So I've become kinda partial to speedcubing

[Joseph41]

Hello!

Wasn't really sure where to put this - have settled on this board in more of a motivation sense and less of an accountability one.

I first learnt how to solve a Rubik's cube in about 2010; one of my friends was extremely good at it - and quick! Since then, I've just sort of solved very casually here and there.

Over the last few months I've developed more of an interest in it, and have got my single PB down to 27.97 seconds, which is not at all quick in speedcubing terms (world record is like 3.47 seconds lol), but something I'm proud of.

I'm using beginner techniques at the moment, and to make any real progress, I think I'm going to need to learn a new (to me) method called CFOP, which basically solves the first two layers simultaneously. I'm currently solving it layer by layer, so CFOP could lead to some big time gains - but I think it'll be difficult to learn.

Anyway, I guess the point of this thread is to kinda keep a record of progress or challenges or whatever, and also to see if anybody else happens to be interested in it!

Wahoo!

[Sine]

I think I also first solved a Rubik's cube around 2010/2011 and was a bit into it around then for a while (also getting 4x4, 5x5 cubes etc). Although recently haven't really done much, but it is something you don't forget.

CFOP sounds familiar to me but I don't think I ever learnt it properly so I was mainly doing it layer by layer like you. Which kinda puts a limit on your times unless you get super lucky.

[Jinju-san]

Hey there!
This thread is such a coincidence for me because I literally started learning how to solve a Rubik’s cube a month ago! I spent about eight hours from morning til night racking my brain watching YouTube videos trying to learn how to solve one. It was so worth it though!

Hello!

Wasn't really sure where to put this - have settled on this board in more of a motivation sense and less of an accountability one.

I first learnt how to solve a Rubik's cube in about 2010; one of my friends was extremely good at it - and quick! Since then, I've just sort of solved very casually here and there.

Over the last few months I've developed more of an interest in it, and have got my single PB down to 27.97 seconds, which is not at all quick in speedcubing terms (world record is like 3.47 seconds lol), but something I'm proud of.

I'm using beginner techniques at the moment, and to make any real progress, I think I'm going to need to learn a new (to me) method called CFOP, which basically solves the first two layers simultaneously. I'm currently solving it layer by layer, so CFOP could lead to some big time gains - but I think it'll be difficult to learn.

Anyway, I guess the point of this thread is to kinda keep a record of progress or challenges or whatever, and also to see if anybody else happens to be interested in it!

Wahoo!

It sounds like I need to keep practising! I have only managed to bring my overall time down to 3ish minutes..
This thread sounds awesome and I’m really looking forward to seeing how quickly you develop your speed cubing skills!

[Joseph41]

I think I also first solved a Rubik's cube around 2010/2011 and was a bit into it around then for a while (also getting 4x4, 5x5 cubes etc). Although recently haven't really done much, but it is something you don't forget.

CFOP sounds familiar to me but I don't think I ever learnt it properly so I was mainly doing it layer by layer like you. Which kinda puts a limit on your times unless you get super lucky.

I have a 2x2 and a 4x4 (and also a megaminx), but can't quite recall how to solve the first two (would just need a quick refresher, but was never quick with either), and have never fully solved the megaminx lol. In fact, here's what I have atm (some details/terminology might be a bit off):

Spoiler

* 2x2x2 MoYu LingPo (white)
* 3x3x3 DaYan 5 ZhanChi - my first ever cube (black)
* 3x3x3 MoYu WeiLong V1 (black)
* 3x3x3 MoYu AoLong V2 (black)
* 3x3x3 Gan Ganspuzzle 357 - think it's a III, but not sure (white)
* 3x3x3 MoYu AoLong V2 (stickerless pink)
* 3x3x3 DaYan TengYun - magnetic (stickerless)
* 3x3x3 MoFang JiaoShi RS3M 2020 magnetic (stickerless)
* 3x3x3 QiYi Warrior S (stickerless)
* 3x3x3 MoFang JiaoShi Mini - 45mm (stickerless)
* 3x3x3 GoCube Edge Smart Cube
* 4x4x4 YJ MoYu AoSu (black)
* Megaminx - unknown details (bought overseas)

The community has completely exploded since like ten years ago. Speedcubing is a massive thing now. Do you plan to get into it more at all?

Hey there!
This thread is such a coincidence for me because I literally started learning how to solve a Rubik’s cube a month ago! I spent about eight hours from morning til night racking my brain watching YouTube videos trying to learn how to solve one. It was so worth it though!

It sounds like I need to keep practising! I have only managed to bring my overall time down to 3ish minutes..
This thread sounds awesome and I’m really looking forward to seeing how quickly you develop your speed cubing skills!

Awesome! That sounds like great progress to me. What method do you use/how are you solving it? And what type of cube?

Keen to hear your progress also - maybe we can motivate each other! Haha.

[Sine]

The community has completely exploded since like ten years ago. Speedcubing is a massive thing now. Do you plan to get into it more at all?

Maybe not at the moment but definitely open to getting back into it at some point.

