0:00
so once again I've got two GK3 printers
0:02
in front of me and no this isn't deja vu
0:05
this time neither of them is the GK3 Pro
0:08
these are both standard GK3 printers but
0:11
if you take a closer look can you spot
0:13
the difference go on pause the video
0:15
drop it in the comments if you think
0:16
you've cracked it already we'll get to
0:18
it soon enough because now finally is
0:21
the time to ditch the preview talk and
0:23
bring you a proper review of the normal
0:26
basic bog standard GK3
0:30
and sure a lot of people have already
0:31
shrugged these off but buried in this
0:34
machine is one surprisingly good reason
0:36
you might actually want to pick this
0:38
model or one of these models over any of
0:40
its direct competitors it's just a shame
0:43
that that one feature kind of feels like
0:45
a happy accident hi this is Ross and I'm
0:48
Fammer Videos now starting off with a
0:51
bit of a somber retread one of the
0:53
biggest issues with the GK3 launch was
0:55
the creation of two machines so
0:57
incredibly similar with the only
0:59
difference being so nuanced it's more
1:00
likely to confuse people than help them
1:03
the kind of thing that makes people go
1:05
you know what that mess and just pick a
1:07
different brand to avoid the headache
1:08
entirely but to be fair to Uniformation
1:11
after the early preview videos dropped
1:13
and the community started sharing some
1:15
strong feedback they did go back and
1:18
make some changes other brands don't do
1:20
that so credit where it's due it's
1:22
genuinely refreshing to see a brand
1:24
actually listening instead of just
1:26
quietly waiting to move on to their next
1:28
machine that said their fix about the
1:30
two different machines well now having
1:33
three kind of just makes the lineup even
1:35
more confusing because yeah now there
1:37
are three GK3 printers okay four if you
1:41
count the Ultra but the actual
1:43
difference between these two standard
1:45
models well one uses a ball screw and
1:48
the other uses a lead screw also known
1:50
as a T-crew which adds even more
1:53
confusion to the pile so let's try and
1:55
straighten it out so the original
1:57
frustration was this in the previews I
1:59
said if the ball screw is supposed to be
2:01
the better motion system and it's only
2:03
available on the Pro then that means
2:05
anyone who doesn't want the Pro's 385 nm
2:09
light source will be stuck with a
2:11
potentially less desirable mechanical
2:13
setup so to me the ideal solution would
2:16
be offer the 405 nanometer light source
2:19
the normal GK3 printer that most people
2:21
want with the ball screw option so
2:23
people can choose based on use case not
2:26
arbitrary part restrictions and for a
2:28
while that's exactly what happened in
2:30
fact kind of uniformation quietly
2:33
upgraded the standard GK3 to also use a
2:36
ball screw and from what we saw in their
2:38
Facebook group all the early buyers got
2:40
that version now things have shifted
2:42
again and apparently it's due to
2:44
staffing limitations specifically they
2:47
just don't have enough technicians
2:48
qualified to install the ball screw
2:50
reliably they had to scale back
2:52
production of that version which is why
2:54
they're so commonly out of stock so now
2:57
they offer the cheaper T-screw variant
2:58
alongside it aimed at people who want
3:01
the standard GK3 but just don't care too
3:03
much about the motion hardware does that
3:06
clear things up yeah didn't think so i'd
3:08
also suggest they wouldn't have this
3:10
problem if they just hadn't made the GK3
3:12
Pro but that's another video it's a
3:15
different printer anyway I'm going to
3:16
cover the rest of the changes as we go
3:18
through and I mean changes from the
3:20
preview so let's start proper with the
3:22
stuff you see on the outside the kind of
3:23
stuff that makes you go "Ooh," before
3:25
the printer inevitably disappoints you
3:27
with firmware bugs and some confusing
3:29
design choices that make no practical
3:31
sense now I've already said I don't love
3:33
the look of it the gray plastic against
3:35
the green lid it's not my cup of tea
3:37
i've warmed to it a bit but still yeah
3:40
I've seen better the lift up and over
3:42
lid is nice and they've now added rubber
3:44
seals down the side to help keep in
3:46
VOCC's or at least it would if there
3:48
wasn't a few millm gap between the
3:50
handle recess and the VAT a gap that
3:52
could have been easily fixed with a
3:54
simple extra piece of plastic and this
3:56
lid is also removable so you can use it
3:59
