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What 385nm Actually Does! - Uniformation GK3 Pro Review - 385nm vs 405nm
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Jul 8, 2025
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View Video Transcript
0:00
All right, we've covered the GK3s,
0:02
and if you're thinking threes, yeah,
0:04
that's because there's two of them, not
0:06
including this one, the so-called Pro.
0:08
And that's what we're diving into today.
0:10
It's mostly the same, slightly
0:12
different, but those tiny changes do
0:14
give us some surprisingly different
0:15
results. So, join me as we uncover why
0:18
Pro is both the perfect name and
0:20
possibly completely the wrong name for
0:22
this machine. Hi, I'm Ross and this is
0:25
Farhammer Videos. Now, if this is your
0:27
first time watching one of my GK3
0:29
reviews, welcome. But I'm not about to
0:31
spend the next 20 minutes repeating
0:32
everything I said in my GK3's
0:36
review. You can watch that, too. And I'd
0:38
love it if you did because it goes into
0:40
way more detail. And another view, like,
0:42
and comment really helps the channel.
0:44
But for now, I'm just going to give you
0:46
a quick summary. So, with the GK3 range,
0:48
and that's not including the larger
0:50
Ultra, we've now got three nearly
0:52
identical machines with only a couple of
0:54
subtle differences. On the normal GK3s,
0:57
the nonpro versions that I covered in my
0:59
last video, one has a ball screw, the
1:01
other has a lead screw, also known as a
1:03
T-crew. The difference between those and
1:05
this Pro is that this has a ball screw
1:08
as standard with no T-crew option. But
1:11
more importantly, this Pro uses a 385
1:14
nanometer light source, where the
1:16
standard uses a more common 405. In
1:19
fact, this is one of only two printers
1:21
I've ever had that uses 385. and I'll
1:23
come on to show what that means later
1:25
on. Continuing the summary for now.
1:27
Outside, the lid design's decent, but
1:29
there's a weird VOC leaking gap that
1:31
shouldn't be there. USB port placement
1:33
is smart, but recessed too far for some
1:35
drives. I love the power button being
1:37
moved to the front, but they hid it
1:39
under a rotating plate. The build plate
1:41
is still one of the best. Great texture,
1:43
solid locking, and no need for faffing
1:45
with leveling, assuming you get yours
1:47
pre-leveled. If you don't, really easy
1:49
to do, and it'll never come unlevelled
1:51
again. The VAT's big, though. with the
1:53
resin pore spout makes pouring awkward.
1:55
They fixed the bill plate drip tray slot
1:57
kind of, but it's a bit of a bodgege.
1:59
The screen is 16K, 9.6 in, not 10 as
2:03
some brands claim. Great resolution, but
2:06
limited UV penetration due to new panel
2:08
trends. The real win of this whole range
2:10
is that the screen replacement is
2:12
stupidly easy, and that is a genuine
2:14
selling point versus something like the
2:16
Saturn or M7. And some standout features
2:19
include a decent internal heater, a
2:21
pre-built-in air filter with printable
2:23
exhaust, and the auto resin system,
2:26
which I personally won't use. It's also
2:28
got a webcam, and an app, which finally
2:31
lets you watch prints in real time. But
2:33
then there's the UI, which is still
2:35
basic. Overtheair updates don't work,
2:37
and the multi-exposure test is basically
2:39
useless in many scenarios. In the end,
2:42
it's a printer that exists. It works
2:44
great. It's got some great reasons to
2:46
buy it. It's just not smarter than its
2:48
competitors. In fact, it's genuinely
2:50
dumber. But it is more convenient in
2:52
some real ways. The build plate, the
2:53
app, live webcam, and that replaceable
2:56
screen specifically, they're standout
2:58
features, and that's true of all of the
3:00
GK3 machines apart from the Ultra. But
3:03
what does this 385 nm light source
3:06
actually mean? And what does it do?
