The overall answer for 2026, chosen by job profile instead of spec sheet noise. One machine per kind of buyer.
Read the guideXTool P2 Accessories in 2026: The Buying Order That Works
2026-09-09 · updated 2026-09-09 · ~8 min read
Rotary familyRiser baseTable and grid insertsSmoke handlingSoftware unlockSmart order
xTool P2 accessories decide whether the machine stays a flat sheet printer or grows into a round object shop. The rotary family, the riser base, honeycomb inserts, and the smoke handling kit each fix a gap, so fix the job list first.
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What is a fair accessory budget for the P2?
Treat the machine price as the cover charge, not the bill. The accessories decide what this tool can actually make, and the gap between a flat board printer and a real shop is measured in add-ons, not watts, the box is the start of the spending, not the end of it.
A smart budget follows the job list. Smoke handling plus a cutting surface lands at a budget price point on top of the machine. Adding the rotary family pushes the total into mid range money, and round stock blanks quietly become a line item of their own.
Roughly, the rotary family eats about a third of a typical accessory budget and smoke handling takes another quarter, with the riser, inserts, and extras splitting whatever is left, the responsible stuff costs less than the fun stuff, which is exactly why the order matters.
Notice what the split says: the add-ons you use on every job cost less than the one you dream about. The rotary family is the big ticket because it genuinely changes the job list, everything else is a small bet on one specific project.
Think of it this way
Owning the P2 is like owning a serious kitchen: the oven is great, and you still eat cereal most nights. The pans decide whether you actually cook. One good pan changes your whole week, ten clever gadgets just crowd the drawer, so buy for the meal you will really make, not the one you keep imagining.
Which P2 accessories matter, and which are shelf candy?
Strip away the marketing and the P2 accessory list sorts into five families. The rotary family spins round stock, the riser base adds vertical room, table and grid inserts change how cuts finish, smoke and air handling keeps the room livable, and software unlock changes how you control the work, everything else on the shelf is a jig for one very specific job.
The list splits into two buckets. Some add-ons open new job types while the rest make existing jobs nicer, and the second bucket is where the overbuying happens, starter bundles love to fill that bucket with things you will use twice.
- Rotary family: chuck and roller style spinners that hold cups, bottles, and odd shaped stock so a flat design wraps around a curve. It is the most transformational add-on for this machine, and the one owners circle in the cart for months before committing.
- Riser base: a frame or spacer that lifts the lid so taller blanks fit, glasses, boxes, trophies. It is mechanical, simple, and has zero learning curve, the textbook buy it when you need it accessory.
- Table and grid inserts: honeycomb style panels that sit under the work so cut pieces drop through and the beam never scorches the machine table. They are the most boring purchase on the list, and the one you will lean on in every single job.
- Smoke and air handling: extractors, blowers, hose, and filter boxes that pull smoke out of the cabinet and away from the room. It is the accessory that keeps a CO2 machine welcome in a shared space, skip it and every project announces itself to the whole house.
- Software unlock: moving past the starter app into the advanced control ecosystem, which changes how you lay out, align, and repeat jobs. It is cheap next to hardware, and it feels like a hardware upgrade the first time you use it.
Score any candidate on two questions before you buy: does it open new job types, and how much daily hassle does it add? Rate each one out of five and the winners jump out, the chart below is the community consensus version of that scorecard.
The way I see it
A flat engraver is a painter who only works on canvas. Add the rotary family and the same skill suddenly makes mugs, bottles, and round ornaments, the beam never changes, the holder does. That is the whole trick, the machine learns to go around things instead of only across them.
What does each accessory actually do?
None of these add power, so get that straight first. No accessory makes the beam stronger; each one changes what the beam can reach and how clean the result comes out, keep that in mind when a bundle promises more capability than a motor and a grid can deliver.
Rotary: the motor is the easy part
A rotary holds the blank and turns it while the laser head stays still, letting a design meant for a flat sheet wrap around a cup or a bottle. The real mechanism is the mapping, converting a flat layout onto a round surface without stretching the art. That math is why a proper rotary family costs more than a bargain spinner, the cheap ones turn, the good ones map, and the lettering shows the difference.
Riser base: all space, no settings
An enclosed CO2 cabinet has a fixed lid, and the moment a taller blank shows up, the machine says no. The riser adds vertical room and nothing else, no calibration, no software, no new skills, the safest accessory purchase on the list because there is nothing to get wrong.
Table and grid inserts: the quiet physics win
On a solid table, the beam that finishes a cut keeps going and scorches whatever sits underneath. A honeycomb style grid lets the beam pass through the cut line and land on open air, so the piece drops free with a clean backside, one sheet of cutting material shows the difference on the first pass.
Smoke and air: match the option to the space
Every laser makes smoke and a CO2 makes a steady stream of it. An extractor or inline blower pulls that air out of the cabinet and out of the room, a filter box scrubs it for indoor use, and air assist pushes the plume away from the lens and cut line for cleaner edges. On a sealed CO2 cabinet much of that airflow is handled inside the machine, so the real decision is what happens to the air once it leaves the box.
