![]() No more cartridge errors because it does NOT dispense. Amazing how fast you can fill a tray to that top line! No more waiting… hoping that dispensing will actually work (did you pinch the rubber thingie?). You put the resin directly into the tray. Yup, you can remove the cartridge from the back, auto-dispensing is no long on the menu. If heat was critical to good parts, why are my unheated parts coming out perfect? Again, not sure what the benefit was, but my printer is in a dedicated room. I assume the wiper makes for better parts, time will tell. No more watching the wiper… HOPING it does not get too agressive causing a spill, or contact a failed part in the tray causing an even bigger mess. No wiper! Take the wiper out of the tray (for the last time), clean it, and put it away. I just thought I would list the benefits (as I see them) for using open mode on the Form 2 I won’t detail the resin spills, and the problems getting my parts to stick on the platform. Still, if 3D printing is a critical part of your workflow, you'll be pleased with the ease of use and quality results you'll get by the Form 3.I recently switched to open mode, as a last resort. For enthusiasts and amateurs, it's trickier, as you can get equally good results from a much cheaper printer like the $1,999 Peopoly Phenom if you are prepared to take the time to tweak the printer and develop a workflow for cleaning and hardening prints afterward. The Form 3 will cost a lot up front, but will be worth it for the easier printing it offers. For professionals and anyone else who relies on 3D printing, that won't be an issue. The Form 3 just works.Īt $3,499 and up, though, the Form 3 is also one of the most expensive 3D printers we have tested, and it is expensive to run. The whole process was clean and generally hassle free, which is a lot different from typical SLA printers that require a lot of tweaking, calibration and other fiddling to get good results. We didn't have to do any tweaking or fiddling around to get printing - we just plugged in the Form 3 loaded it up and started printing. The Form 3 is a real plug-and-play 3D printer. For reference, we got seven fairly large prints out of a single cartridge of the gray resin, so each print cost about $21. ![]() It is possible to use third-party resin with the Form 3 by filling one of the printer's cartridges with another supplier's, but Formlabs claims that this could void the Form 3 warranty. Our test models had smooth, even detail with barely detectable layers. In our tests, the Form 3 produced excellent quality prints, with fine details and smooth, organic curves and surfaces, even when we used the fastest print settings. The Form 3 isn't unique in this, though: The way that 3D printers like this work, with a large print platform obscuring the printing area, makes it harder to see how the print is progressing. Since there's no camera inside the Form 3 to monitor the prints, you generally don't know if a print has failed until it is complete, unless you take a look during the printing process. The dashboard can also notify you through your cellphone when a print is complete or when a printer has a problem or requires maintenance. This dashboard allows you to queue and schedule prints, monitor print progress and pause or cancel printing. It's aimed more at users who operate multiple Form printers or those who share a single printer between multiple users. The printing dashboard is an online service that manages the Form 3. Most users will turn to the PreForm software and the online printing dashboard to operate the Form 3, though. The Form 3 includes an excellent touch screen that allows you to control the printer directly, accessing all of the features and stopping or starting prints. If you aren't using the printer for a few days, Formlabs recommends that you remove the print tank and store it in the airtight shipping container it came in to prevent it hardening in place. ![]() It is possible to fill a cartridge with a third-party resin, but Formlabs stresses that this might void the warranty of its printer. The tanks can be cleaned out and reused, but the resin cartridges can't be reused. The resin tank and cartridge are removable so you can swap out different printing resins without having to clear out the whole printer. The printer automatically fills the resin tank: You never need to touch the resin or fill the tank yourself, which is a plus because it is nasty, stinky stuff. The Resin cartridge in the rear of the Form 3 holds the liquid resin. The Form 3 produced excellent quality prints, with fine details and smooth, organic curves and surfaces, even when we used the fastest print settings.
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