@gjgomes We should be releasing a firmware update for Form 3 very soon that should fix the connectivity issue via USB - it’s a strange Windows driver-related bug and usually seems to happen if you happen to install PreForm while the printer is already connected via USB, Windows ends up using the wrong driver. It’s been a bit of a nightmare to debug, but we think we’ve got it sorted with this firmware update.
I’m curious about the Wifi connection issue though - does it work fine if you connect by typing in the IP address in PreForm?
I concur. From my limited knowledge I know that it’s more of an issue with Windows issue. With Windows assigning drivers to the device as soon as it’s plugged in then the appropriate ones never recognize the device afterwards. Glad ya’ll seem to have a fix though. I do not currently have a Form 3 just yet but it may be something to include on the instructions or if they’re already on there maybe BOLD IT and enlarge the font lol.
We have printed a few parts on our demo printer in our show room. Love the new tanks and not needing a wiper. Saves some time by not lifting the build plate completely out of the vat. Great print results as well. Loving the Form3.
First print was successful. The first layers appeared to print much faster than the Form 2 system and it didn’t do as much resin sensing (yay!). I want to do a direct comparison for real world differences in print time including warm up so I will have to start from cold and equal resin volumes one morning before things are heated up.
The print I did wasn’t particularly complex so I can’t say if quality is much better, but it looks good.
I am hoping Formlabs can chime here: does the resin tank ship with a protective film? OP shows a screenshot of the machine prompting him to remove it but mentions there was none. I don’t remember seeing the prompt to remove the film though and I don’t see a protective film on my tank. I can confirm that the tank is not supposed to be transparent but is instead translucent or hazy as shown in the OP pics.
Pictures please if possible. Been dying for some actual Form 3 eye candy. Everybody seems to be posting words if anything which is few and far between lol.
Reading the praise
from your test drive
I’m counting the days
'till mine’ll arrive
Thanks for the squint
at your Form 3
meantime I’ll print ️
vicariously
Here are some comparison pics of a pretty small part, roughly 0.3" diameter part. Form 2 print is always on left and Form 3 on right. White V4, 100 micron layer height. Form 2 used the orange regular resin tank and is about 2 years old. Sorry my pictures suck.
Letters on raft are much more detailed and crisp on the Form 3. This should be an indication of better features throughout but maybe just the base layers, maybe because of lower compression force during layers.
The support contact points end up being much smaller even though I used the same contacts and contact points for both prints (same preform file just changed printer). Preform recalculates supports but the points remain the same. This is the biggest difference I can see.
There are some circular features that are hard to see in pictures that are more true to CAD on Form 3 than Form 2.
The drain holes on the rafts did not print on the Form 2 but did print on the Form 3.
Sorry for the delay in updates!
Here are a few pictures and I added some close up comparisons of clear in my original post so scroll up and take a look!
The sphere is about 30cm in diameter and was printed with 50um layers which is a layer height that is still currently in beta. We thought this piece was interesting because you can see very small layer lines and you can also see very small lines that appear to be caused by the stepping of the laser carriage. This part was unfinished and uncured at the time. There appears to be some extra material cured around the support marks which is very common on the Form 2. A very small amount of sanding and polishing had this part looking perfect!
This next piece is very small as evidenced by the supports. It looks great in person and this picture was taken under the inspection scope at about 30x magnification.
So far, the Form 3 has been running great! We have had some trouble removing parts from the platform and a few software glitches but we have been very pleased with the results.
It is also worth noting that the Form 3 is very quiet in operation and the light at the top of the machine is very useful. It glows white during normal printing and flashes to get your attention when it is not happy:)
Absolutely love this, thank you for the photos. It’s odd that review units weren’t sent out earlier or something to give people time to hype the machine upon launch. I watched DJI launch their new FPV system yesterday and immediately there were tons of reviews, photos, opinions, etc. from a lot of people who were given review units. Formlabs! You have an amazing product, the word needs to be spread more. Again thanks for sharing especially about the light … that’s 100% new information to me, look forward to future posts.
Hi Mark
Love the detail nice and sharp. What is the distance between the stepped features on your printed model under 30x mag?. The clarity is impressive also
@da40flyer, I suppose I can expect to get a similar email from Formlabs next week. Kind of interesting that none of the 3 different printers currently offered by Formlabs are shipping…
️
