause comes out in the new filament, which fills the engraving so it reads against the face around it. Depth sets how much of the second colour there is, so 1.2 mm, ten layers at 0.12 mm, is the sensible minimum.
Is a 0.6 mm engraving deep enough to see?
At a 0.12 mm layer height, yes: 0.6 mm is five layers, the measured practical minimum for a clean, visible recess, and it suits thin walls where a deeper cut would leave too little material behind. At a 0.2 mm layer height the same 0.6 mm is only three layers, which makes for a coarser floor and too little depth for a convincing filament swap.
Should engraved text be recessed or raised?
Recessed. It keeps the outer surface flat, leaves nothing to catch or shear off in a bag, and is the only version a filament swap can colour. Raised lettering stands proud of the face and takes handling wear first. The catch with a recess is width rather than depth: with a 0.4 mm nozzle, 0.8 mm is the narrowest stroke that prints cleanly, and extra depth will not rescue a thinner one.