Match the option to the space: a shop with an outside wall wants a venting blower, and a room without one wants a filter box, the wrong choice smells like a hobby, the right one smells like nothing.
Think of it this way
Smoke handling is the plumbing of the laser shop. Nobody shows it off, and everybody notices the moment it leaks. You can own the best rotary in the world and still park the machine if the air turns bad, plumbing first, party tricks second.
What order should you buy them in?
The order that wastes the least money is boring and reliable. Smoke handling first, a cutting surface second, then one job changing add-on, and nothing else until a real project demands it, accessories bought for future potential are how dust collections start.
Stage one: make the room survivable
Before any fun purchase, get the air moving. The machine is enclosed and the smoke still needs to leave, and this is the only accessory your housemates will have an opinion about, ask the people you live with before you ask the forum.
Stage two: one transformative add-on
If round work is the dream, buy the rotary now. If tall blanks keep showing up, buy the riser now. Pick the single job you keep imagining and buy the accessory that unlocks exactly that job, one confident yes beats ten half hearted maybes.
Stage three: refine the work you already do
Once real jobs exist, upgrades earn their place, a nicer grid insert, the pro software tier, a second chuck for the rotary. Upgrade the work you have, not the work you might start someday, the machine rewards completed projects, not completed shopping carts.
The predictable mistake is buying the exciting accessory first, running one long job, and discovering the air situation in real time. Then the fun part sits idle while the boring problem gets fixed, the order above just skips that whole loop.
Which add-ons are genuinely worth the money?
Ask the worth question honestly and the answer is short: most P2 accessories are worth it, but only for the person with the matching job, a great rotary is wasted on a maker who only cuts flat boards, worth is a match, not a property of the box.
Buy It If
- Buy it if cups, bottles, or round stock are the reason you got the machine: the rotary family is the add-on that makes the P2 feel like a different tool.
- Buy it if you cut pieces out, not just engrave flat sheets: honeycomb style inserts keep the backs clean and the machine table alive.
- Buy it if the machine lives where people breathe: smoke handling is not glamorous, it is the accessory that keeps the hobby going.
Skip It If
- Skip it if every project you make is flat: the rotary waits until a round job actually shows up.
- Skip it if all your blanks share one thickness: the riser base earns its money only when something tall arrives.
- Skip it if you hate setup steps before each job: the rotary asks for alignment and blank swapping, and that friction decides whether you actually use it.
The way I see it
An unused accessory is a gym membership that keeps billing while you never visit. The subscription continues and the machine stays flat, so buy add-ons the way you buy training sessions, one habit at a time.
Read the scores as a nudge, not a verdict. The rotary family wins on satisfaction because it changes the job list, and smoke handling scores lower only because you notice it less when it works, absence of smell is the most underrated feature in the shop.
How do the accessory families stack up?
Put the families side by side and the pecking order writes itself, compare them on what they change, not on what they cost, the cheapest accessory can still be the wrong one for your job list.
| Option or Product | Key spec 1 | Key spec 2 | Best For | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotary family | Spins cups, bottles, and odd round stock | The biggest single accessory spend | Round object work | The only add-on that changes what the machine can do, the party trick that pays for itself |
| Riser base | Adds vertical room under the lid | Simple, cheap, zero learning curve | Tall blanks and boxes | Cheap insurance for the day something tall shows up, future you says thanks |
| Table and grid inserts | Lets cut pieces drop through clean | Protects the machine table | Cutting, not just engraving | The boring hero you will use on every job, the true workhorse of the list |
| Smoke and air kit | Moves smoke out or filters it | Essential in any shared space | Every workshop | The least fun and the most necessary, your nose is the tiebreaker |
| Software unlock | Full control over layers and repeats | Cheap, mostly a learning curve | Detail and production work | The cheapest upgrade that feels expensive, the power move of the list |
Two of those rows deserve the money for almost everyone, honeycomb style inserts and smoke handling. The rest earn their keep on specific job lists, spend accordingly.
Are xTool P2 accessories worth it?
This call assumes the P2 is already on your bench or in your cart and you want the accessory question settled in one read, so here is the short version before the full one, smoke handling first, the rotary second, and nothing else until a real job asks for it.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: xTool P2 accessories are worth it, with a strict order attached. Smoke handling comes first because no accessory matters if the air drives you out of the room. The winner for most owners is the rotary family, the one add-on that turns a flat sheet machine into a round object shop. The riser base, table inserts, and software unlock join in only when a specific job asks for them. If you only ever cut flat boards, your winner is honeycomb style inserts and you can leave the rotary money in the bank. Yes, the accessories are worth it: buy the air, then buy the spin, then buy only what your real jobs demand.
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Read the guideSources: manufacturer listings and standard public guidance at time of writing. Prices and availability subject to change. Individual results vary.