Hey folks!
I've been studying posts about strings and retraction heading back to 2010 on here and wanted to put up a quick request for how Ultimaker users are tackling this, particularly with the assembled machines in their most recent configuration.
Reason I bring this up -- I was printing BEAUTIFUL prints on an assembled ultimaker in PLA silver the other day and noticed that i was seeing more wispy strings than when printing the same model on the printers I already had (Rep1/Rep2 in particular). The particular model I focused on is the same one I read about here printed by flouSH last summer, the Lightbulb:
http://umforum.ultimaker.com/index.php?/topic/467-post-your-latest-print/page-5
Here's the model: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:22851
This is something of a stunt print that people typically print to see how 3D printers can tackle registration and retraction. I noticed that I seemed to be getting worse strings than expected and was seeing some of them touching up against the rising towers and messing with layers.
I read about solutions such as the shims to help prevent the play that reduces the effect of retraction somewhat, but I was wondering if there are other routes or retraction values that most of you use to counter this sort of thing these days.
For the most part, I don't care about strings when the parts are pristine. I have a cheapo hot air reworking station I can use to quickly heatup and soften back any marks after I trim them away. But I could see friends I showed the light bulb to shaking their head and tisking when considered against other extruder models that have retraction more mechanically accurate to the slicing.
And wow, I printed a calibration cube at one point when checking the machine out that was so beautiful I though the machine had substituted my print with an injection molded piece....