as a face plate the USB port on the
4:01
front is recessed into the body of the
4:03
machine to avoid resin drips but one
4:05
thing I missed which Derek from J3D Tech
4:07
pointed out recently is that the port
4:09
itself is recessed a bit too far into
4:12
the plastic too so if you use a USB
4:15
stick with a thicker neck it might not
4:18
actually fit now thankfully the ones
4:20
that come with it do fit but for reasons
4:22
I'll come on to later they're not always
4:24
the best ones to use round the back
4:26
you've got the Wi-Fi antenna port and an
4:28
Ethernet socket yay and I am genuinely
4:31
glad they included one that alone makes
4:34
this unit a far more appealing option
4:35
for print farms than most that's not the
4:38
killer feature also on the rear is the
4:40
power socket but gone from the retail
4:42
version is the old school rocker switch
4:45
that's now been moved to the front of
4:46
the machine using the same style of
4:48
power button as the GK2 which I've
4:50
always been a fan of i like a good click
4:52
clack the only issue is that it's hidden
4:54
underneath the rotatable screen plate
4:56
and as much as I like this rotatable
4:58
plate because it means I don't need to
5:00
crane my neck to look at the screen when
5:02
I'm stood above it yeah I just don't
5:04
know that this was a level of
5:05
engineering we really needed in a 3D
5:07
printer but going back to the power
5:09
socket yeah placement wise it's a bit
5:11
dafted it's almost a thrownin solution
5:13
now I like that they cared enough to
5:15
move it to the front because if it's
5:16
around the back and you've got things up
5:18
close to your printer you can't reach it
5:20
but I can guarantee there will be people
5:22
out there who will get this machine and
5:24
spend far too long trying to figure out
5:26
how to turn it on now probably not the
5:28
people watching this video obviously
5:30
you've just seen it but I already know
5:32
of a few users who've had this printer
5:33
for over a week before realizing that
5:36
this plate even rotates upwards now
5:38
we'll move on to the guts of the thing
5:39
the bits that actually make it go br and
5:41
sploosh depending on how your prints
5:43
going and how excited you are first up
5:46
the build plate i love this i've always
5:48
loved this it's my favorite build plate
5:50
of any printer yeah it's chunky but it's
5:53
not as heavy as it looks the surface has
5:55
got a really nice soft grain texture
5:58
it's consistent across the whole thing
6:00
and once you've got it dialed in
6:01
adhesion is absolutely no issue and
6:04
there's even a little lip around the
6:05
edge to catch minor resin spills which
6:08
is one of those simple why doesn't
6:10
everyone do this sort of details and in
6:12
my opinion this has got the best
6:14
leveling mechanism of any comparable
6:16
printer no autoleveling crap no wobble
6:19
just a solid latch that clips the build
6:21
plate directly onto the Z arm it locks
6:24
in place tight clean mechanical it works
6:27
but again this isn't the killer reason
6:29
to buy one moving downwards it's got a
6:31
single linear rail setup like the GK2
6:33
and now depending on which version you
6:35
end up with you'll either get a T-crew
6:37
or a ball screw from what I've been told
6:39
by people with actual engineering
6:41
degrees neither one is inherently better
6:43
for accuracy at this scale a bad ball
6:45
screw can easily be worse than a good
6:47
lead screw but according to Uniformation
6:50
the reason they chose this as an option
6:52
is just that the ball screw is designed
6:54
to last longer and that's it fair enough
6:57
then there's the VAT it's big it's
6:58
plastic it comes fitted with a crystal
7:00
clear PFA film labeled as NFP and just
7:04
for clarity PFA stands for perflloroy
7:08
and it's basically the stuff that
7:09
replaced FEP which is florinated
7:11
ethylene propylene nfep is just a
7:14
marketing term that means new FEP and
7:16
new FEP is PFA so when you see NFP or
7:20
PFA usually the same thing the large vat
7:23
is great for catching resin drips the
7:25
only real issue is that the resin feed
7:27
system sticks out the back corner and of
7:30
course that's exactly where the pore
7:31
spout is so when it comes time to empty
7:33
it it's more awkward than I feel it
7:36
needs to be on the left side though
7:38
there is a really handy recess section
7:40
where you can actually sit the bill
7:42
plate in sideways and that lets you use
7:44
the entire width of the bat as a drip
7:46
tray and I love this more brand should
7:48
implement it but something I missed in
7:50
