Older cubers discussions

[mark49152]

Nice to see everyone's updates and progress as always.

Since I have a 3 month gap between competitions, I decided to stop practising solves and learn some of the things I've been putting off because I knew making those changes would disrupt my performance. So for the last couple of weeks I have been reviewing my corner comms and replacing many of them to try to make them more ergonomic, favouring right hand and minimising regrips. Some of my old comms had F2 or B moves in the setups, or awkward regrips and left hand sequences, and it was a waste of time to practise those further. I have about 80% done now and they flow so much better. My corner exec is several seconds slower due to the extra thinking, and will probably take some weeks to return to what it was, but once I am finished, I should have better potential for improving exec further.

I also plan to start swapping UL and UB during memo, add some edge comms, and add some centre comms to my big BLD, all in time to get comfortable and back up to speed for Manchester in February!

 

[Bemis]

It's hard to believe the year is coming to an end and a new is around the corner.

Sticking with Yau on 4x4, I've got my head wrapped around half centers and that changed everything. From there it's 3-2-3. For parity, I've got down an edge flip and edge swaps. So far, those have helped me solve any parity issues. Been sitting on the couch with the TV running doing solves all night without peeking at algs. I picked up a 3x3 after hours of 4x4 and was blown away by how fast it felt. haha

 

[pglewis]

If you can overcome the hand dominance with practice you've got a big advantage over me. I have some mirror algs, like R perm. I've drilled L - Lefty double flick L' Lefty double flick a ton but still slow with it. I try to use it in solves instead of right double flick though so maybe it'll improve some day.

Lefty sexy and sledgehammer are pretty natural for me at this point. Triple sexy isn't going to be as fast from the left for me as it is from the right but it does beat a rotation + right triple sexy. I haven't mirrored many PLLs or OCLLs, those are my oldest and most burned-in algs, but for the rest of OLL I've mirrored pretty much everything that isn't symmetric. I tend to remember "F - sexy - F' - sexy - sledge" so quite a few are really easy to learn the mirror without much thought. For the cases I've already developed some decent recognition, like lightning bolt, most times I probably couldn't tell you if it was lefty or righty. Visual cues start it and muscle memory takes over. Longer term I also practice sexy and sledge in the back slots, when I'm doing untimed and slow turn solves. Not very fast but finally not completely awkward for me either, I'm comfortable enough to occasionally throw those in during F2L with the clock running.

I'm finally down to just a single OLL that I haven't picked an alg for: Highway/Freeway... and it's amazing how frequently it seems to turn up now, 1/108 odds notwithstanding. I've pretty much broken the old 2-look habit completely at this point with a few stubborn ones that I still find difficult to recognize and AUF quickly. To practice the dot OLLs I've had to make a conscious effort to stop last slot twiddling, I didn't realize how much that had become routine for me to avoid dot cases.

 

[h2f]

There is nothing different about how my left hand moves vs. my right other than dominant hand advantage (which diminishes with practice).

I've found a distinct difference between my left and right hand. I'm right handed and I used to play guitar with normal postition doing chords with left hand. Still some algs with left hand like Ja perm (I use a mirror of Jb) are slower than right handed. Last week I've rearranged all of my 3bld corners comms for being right handed. I dont know whats the cause is of it but I've noticed a distinct difference between them.

I decided to stop practising solves and learn some of the things I've been putting off because I knew making those changes would disrupt my performance. So for the last couple of weeks I have been reviewing my corner comms and replacing many of them to try to make them more ergonomic, favouring right hand and minimising regrips.

Count me in. I have an injury in my right hand and I cant do M moves and doing it with left hand is much slower. So I've decided to review all of my comms and change them: no regrips (only x), longer setups (like 4 moves but all R U D group) etc. In many cases I was following Ishaan's solutions though sometimes I've rearranged them to my understandig of how they works. Ishaan got some nice tricks which make some cases easier.

 

[JohnnyReggae]

I'm curious what the argument against this is. My attitude is, if a particular right-handed alg is the best ergonomic solution for a case... then why wouldn't the left-handed version of that alg be the best ergonomic solution for the L/R mirror? There is nothing different about how my left hand moves vs. my right other than dominant hand advantage (which diminishes with practice).