3:08
Well, if I'm going to explain technical
3:10
stuff, I need to do it in a medium that
3:12
I am actually comfortable with. Crayons.
3:15
Hopefully my editor can turn these
3:16
scribbles into something halfway decent
3:18
on screen. But for now, let's keep it
3:20
simple, not because you can't handle the
3:22
detail because this stuff is easier to
3:25
get right when we strip it back. And if
3:27
you've got better info or want to
3:28
clarify something, please drop it in the
3:31
comments. We're all figuring this stuff
3:32
out together. So, when we talk about
3:35
wavelength, the wavelength is just the
3:37
distance between two peaks or two
3:39
troughs in an energy wave. 385 nanometer
3:43
light has a shorter wavelength than 405
3:45
nm, which means it squeezes more peaks
3:48
and dips into the same distance. And my
3:52
high school physics teacher, the
3:53
absolute legend, Mr. Grl, once called
3:56
this its jigability, and that stuck with
3:58
me since I was 13. And why does this
4:00
matter? Well, more jigability means 385
4:04
nm light burns out faster. It carries
4:06
more energy per photon, but it doesn't
4:09
travel as far. So, it doesn't penetrate
4:11
as deep as 405 nm. All right, settle
4:15
down. It's width that matters anyway.
4:17
And I've got neither. And I've still got
4:19
kids, so clearly it works, and that's
4:21
what matters. Now, yeah, that's a crude
4:23
analogy, but it fits. And unfortunately,
4:26
it also lines up far too well with how I
4:29
actually feel about the existence of
4:30
this printer, but we'll come back to
4:32
that in the conclusion. But the primary
4:34
benefit of this change is one that we
4:36
can clearly see when using transparent
4:38
resins. The difference is visible, but
4:40
again only when using transparent
4:42
resins. The more opaque the resin, the
4:45
less this matters visually. So whilst
4:47
it's technically doing something, that
4:49
difference becomes less and less
4:50
noticeable the more pigment your resin
4:53
contains. Now I need to mention that the
4:55
normal GK3 uses PFA release film with
4:58
its marketing name.
5:00
But on the Pro, you don't get PFA. It
5:03
comes with CPFA, which if you want, we
5:06
should say stands for crap PFA, but it's
5:08
just a marketing word that Uniformation
5:10
have since admitted it's ACF. And
5:13
they've explained that this is a newer
5:15
ACF with a finer grain, but yeah, you
5:18
still get the surface texture just like
5:19
you would with ACF. And maybe that's not
5:22
a huge issue for you if you're printing
5:24
bigger models and you don't really need
5:26
a perfect smooth surface or if you're
5:29
printing with transparents because if
5:31
you want that glass-like texture, you're
5:33
going to need to clear coat them anyway.
5:35
And I've got a separate video on that if
5:36
you want to follow along and get
5:38
glass-like results from any clear resin.
5:40
But to really show off the difference in
5:42
penetration depth, Uniformation have
5:44
created several samples which have
5:46
cavities within solid objects. So, the
5:49
idea is with a reduced penetration
5:50
distance, there'll be less bloating in
5:52
the GK3 Pro printer. So, we'll be able
5:55
to see those internal structures because
5:57
they won't be filled in by the UV light
6:00
penetrating as deep. And yeah, you can
6:02
see it. If you're specifically after
6:04
something like this application in resin
6:06
printing, that's the difference. Less
6:08
bloating on transparent resins. And I
6:11
need to stress again, this is only on
6:14
transparent resins. The more opaque your
6:16
resin is, the less of an impact this
6:18
penetration depth will have. Now, to
6:21
cover my ass, because I am still new to
6:24
this, I will also say that there's an
6:25
argument for resins cured with 385 nm
6:28
lights being tougher, but I expect that
6:31
just like the penetration depth is a
6:33
minimal amount. In my hands-on
6:36
experience, I haven't noticed models
6:38
printed in normal resins break any
6:40
differently to ones printed on 405
6:43
nanometer resins. And to be clear, all
6:46
of this was done with the settings
6:47
Uniformation told me to use. But I've
6:50
also printed exposure tests on both
6:52
machines which are both balanced. I've
6:54
got another video on balanced exposure,
6:56
meaning perfect exposure, and why that's
6:58
not great, but why this works. Again,
7:00
check that. But this is enough to tell
7:02
me that yeah, I'll happily concur that
7:04
the settings uniformation provided are
7:06
solid for what we're trying to achieve.