my preview and credit to James over at
7:52
Rising 8 for spotting it was that the
7:54
lid wouldn't actually close properly on
7:56
those machines if the plate was sitting
7:58
in that slot and Uniformation have since
8:01
changed the design slightly they've now
8:03
extended the upper arm so you can close
8:05
the lid but it's a bit of a bodgege job
8:07
you kind of have to wedge it shut now it
8:09
works but it's definitely more of a
8:11
workaround than a fix also in the back
8:13
left corner of the VAT there's a little
8:15
metal pin which actually tells the auto
8:17
refill system when it's time to top up
8:19
the resin and below the VAT we've got
8:21
the LCD and it comes with a plastic
8:23
screen protector it's not as optically
8:26
clear as glass so you will lose a bit of
8:28
UV efficiency but it's easier to replace
8:31
and that counts for something just tear
8:33
it off drop a new one on and I had to do
8:35
that after a resin leak which I'll
8:37
explain in my GK3 Pro video now then the
8:40
screen itself this is what they call a
8:42
16K panel it's not 16K i've done plenty
8:45
of videos explaining that we'll just go
8:47
with the resolution which is 15,120x
8:51
pixels uniformation do actually list the
8:54
screen size honestly as 9.6 in which
8:57
I've got to say I appreciate because
8:59
other brands like to pretend this is a
9:00
10-in display when it's not but this
9:03
makes your build volume here 211x
9:07
mm and yeah in my preview I did winge
9:10
about this screen being smaller than the
9:12
GK2's 10.1 in panel but as it turns out
9:15
and thanks to Nico from Concepts 3D for
9:17
this the printer brands don't really
9:19
have control over that the screen
9:21
manufacturers are the ones who are
9:22
driving these changes smaller panels
9:25
smaller pixels higher resolution it's
9:27
more marketing juice and these new
9:29
screens also limit UV penetration in the
9:32
process but the point is it's not
9:35
uniformation's fault as I might have
9:37
implied before that said a lot of us in
9:39
the community have noticed that the
9:41
panels are kind of getting worse in the
9:43
name of progress still the end result is
9:46
this is on par with other so-called
9:48
10-in printers using the same 9.6 in 16K
9:52
screen mostly thanks to the Cobb light
9:54
source underneath so print quality yeah
9:57
it's on par with the best in its class
9:59
and I'll take that but here's where it
10:01
gets really interesting to me at least
10:03
and weirdly and like I said accidentally
10:06
this is the feature that might tip
10:08
people over the edge it's the stupidly
10:11
easy to replace screen now seriously
10:13
that's not a joke if you're weighing
10:15
this up against something like a Saturn
10:16
4 or an M7 do yourself a favor go and
10:19
watch a screen replacement video for
10:21
either of those printers and I'll be
10:23
right here when you get back and if
10:25
you've gone there and done that and
10:26
watched them yeah thought so now I
10:29
actually called Elgu out for this
10:31
directly in my Ultra 16K review but I
10:33
genuinely didn't realize that any Cubic
10:35
were just as bad and this process is
10:38
before you get to the people saying that
10:40
their printer was never quite the same
10:42
again after the swap so whilst this may
10:44
seem like a tiny thing and I did say in
10:46
the intro this feels like an accidental
10:48
win it could genuinely be the reason why
10:51
people picked this printer over its
10:53
competitors especially if you're
10:54
planning to use it for longer than the
10:56
lifespan of a single LCD and when we
10:59
consider these newer panels need
11:00
stronger light sources just to push the
11:02
UV through yeah they're burning out
11:05
quicker as well now one last thing
11:07
underneath the screen is a heater that
11:08
warms the lower chamber and allows heat
11:10
to rise through the LCD into the resin
11:13
and yes that can also affect the life of
11:15
the screen but and the only counter I've
11:17
got for this is if we use the GK2 as an
11:20
example people weren't exactly
11:22
complaining about those panels dying
11:24
prematurely and it's only 20 odd degrees
11:27
a lot of people in the world operate
11:29
their hardware at 30 plus degrees so
11:32
genuinely I'm not worried that this is
11:34
going to make a massive impact to the
11:36
screen life but it is just a guess would
11:39
I prefer a heated vat yeah but this
11:41
works so a couple of extra features to
11:44
mention it's got a built-in fan which
11:46
pushes bad air through a magnetized
11:48
carbon filter at the back and then
11:49
