Larger build volume

While the original Finder seemed pretty proud of being small, compact and lightweight, the Finder 3.0 apparently finds pride in exactly the opposite.

FlashForge looks to be trying to cater to users with a need or a wish for greater design freedom from the start, or as an upgrade for users who may have used and experimented with old Finder’s, are now ready to move on to bigger prints. To be exact, the increase in build volume goes from the 140 x 140 x 140 mm of the Finder 2.0 to the 190 x 195 x 200 mm of the Finder 3.0, thus gaining in all axes, but most of all in height.

Incidentally, this build volume surpasses the one of the FlashForge Adventurer 3, a cheaper printer with which the Finder 3.0 is often compared.

Direct extruder

The Flashforge Finder 3.0 comes with a direct extruder.

A direct extruder is generally considered a good thing, especially if you’re printing often with flexible filaments such as TPU. However, the extruder should prove useful when using other filaments too, with Flashforge saying PLA, ABS, HIPS, and PETG are all compatible too.

The extruder reaches 260 ℃, which means handling all of the above filaments should be pretty straightforward. Though more exotic filaments such as Nylon and Carbon Fiber are out of reach with the Finder 3.0. Connected to the direct drive extruder is the high heat resistance, that goes to a maximum of 260 degrees. This might appeal to users that print for high-resistant filament such as ABS.

Build plate options

Out of the box, the Finder 3.0 should come with a glass plate already installed. Flashforge has given us some flexibility though, literally, by including a PEI magnetic spring steel sheet, which is removable and flexible. You can pick which one you use according to preference. Beginners and students will be able to experiment with prints produced on each surface, but more experienced users are likely to have a favorite already. Regardless of which surface you prefer, the Finder 3.0 will now be able to heat it up to 110 ℃, which is 110 ℃ more than the previous model.

The plates can be switched via two catches, in what looks like a fairly straightforward operation. You don’t see manufacturers including two different print sheets with their printers from the get-go all that often, so this is a bit of a treat.

Fully assembled

Being fully-assembled isn’t just a characteristic of the Finder 3.0, but of the Finder series overall. It’s worth mentioning that, since the printer explicitly targets beginners, Flashforge would of course take care not to make assembly a long, painful process.

So, no assembly required here. You get an all-in-one design.

4.3-inch touch screen

No big change here, from what we can see, the Flashforge Finder 3.0 has a similar touchscreen to the Finder, albeit one that’s a little bit larger. It’s likely to be intuitive and easy to use, and comes with the following languages pre-installed: Chinese, English, Japanese, French, German and Spanish.

WiFi and internal storage

Like previous versions, the Finder 3.0 has a WiFi connection for remote printing. Not only is this very helpful for those of us who don’t want to constantly get up and plug a USB stick or SD card into a machine, it’s also incredibly useful in educational environments. Teachers and students and normal 3D printing enthusiasts will also likely appreciate the 8 GB of internal storage that comes with the Finder 3.0, a great way to keep all your most important or favorite models in the same place.

Like on the Finder (and any other Flashforge 3D printer) the Finder 3.0 comes with FlashPrint as standard, Flashforge’s own slicing software. It’s basic, but not too complicated to use. If it isn’t up your street, the Flashforge Finder 3.0’s product specifications also list Cura and Simplify 3D as compatible slicers.

Further Features

The Finder 3.0 also provides these little features:

• Assisted leveling: Leveling can be done by following the instructions on the touch screen. All you should have to do is turn some knobs to manually adjust the Z-axis.
• Filament sensor and print recovery: These features are now commonly spotted on nearly all new FDM 3D printers. Prints can be resumed in case of power failure, and filament detection should mean your printer notifies you when filament has run out, and resume printing again once replaced.
• Extruder lamp: A lamp mounted on or near the extruder should help you light up the printing area.