7:08
But going back to the ACF release film
7:10
you get on these printers and why
7:12
uniformation of advised that this is
7:14
needed. Apparently, it's because the 385
7:17
nm light source will actually make PFA
7:19
brittle much quicker and could reduce
7:22
its lifespan in upwards of 50%. And
7:25
that's because of its increased
7:26
jigability. And I just haven't printed
7:29
for long enough and don't have enough of
7:31
these machines to actually test this,
7:33
put it through its paces and verify it.
7:35
But I also know I have another printer
7:37
which has a 385 nm light source and that
7:40
uses PFA release film. And I haven't
7:43
changed the film on that in about a year
7:45
or so since I got it. The printer keeps
7:47
telling me to do so when it says it's
7:49
run out and I just keep lying to it and
7:52
saying I have. Shut up. And that's why
7:54
Skynet will come to hate us. But on that
7:56
other printer with PFA film, I've come
7:58
to my third round of release film
8:00
ignorance and it's still printing. But
8:04
then on the other hand, I also trust
8:05
Uniformation wouldn't just make this up
8:07
and promote something as a necessity on
8:10
their machine when it'll be seen as a
8:11
negative by so many people and they know
8:14
it will be. I've had that conversation.
8:16
But that's it. Now look, in summary, I
8:19
am sure this is a great printer, and I
8:21
even trust that 385 is a better light
8:23
source in general terms, but the
8:26
difference here is only really visible
8:28
on transparent resins. Now, that's not a
8:31
bad thing. Any incremental update is
8:32
still an update, but the benefit also
8:35
comes with a promoted drawback. And once
8:37
again, I'll use the term apparently, it
8:39
degrades the PFA film significantly
8:42
faster, which is why they ship it with
8:43
ACF instead. And that makes the whole
8:45
endeavor feel like one step forward, one
8:48
step back, and therefore we haven't
8:49
actually moved. And we had the same
8:52
thing when ACF came out. Yes, it's
8:53
faster, but it reduces surface quality.
8:56
And as many, many people have echoed
8:58
now, people don't want ACF. They get
9:01
resin printers for the best quality. If
9:04
ACF reduces it, then that's not a thumbs
9:07
up thing for the majority. And I have to
9:10
say, and this has been widely debated as
9:12
well, but in my experience, and I can
9:14
only talk about my experience, I see it
9:17
as a weaker material, too, as in it's
9:20
not as strong. It doesn't last as long.
9:22
I've already had this one tear a small
9:24
puncture in the time I've used it, which
9:26
led me having to replace my screen
9:27
protector. And I can promise you now,
9:29
this isn't because I tried to start a
9:31
print with loose cured resin in the
9:34
back. But yeah, here we're told we need
9:36
to use ACF because 385 wears out PFA too
9:39
fast. Again, we've gained more accurate
9:42
transparent prints, but again, we've
9:44
reduced surface quality. And that
9:46
reduction in surface quality extends to
9:48
everything else you print, too, not just
9:50
transparents. So, this does one job
9:53
really well, but it does other jobs
9:56
worse. So, if you're looking at getting
9:58
this, I think there's there's two
10:00
options. You can accept the surface
10:02
quality issue and print away. Fantastic.
10:04
Thumbs up. Crack on. Or you could
10:06
replace the ACF with PFA and accept that
10:09
you might need to replace your film more
10:11
frequently. And if you do that, please
10:13
let us know what it's like for you in
10:14
terms of lifespan. Is it any better or
10:17
worse than what you've seen before?