[hums_student]

That's a really impressive PB! Especially considering you're not using CFOP.

I always do F2L, then the beginner method for the final layer unless I get a pattern I know the algorithms to. There are simply too many OLL/PLL algorithms for my puny brain to remember.

I got a GAN356 V2 for Christmas after more than two years' hiatus from cubing and was surprised that I still have the muscle memory to solve it, though admittedly much slower than before. Getting back into cubing was definitely on my 2021 new years resolutions.

Are you colour neutral by the way?

[Poet]

/snip/

27.97 seconds is genuinely an impressive effort! My little brother has been into speedcubing for two or so years now (very casually), and I always find myself completely lost when he tries to explain the algorithms involved. It does seem like it mostly comes down to memory and association, though.

I'm not sure if you've already been through this, but the steps of the CFOP method are laid out in this literal Wikipedia for Rubik's - I think my brother found it helpful
https://ruwix.com/the-rubiks-cube/advanced-cfop-fridrich/

So many permutations to remember though! So good luck!!

[Joseph41]

That's a really impressive PB! Especially considering you're not using CFOP.

I always do F2L, then the beginner method for the final layer unless I get a pattern I know the algorithms to. There are simply too many OLL/PLL algorithms for my puny brain to remember.

I got a GAN356 V2 for Christmas after more than two years' hiatus from cubing and was surprised that I still have the muscle memory to solve it, though admittedly much slower than before. Getting back into cubing was definitely on my 2021 new years resolutions.

Are you colour neutral by the way?

Cheers! I enjoyed reading this post.

I'm pleased with the PB for now but feel quite limited without CFOP. How long did you take you to learn? I don't even want to think about OLL/PLL yet lol.

How's the GAN? Looks like a great cube. What have you used as your main historically (or atm - I imagine the GAN?)?

Colour neutral - yes, but kinda default to white, so idk if that actually makes me neutral haha. Like I'm happy to search for the easiest colour and try to do that, but find white easiest to recognise still (EDIT: just had a weird flashback to something I'd completely forgotten - in 2010, I solved only for green!). So maybe not really, but getting there? Haha.

P.S. What kinda times are we talking?

27.97 seconds is genuinely an impressive effort! My little brother has been into speedcubing for two or so years now (very casually), and I always find myself completely lost when he tries to explain the algorithms involved. It does seem like it mostly comes down to memory and association, though.

I'm not sure if you've already been through this, but the steps of the CFOP method are laid out in this literal Wikipedia for Rubik's - I think my brother found it helpful
https://ruwix.com/the-rubiks-cube/advanced-cfop-fridrich/

So many permutations to remember though! So good luck!!

Thanks Poet! Would love any pearls of wisdom if your brother has any haha.

The algs are interesting. Like when I was first learning, I thought the whole thing was some sort of weird magic. But then you learn them and they seem completely normal - but now I'm back at the whole magic thing with CFOP lol.

Thanks for the link.

[hums_student]

IIRC F2L wasn't too difficult - I think it took me maybe an hour? For me, I think it's easier to learn F2L by intuition rather than trying to remember the algorithms. OLL/PLL on the other hand... yikes.

The GAN's brilliant. I think the best part is its corner cutting (in comparison to my previous cubes anyway). It's also a lot quieter which I'm sure my roommates would be thankful for. Apparently it's also highly customisable but I haven't tried anything yet. Back when I was really into cubing, my main was the MoYu AoLong V2.

Haha I'm the same - technically colour neutral as in I can start on different colours but I do have a default (I learnt on red lol, so that's my default colour). My PB is 23.7 but I got lucky with the final layer.

The algs are interesting. Like when I was first learning, I thought the whole thing was some sort of weird magic. But then you learn them and they seem completely normal - but now I'm back at the whole magic thing with CFOP lol.

Haha same for me too. Before I knew how to cube, I used to tell my cubing friends to turn around while I scrambled because I thought if they looked they would be cheating. It was an epiphany moment when I realised how it actually worked.

[angrybiscuit]

I've been stuck at around 55 seconds using a beginner algorithm years and years ago! It's the algorithm I'm sure everyone starts with...

Does anyone have any suggestions on algorithms I should learn/adopt to cut down my time?

[Jinju-san]

I have a 2x2 and a 4x4 (and also a megaminx), but can't quite recall how to solve the first two (would just need a quick refresher, but was never quick with either), and have never fully solved the megaminx lol. In fact, here's what I have atm (some details/terminology might be a bit off):

Spoiler

* 2x2x2 MoYu LingPo (white)
* 3x3x3 DaYan 5 ZhanChi - my first ever cube (black)
* 3x3x3 MoYu WeiLong V1 (black)
* 3x3x3 MoYu AoLong V2 (black)
* 3x3x3 Gan Ganspuzzle 357 - think it's a III, but not sure (white)
* 3x3x3 MoYu AoLong V2 (stickerless pink)
* 3x3x3 DaYan TengYun - magnetic (stickerless)
* 3x3x3 MoFang JiaoShi RS3M 2020 magnetic (stickerless)
* 3x3x3 QiYi Warrior S (stickerless)
* 3x3x3 MoFang JiaoShi Mini - 45mm (stickerless)
* 3x3x3 GoCube Edge Smart Cube
* 4x4x4 YJ MoYu AoSu (black)
* Megaminx - unknown details (bought overseas)

The community has completely exploded since like ten years ago. Speedcubing is a massive thing now. Do you plan to get into it more at all?

