Hello Everyone, I have recently taken an interest in a form of artwork called Printmaking, specifically woodblock printmaking. This would be the first CNC build I will do. I thought a laser would be better for the job I need doing (compared to a router). I am hoping to build a laser engraving system which will allow me to save time when creating the wood cut. This essentially means I need a laser CNC machine which will engrave quite detailed complex images (halftones) to a depth of ~1 mm. I would like to be able to engrave fairly large pieces, say up to about 75 x 120 cm. First I would like to communicate with people to come up with a design. I am hoping a £1000 budget for parts is not unrealistic but have not done enough research to know for sure. I will describe a little more about the use of this laser then go on to ask a few questions. Ideally I would like to be able to make a 1 mm engraving into hardwood plywood which is about 3-4 mm thick. I would also like it to be able to burn photos onto the surface of wood. The engraving would hopefully leave few to no burn marks on the surface of the wood.

Firstly is it possible to build a machine of that scale for £1000 ?
What would be a good Wattage for a machine that is designed to do this type of work ?
Is it possible to get the desired no surface burn outcome ?
How long might it take to engrave a detailed halftone image about 75 x 120 cm in size ?
How much might this cost if I were to go and get something like that engraved professionally ? (just a ballpark figure)
Which type of rail system should I use ?

This is probably more than enough questions to get this thread started. Thank you for your help