recirculates it back into the chamber
11:51
unfortunately thanks to the gap in the
11:53
lid which you could tape shut that same
11:56
air flow will help push VOCC's straight
11:58
through the gap and into your room but
12:00
what I think is really cool is that
12:02
Uniformation do provide a printable
12:04
exhaust adapter on the USB stick and in
12:07
that case that gap actually becomes a
12:09
benefit because it sucks clean air in
12:10
through the front and pushes the bad air
12:13
out through the back so intentional
12:15
feature or another happy accident who
12:17
knows another feature is the resin feed
12:20
you can use Uniformation's new cuboid
12:22
bottles to create a constant feed of
12:24
resin into your vat during the print and
12:27
they even give you a free empty bottle
12:28
with your printer so you can fill it
12:30
with your own resin and I like the idea
12:32
of it in theory but since I've learned
12:35
this is just another resin pump like any
12:38
other resin pump which means it's a pain
12:40
in the ass to clean the lines out and I
12:43
have seen one too many people posting
12:45
about how the lines cracked internally
12:47
inside the machine yeah like any resin
12:49
pump system I personally will not use it
12:53
and yeah that means I'm a bit gutted
12:55
that we're paying for something or at
12:56
least I'm gutted that I would be paying
12:58
for something that I and I think many
13:01
others won't actually use and finally
13:04
the webcam it's a very good
13:06
highresolution camera and thanks to the
13:08
new app and cloud connection we can
13:11
finally remotely monitor prints visibly
13:14
on this machine and generate time-lapses
13:17
hooray took them long enough and I have
13:20
to say it is a shame that the light they
13:22
put in this printer is mostly blocked by
13:25
the bloody build plate that's between
13:27
the light and the print but at least in
13:30
this final version the light has a
13:31
proper amber cover rather than just
13:33
being a normal light covered in orange
13:35
tape right then the UI this is super
13:39
basic it's not sexy it's simple it's
13:42
pretty much exactly the same as the GK2
13:45
bar a few new options for the new
13:47
features on the new printer we can do a
13:49
bit more now like edit settings
13:51
mid-print which is helpful but some of
13:53
the features we expected by now still
13:55
feel a bit halfbaked first
13:57
disappointment for me firmware updates
14:00
you see there's a menu that looks like
14:02
you can go into it and search for and
14:04
apply overthe-air updates but in the
14:07
last 6 months I've never once seen
14:08
anything appear there and speaking to
14:10
Uniformation it turns out that
14:12
over-the-air updates aren't actually a
14:14
thing on this printer nor will it ever
14:17
be possible but even when I inserted a
14:19
USB drive with a firmware update on it
14:21
that menu still didn't see it instead
14:24
the way to run updates is you have to
14:26
run two files an RBF and a BIN file and
14:29
you load them as if you're loading print
14:31
jobs which yeah it's kind of awkward but
14:33
for some yet unexplained reason none of
14:36
the three USB drives that I got from
14:39
Uniformation would actually allow the
14:41
firmware update to process it was only
14:44
when I tried a SanDisk USB stick that
14:46
the update actually ran and I've still
14:48
got no idea why these uniformation
14:50
drives worked absolutely fine
14:53
transferring print files just not the
14:55
firmware update so yeah go figure but I
14:58
think the biggest letdown is their
15:00
multi-exposure test yes we got it but
15:03
it's so limited you can't use your own
15:05
test files like on other machines you're
15:07
locked into Uniform's version of the
15:09
test and worst you can't change any of
15:12
the starting exposure times or
15:14
increments it starts at 1.8 seconds and
15:16
then goes up in 0.2 second jumps and
15:19
that's it and that means it's completely
15:21
useless if like me you're running 30
15:23
micron layers i know many of us are so
15:26
for most resins 1.8 seconds is already
15:29
far too high for that resolution and for
15:32
some resins it's still too high at 50
15:33
microns so right now it's a less than
15:36
half useful tool and I can only hope
15:39
they actually bother to revisit this
15:41
later and actually give people the
15:43
flexibility and functionality we need in
15:46
order to make proper use of it cuz right
15:48
now this was a complete waste of
15:50
development time and the existence of it
15:52
kind of makes uniformation look worse
15:54
