Hi All, Good evening from North Wales.

[Doddy]

I saw a good video recently where a guy was using a spring loaded bit to drag engrave aluminium Dog tags.

+1 for this - I did make a similar device and it was as good if not better than my attempts with a V-bit. Part of my problem was, I think, a random bunch of anodised aluminium sheet (offcuts from eBay) which was gummier than a fruit pastille - cut poorly and suffered a lot of tearing when engraved. The spring-loaded drag bit resolves a number of issues including the gumminess and flatness.

From my experience - probably worth sourcing/buying a proper drag engraver.

Don't kid yourself with your machine - try to get a good understanding about any backlash that you have, and the rigidity of the frame - no point looking for precision engraving if the machine is distorting under lateral loading. Also examine and understand the stiffness of your spindle mount.