Author: David Helmers
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How Additive Manufacturing Helps CNC Machine Shops
I worked at a great, very capable machine shop for 5+ years as a mechanical design engineer. During that time, I noticed a lot of ways that additive manufacturing can improve operations, reduce internal costs, and open up new opportunities for a CNC shop. Here’s what I learned about what Additive Manufacturing can do in… Read more
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DESIGN WORLD FEATURE: WOLFPACK WORKSHOP
Side hustle to startup: How one design engineer turned 3D printing into a business By Rachael Pasini | September 16, 2026 Here’s a story about David Helmers, a mechanical design engineer who couldn’t shake his entrepreneurial itch and started Wolfpack Workshop with his wife, learning lifelong lessons along the way. Wolfpack Workshop in Columbus, Ohio,… Read more
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New Wolfpack Workshop Youtube Channel
3D Printing, Engineering & Workshop Tips Attention, fellow manufacturers, makers, and engineers: I’ve just launched our new 3D Printing & Engineering YouTube Channel! I’m happy to introduce the new Wolfpack Workshop YouTube channel. I’ve uploaded all the videos I’ve made over the last year (only 5 so far, but more to come). Follow my channel… Read more
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3D Scanning – A Quick Synopsis
3D Scanning For Engineering What do you do when people KEEP ASKING for a capability that you don’t have? 🧐 You add it! Happy to announce we are now up-and-running with in-house 3D scanning capabilities! 😁 For those interested (nerds like me 🤓), this is basically how a 3D scanner works: A laser 3D scanner… Read more
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New Podcast Episode Released
3Degrees Discussions & Wolfpack Workshop – 3D Printing Podcast I’m not an extrovert 🙃 and this was a first for me… But I do like to nerd out just a little bit about 3D printing! I’m sharing the podcast episode (released yesterday) from Mike Vasquez’s 3Degrees Discussions, in which he’s featured our conversation about Wolfpack Workshop… Read more
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The Lost Art of Mechanical Design?
I think this may be becoming a lost art… hope I’m wrong. 😶 One skill that I feel is gradually being lost is the ability to design a machine without the use of PLC automation. People used to make machines where everything was mechanically timed instead of programmed. There was not an absolute need for… Read more
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Injection Molding Vs. 3D Printing – Which One Wins?
I spent some time the other day teaching myself something new. I often talk about how my new SLA machine creates “injection mold quality parts” and competes with injection molding in a lot of key metrics. I decided to learn how to design a part for the injection molding process. I selected an old model… Read more
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The Formlabs Form 4L & Tough 1000 Resin
It’s the beginning of a new chapter at Wolfpack Workshop! We’ve just added a Formlabs Form 4L to the workshop – signaling the beginning of a new era of SLA printing & greatly expanded capabilities. Here’s a spotlight on one of its amazing materials, Tough 1000 Resin: HDPE injection-molded toughness, 3D printed parts! How to… Read more
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Introducing “USAIN VOLT” – Our Newest H2D Printer
Introducing our newest H2D “Usain Volt” to the Workshop! 👏 I’m excited to announce I’ve added another H2D to the fleet of printers here at Wolfpack Workshop. Staying true to my “speed” theme, I’ve named it Usain Volt. Ever since I purchased my Bambu Lab H2D and H2S earlier this year, I’ve found that my… Read more
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You Can’t Push a Rope – Engineering at its Simplest
You can’t push a rope. I had a professor who liked to say that engineering school could be summed up in two sentences: 1. f=ma2. You can’t push a rope. Although humorous, this does demonstrate an important problem solving skill that all engineers need to have. Several times in engineering school, I would solve one… Read more