Hey @Frew still waiting for news on the Fuse1. Just gave away another $1000 worth of printing to stratasys based company. Hate myself for it.
What is the point of signing up for updates when there aren’t any. I don’t care what stage of the development you’re at, I need to know. At some point I will pull my reservation, and I feel that is getting nearer.
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My company paid in full for two Fuse’s and the cleaning station! My boss is not the patient type. After no info on when it would ship, he told me to get our money back and we bought a 3D Systems Projet 2500.
When I asked Formlabs for the money back, they didn’t even really try and talk me out of it. I would have thought they would say something like we would get the first ones to ship and give me a date. But they didn’t.
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Not getting an immediate response here from any of the Formlabs Core-People makes the Fuse 1 look obsolete.
I’ve been wanting a sample part as well - nothing as of now.
It would be a shame if Formlabs couldn’t get the machine to run reliably…
I spoke with one of the salesmen last week. They are looking to have the first off the production run in September and possibly samples at that point as well. Don’t quote me on this, just passing on what I was told.
Thanks, everyone, for your input.
Anyone who preordered or reserved a Fuse 1 printer will be hearing from the Fuse team soon by email, before we make public announcements about release dates.
Oh, soon! That clears everything up!
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Indeed, soon. Very good .
@arusso you need to do better than that. Either give us a date that you will be communicating something, or give us an explanation of why there is a delay. it’s past the point that you need to say something. We’re all early adopters here, you won’t be crucified for explaining that you are having problems with production or design. We are real businesses that have the need for planning. If I can’t get my hands on a machine when I think I can then I need to reassess.
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From a completely different context, but which seems to apply:
Early adoption parallels both share-buying and gambling so the usual advice applies; if you can’t afford to lose your stake, don’t bet.
We hear you that it’s frustrating to not have more information or a clear timeline to work from. For those who have placed pre-orders, we’ll be providing updates by email before the end of this month.
We’ve made a lot of progress on the Fuse 1, but we do not want to compromise the slightest bit on quality to launch a product we are not completely proud of – even for beta machines. We are really excited about the potential for the Fuse 1 and want our customers to be even more excited when they start using this breakthrough product.
As of now, we are expecting the first beta units to ship in Q4 this year. Leading up to the shipment of hardware, we’ll be releasing beta PreForm updates and other modeling tools to estimate the cost impacts of adopting the Fuse 1. And going forward we will do a better job keeping everyone updated!
Hi @arusso
That’s more like it. Obviously disappointing to have to wait longer, however, at least we know.
Can’t wait to get my hands on the update of pre-form and the modelling tools, I’d like to take this machine to the competition and blow them out of the water.
Looking forward to the update before the end of month.
Cheers, Aran
Hi @arruso
It’s good to hear a little more of an update on how things are coming along. My company expressed interest in a Beta unit of the Fuse1 and I was told I’d be contacted if there was going to be beta units going to Europe, I haven’t heard anything back despite quite frequently asking. The last time I asked, I was told the Beta had ended but from what you’ve said, I guess that’s not true?
Either way, I’d be really interested to know if there will be a European Beta program and if so, when it would be!
Thanks, Jon.
Hi,
any updates ?
I talked to one of their support team and he told me the machines will not ship before beginning of next year. I live in Germany, so maybe that makes a difference. Just to let you all know who are from Germany/Europe.
Best,
Jan
I was at the FormLabs Roadshow in San Francisco last Thursday, and while they had Fuse 1 fliers/data sheets, the actual product was not on display. Some samples made on a Fuse 1 were available, but that was it. I did ask one of the guys there when the Fuse 1 will be released, but he told me to call the main office for additional details.
BTW, based on the few samples that were there, the surface quality leaves a lot to be desired. It’s pretty coarse, like low grit sandpaper.
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Do you have experience with other SLS parts ? It’s always difficult to tell with a photo but this surface quality looks like a typical of SLS parts from my experience. They need a lot of post-processing to look better.
We have had prototypes done at work using SLS, and yes, the surface is grainy, but this here is another level of coarseness.
If I were to use the sandpaper comparison, were’ talking the difference between 280-320 grit vs. 80-100 grit paper.
It may well be the machine or it may be the material, I don’t really know what material our parts were made of, nor do I know what materials were used in the Fuse. But you would think that if the Fuse was capable of better output, they would have used it for the samples. As it is, the output quality is fine for prototypes where surface quality is secondary, but if you need a smooth surface, this ain’t it, or you’re looking at a lot of post print sanding, assuming you get access every surface.
@Dudemeister, the parts that we show at trade shows are as-printed, with no post-processing beyond extracting the parts from the powder cake. Since SLS is a powder-based process, parts tend to have a grainy, sandy finish, similar to the powder itself. This is a characteristic of all SLS machines - not just the Fuse 1. That said, there are a ton of post-processing steps that can improve the smoothness of a finished part, including sanding, tumbling, infiltration, and painting.
@JonWebb, I’m sorry that we overlooked your question! Formlabs isn’t adding new beta sites at this time, but we’ll keep everyone informed as we get closer to shipping.
I understand that the grainy surface is due in large part to the particle size of the powder used. Are you saying that the particle size of the material powder is the same for all SLS materials, therefore all SLS machines will have the same raw output?
You are right, when ordering non post-processed PA6 parts directly from 3Dsystems, 80-100grit paper is about what I’m getting. It didn’t look like 280-320 grit on the photo but I trust your feeling more than my screen.
That being said, SLS isn’t really meant to serve as anything else than functional prototypes or when surface finish isn’t a priority (functional yet non consumer-facing parts).
I was there too Thurs night. I have to say, I was looking for you in the crowd…Who could he be…Now I have a hand…
Maybe we should have swapped some PMs with our names rather than the handle.