10:19
Because I think we do need some
10:20
community consensus on this topic. And
10:22
we need more brands chiming in, too. I
10:25
want to be clear and say I haven't
10:26
concluded my opinion on this light
10:28
source yet. I just don't personally see
10:30
a benefit for my use case, but I don't
10:33
use transparent resins very often. And
10:35
what I want is the smoothest surface
10:37
quality possible so I can prime and
10:39
paint my models immediately. So, this is
10:42
one I just want to put out to the
10:43
audience. I'm not the gospel voice on
10:45
this. My opinion is not everyone's. So,
10:48
more so than ever, I open the floor to
10:50
you. Do you see the benefit here? Do you
10:53
get more than what it takes? Will these
10:55
benefits apply to you? And why? or do
10:58
you feel like me that this is an upgrade
11:00
but with the drawback of release film
11:02
that cancels out the benefit? I
11:04
genuinely want you to tell me. But
11:06
either way, I think it's the naming and
11:09
approach to releasing this that I think
11:10
is a huge misstep from uniformation. I
11:14
do think Pro is the best name for this
11:16
device because well, very specifically,
11:18
I think it's mostly for manufacturing
11:20
and prototyping professionals who will
11:23
genuinely see a benefit in this light
11:26
source. But I also see it as the worst
11:28
name from a marketing standpoint because
11:31
I think general everyday users will see
11:33
pro and immediately assume better than
11:36
the non-pro version and buy it without
11:38
realizing that that there are some
11:40
drawbacks that need to be considered.
11:42
Drawbacks that may not matter to you
11:44
depending on what you're printing, but
11:46
things that you should know about
11:47
specifically around surface quality and
11:50
model scale. Now, personally, I think
11:53
all of them should have just been one
11:54
product, the GK3, and let you choose
11:57
385, 405, T-screw, or Ballcrew on a
12:01
single product page rather than making
12:03
two, well, technically three separate
12:05
products that likely just confuse people
12:08
more than drive sales. But honestly,
12:10
overall, I feel this is just the
12:13
incorrect product for Uniformation to
12:15
have pushed to YouTube creators because
12:17
I genuinely don't think that the people
12:19
who would be tangibly getting the
12:21
benefits out of this machine are
12:23
watching YouTube hobbyist videos for
12:25
their buying choices. And the majority
12:27
probably aren't buying uniformation
12:29
printers in lie of things that are much,
12:32
much more expensive. But hey, I could be
12:35
wrong. I often am. I was wrong about
12:37
something 20 minutes ago, but I am
12:39
married after all. In all seriousness,
12:41
if you do fully understand the benefit
12:43
of 385 nanometer and specifically you've
12:46
been looking at buying a more budget
12:48
friendly 385 nm resin printers, please
12:52
tell me why in the comments. But for
12:54
now, I'm going to come back to my
12:55
earlier analogy and just say, "Yeah, the
12:58
normal GK3 doesn't penetrate as deep,
13:01
but it works just fine." But if you do
13:04
decide to buy this one, I'd expect it's
13:06
because you want a GK3 thanks to the
13:08
easily changeable screen and the other
13:10
two models are just out of stock. And if
13:13
you do buy and this video has helped you
13:15
at least expect what you're getting for
13:17
your money, then I'd appreciate you
13:18
using my affiliate links in the
13:20
description before your purchase. That
13:22
nets me a commission at no cost to you
13:24
and is genuinely how I fully afford to
13:26
run this channel. You know, by eating
13:29
and staying alive. But above all else, I
13:32
want to say thanks for watching. A like,
13:33
a comment, or hitting subscribe goes a
13:35
long way. And you could also join our
13:37
members who are on screen now, who get
13:39
early access, Discord rolls, some
13:41
exclusive videos, mostly of me waffling.
13:43
But until next time, I could do
13:45
something heroic, but I've just put a
13:47
pizza in. Fauxhammer out.
13:54
[Music]
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