Tag: manufacturing
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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 Spirograph & The Cycloidal Gearbox
This common toy actually demonstrates one of the biggest flaws of a well-known piece of modern machinery. The cycloidal gearbox– whose most significant limitation is well-demonstrated by the beautiful patterns that the Spirograph creates. Did you grow up using the Spirograph? It’s a tool for creating geometric art, pictured below. I remember being really impressed… Read more
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Reverse Engineering – How It’s Done
Reverse Engineering Is More Than Copying Geometry Reverse engineering: the starting point when a critical part fails and no drawings, CAD files, or supplier support exist. At Wolfpack Workshop, based in Columbus, Ohio, we specialize in reverse engineering. Through this process, we take a physical component and rebuild it digitally so it can be improved,… Read more
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A Lesson I’ve learned along the way
One of the most unexpected lessons I’ve learned as an engineer– but it’s saved me 100’s of hours! Often in my work, I’ll need a part that is VERY specific. Naturally my go-to answer is to fire up SolidWorks and make a custom model for manufacturing, but I miss a critical step! One small question that… Read more
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Making a CNC Machine from Scratch
View this post on Linkedin Building a CNC at Home In 2023, I designed & built a CNC Machine at home. Here’s what I learned: 1. CNC machines need to be rigid. Like… VERY rigid. As you take away rigidity, the materials you can machine become fewer. Your machine also becomes quite loud with something called “chatter”. Chatter happens… Read more
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Can I Replace a Machine Part With a 3D Printed Version?
Download the PDF Guide Introduction Your old machine part fails. Spares are expensive, or worse, discontinued… Could 3D printing be the answer? SUMMARY Replacement parts are expensive due to OEM monopolies, overseas parts, and low production quantities. 3D printing can be a good option for replacing parts, especially when the parts are high complexity, low-medium… Read more