Awesome! That sounds like great progress to me. What method do you use/how are you solving it? And what type of cube?

Keen to hear your progress also - maybe we can motivate each other! Haha.

To be honest, I’m not quite sure what the name of the method is.. I just looked up solutions on YouTube and followed the first one that came up. It was a video made by Brightside… I think I should probably try researching some different solutions to see if I can find anything else that is more time efficient.

Do you guys have any recommendations?

[K888]

I've never solved a rubik's cube, but I am full of admiration for anyone who has!

[Joseph41]

IIRC F2L wasn't too difficult - I think it took me maybe an hour? For me, I think it's easier to learn F2L by intuition rather than trying to remember the algorithms. OLL/PLL on the other hand... yikes.

The GAN's brilliant. I think the best part is its corner cutting (in comparison to my previous cubes anyway). It's also a lot quieter which I'm sure my roommates would be thankful for. Apparently it's also highly customisable but I haven't tried anything yet. Back when I was really into cubing, my main was the MoYu AoLong V2.

Haha I'm the same - technically colour neutral as in I can start on different colours but I do have a default (I learnt on red lol, so that's my default colour). My PB is 23.7 but I got lucky with the final layer.

Haha same for me too. Before I knew how to cube, I used to tell my cubing friends to turn around while I scrambled because I thought if they looked they would be cheating. It was an epiphany moment when I realised how it actually worked.

An hour?! Yikes - impressive! I can fairly intuitively get some pairs but am struggling with others (white on top, or when the corner and edge piece are correctly located but facing the wrong way). Any tips? Haha.

Yeah, I love quiet cubes. I bought a magnetic DaYan TengYun recently (think it's a V2), and it's by far the quietest cube I own. Love it.

Huge PB (and I reckon most PBs would have some sort of lucky scramble lol).

I've been stuck at around 55 seconds using a beginner algorithm years and years ago! It's the algorithm I'm sure everyone starts with...

Does anyone have any suggestions on algorithms I should learn/adopt to cut down my time?

55 seconds - nice one! I was stuck at that mark for ages, too. Are you using finger tricks at the moment, or are you like re-positioning your hands on the cubes to make turns? I hope that makes sense haha.

To be honest, I’m not quite sure what the name of the method is.. I just looked up solutions on YouTube and followed the first one that came up. It was a video made by Brightside… I think I should probably try researching some different solutions to see if I can find anything else that is more time efficient.

Do you guys have any recommendations?

Same question as above! Are you using finger tricks? They really helped to bring down my times.

Otherwise, I think my biggest improvements recently have been based on the cross - so planning ahead your moves to try to get the cross finished as efficiently as possible. I was eating up a lot of time because I hadn't properly planned ahead through inspection (still a work in progress!).

I've never solved a rubik's cube, but I am full of admiration for anyone who has!

😍

[hums_student]

An hour?! Yikes - impressive! I can fairly intuitively get some pairs but am struggling with others (white on top, or when the corner and edge piece are correctly located but facing the wrong way). Any tips? Haha.

White on top is my favourite hahaha.

example

Using red/blue as an example (pretty sure the corner piece on the left is white/blue/red. Found this picture randomly so I can't be sure lol)
1. Match the blue on the blue/red side piece with the blue centre piece (already pictured)
2. Now the colour facing top on the red/blue side piece is red. Use R' to turn it away from the red side, so now blue's still matching with blue but red is matching with orange.
3. U' so that the white/blue/red corner piece is right next to the blue/red side piece
4. R so that both pieces are next to each other on top.
5. Insert

Algorithms (white side facing down, orange side facing you): R' U' R U' R' U R

Love quiet cubes too. I must check out the one you got!

[Joseph41]

White on top is my favourite hahaha.

example

Using red/blue as an example (pretty sure the corner piece on the left is white/blue/red. Found this picture randomly so I can't be sure lol)
1. Match the blue on the blue/red side piece with the blue centre piece (already pictured)
2. Now the colour facing top on the red/blue side piece is red. Use R' to turn it away from the red side, so now blue's still matching with blue but red is matching with orange.
3. U' so that the white/blue/red corner piece is right next to the blue/red side piece
4. R so that both pieces are next to each other on top.
5. Insert

Algorithms (white side facing down, orange side facing you): R' U' R U' R' U R

Love quiet cubes too. I must check out the one you got!

Right, yeah! I think that does make sense - thank you very much. I must look into it more - maybe there are specific white-on-top cases where I'm struggling.

P.S. Can recommend the TengYun!