Retraction is used at the places in a print where the printer has to do a travel move between
two printed parts. Without retraction extruded material will hang between the parts. This means that
the filament is pulled back by the feeder, so that it doesn’t leak from the nozzle during the travel
moves. By using retraction, “stringing” (thin threads of plastic in between the printed parts) is
prevented, resulting in a much cleaner final model. You have to be careful with flexible materials or
models that require a lot of retractions, as that might lead to grinding of the filament.
a. Length: The number of millimeters to retract. Note that the measurement is taken from the
raw filament entering the extruder. A value of between 1 and 2mm is usually recommended.
Bowden extruders may need up to 4 or 5mm due to the hysteresis introduced by the tube.
b. Lift Z: Raises the entire extruder on the Z axis by that many millimeters during each travel.
This can be useful to ensure the nozzle will not catch on any already laid filament; however it is
usually not necessary and will slow the print speed. A value of 0.1mm is usually sufficient.
c. Speed: The speed at which the extruder motor will pull back the filament. The value should
be set to as quick as the extruder can handle without skipping steps, and it is worth experimenting
with this value to find the quickest retraction possible.
4) Infill:
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