than they are so conclusion time all in
15:57
all what do I think about this printer
15:59
can I just say ambivalent and leave it
16:02
at that no all right then honestly I do
16:06
still think this is a step down from its
16:08
predecessor but that's mostly because
16:10
when the GK2 came out the GK2 did
16:13
everything the other printers did but in
16:15
smarter more userfriendly ways and it
16:18
was the only one with a decent built-in
16:20
heating system at the time but now other
16:23
printers have caught up and in some ways
16:25
they've overtaken it in terms of tech
16:27
this machine's got no pressure sensing
16:29
for example and no that's not some oh my
16:32
god wow feature but it's still bloody
16:34
handy and yeah as I said I don't love
16:36
paying for a resin pump i prefer those
16:38
to be optional especially considering
16:40
it's a feature that I'll never use i
16:42
think uniformation needs to start
16:44
looking at what consumers want and stop
16:46
just trying to copy as much as they can
16:48
from Formlabs approach but whilst I can
16:51
easily winge I also can't just sit here
16:53
in my grumpy old man cave winging that
16:55
things were better in the GK2 day
16:57
because the only real reason I prefer
16:59
that machine was the screen size this
17:02
still has everything that had and more
17:05
and as I said let's be honest we can't
17:07
blame Uniformation for that the panel
17:09
manufacturers are just giving everyone
17:11
smaller screens now this is what we get
17:14
so I'll begrudgingly accept it and all
17:17
in all I think what it comes down to is
17:19
when you look at this printer in the
17:21
context of everything else out there and
17:23
available right now no it's not the
17:25
smartest it doesn't have all the modern
17:27
bells and whistles i mean it's got a
17:28
time-lapse camera and it does offer some
17:31
convenience in that the build plate is
17:33
still brilliant the way it mounts
17:35
sideways as a drip tray as halfass as
17:37
that implementation now is it's
17:39
genuinely still useful and it's also the
17:42
only printer I've used with a phone app
17:44
that does actually let you see your
17:46
prints in progress not just send you a
17:49
text update saying layer 100 of 4,000
17:52
that's great and all but it's better
17:54
when you can remotely see if a print has
17:56
failed and remotely stop it but above
17:59
all and this repetition is for those of
18:01
you who skipped to the end of the video
18:02
to find out why you should buy this
18:04
instead of a Saturn or M7 again go and
18:07
watch the screen replacement guides for
18:09
either of those printers that's why
18:12
honestly Uniformation should send a
18:14
thank you letter to those other brands
18:16
for making such a mess of their screen
18:18
swap processors because it's probably
18:20
going to win Uniform a lot of business
18:24
so now you've decided this is the
18:26
printer you want but which version do
18:28
you begrudgingly go for t-crew or
18:30
ballcrew well if you want to save as
18:32
much money as possible go with the
18:34
T-crew version if you want it to last a
18:36
bit longer go with the ballcrew version
18:38
but realistically with how long the
18:40
other components will last or how soon
18:42
you'll just want a new printer anyway
18:44
because the tech got upgraded and you
18:46
got bored I'll bet neither one really
18:48
matters for most of us in the long run
18:50
the GK2 had a T-screw and everyone was
18:53
fine with that in fact people are still
18:55
trying to buy them so my honest advice
18:57
flip a coin don't let it decide for you
19:00
but that should tell you how your gut
19:02
feels go with your gut or just get the
19:05
one that's in stock and you may have
19:07
watched this thinking hm maybe I want
19:09
the GK3 Pro instead i'm just going to
19:12
say you probably don't but check out
19:14
that video on my channel i'll link it
19:16
here when it goes live if this video
19:18
helped you decide on a printer I'd
19:19
really appreciate it if you did use the
19:21
affiliate link in the description before
19:24
you make a purchase i will get a
19:25
kickback at no extra cost to you and
19:27
that's what helps me keep making these
19:29
videos i want to give a massive thanks
19:31
to all of our channel members your names
19:33
are on screen now and if you'd like to
19:35
join them you'll get your name up in
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lights Discord rolls early access and
19:38
exclusive videos thank you all for
19:41
watching until next time for those who
19:43
come after Fammer out