I think the main reason which I have seen J-Perm on YouTube mention is due to the regrips required to swap between righty and lefty algs (can't find the video now where he mentions it). It makes sense as regrips do slow you down, but even more so when swapping between hands. However I think for anyone that is not sub-10 that shouldn't really be a big deal.

I use quite a few lefty algs that have been mirrored from righty algs, both in PLL and OLL. The lefty's are generally slower than the righty ones, but that difference is milliseconds really in the end so I'm happy to stick with them. If I do manage to start averaging near the 10 second mark I may change my mind and learn other algs, but for now I'm good

 

[JanW]

I'm curious what the argument against this is. My attitude is, if a particular right-handed alg is the best ergonomic solution for a case... then why wouldn't the left-handed version of that alg be the best ergonomic solution for the L/R mirror? There is nothing different about how my left hand moves vs. my right other than dominant hand advantage (which diminishes with practice).

Actually there is a difference between how they move. If you are right handed, you've spent a life time practicing your right hand more than your left. That difference won't be overcome very easily. Especially not as you are also most likely practicing right handed algs a lot more while cubing. I'd assume you have more RUF-algs in your arsenal than LUF.

I got my GTS2 M yesterday. I was totally amazed by the speed!! ... of the service at the post office. Second last weekday before Christmas, I was prepared to wait for at least 30 minutes, but there was no line at all!! The cube itself is also nice. Definitely instant main, but also very different from what I expected. First impression was that magnets are a lot weaker than I expected. I also noticed it does things no other cube has done so far, like overshooting a single U or M' flick all the way to a U2 or M2. It will take a while to get used to the new style of turning required. I suppose if I can learn to control the single flick U2, M2 and D2 moves, this could also be a valuable asset.

 

[newtonbase]

I also plan to start swapping UL and UB during memo,

I'm a big fan of this for 3BLD but I forgot to do it on my last edge yesterday costing me a good PB. I think it was because I'd just done a MBLD attempt and I don't use it for that.

 

[mark49152]

I'm a big fan of this for 3BLD but I forgot to do it on my last edge yesterday costing me a good PB. I think it was because I'd just done a MBLD attempt and I don't use it for that.

Yeah it's one of those things I've been meaning to get round to for ages. It'll help both 3BLD and big BLD but will mess with my multi so I'm undecided what to do about that.

Regarding the left and right hand discussion, another thing to consider is regrips. It costs time to switch between hands and generally if you can keep all the work on one hand you'll get a better flow. And, if you're going to do that, the logical hand to choose is your dominant one.

 

[phreaker]

I got my GTS2 M yesterday. I was totally amazed by the speed!! ... of the service at the post office. Second last weekday before Christmas, I was prepared to wait for at least 30 minutes, but there was no line at all!! The cube itself is also nice. Definitely instant main, but also very different from what I expected. First impression was that magnets are a lot weaker than I expected. I also noticed it does things no other cube has done so far, like overshooting a single U or M' flick all the way to a U2 or M2. It will take a while to get used to the new style of turning required. I suppose if I can learn to control the single flick U2, M2 and D2 moves, this could also be a valuable asset.

Lube can also be used to slow a cube down a bit and give it a feel more like you are used to. Traxxas 10-30-50k are all good for that IMHO.

 

[pglewis]

I've found a distinct difference between my left and right hand. I'm right handed and I used to play guitar with normal postition doing chords with left hand.

35 years as a guitar player and I'm most definitely useless left handed. I had difficultly even tuning a lefty guitar the last time I picked one up; everything, including my tuning instincts, are turned on their head. But on a cube for me this seems more akin to when I started using a thumb-pick and taking up finger picking after being exclusively a flat-pick player my whole life (plectrum for some of you). Very clumsy and awkward at first but I'm stubborn enough to simulate "patience". The clumsiness faded after a year or two and 6 or 7 years into it I occasionally sound competent.

Actually there is a difference between how they move. If you are right handed, you've spent a life time practicing your right hand more than your left. That difference won't be overcome very easily. Especially not as you are also most likely practicing right handed algs a lot more while cubing. I'd assume you have more RUF-algs in your arsenal than LUF.

I can't discount the inherent dominant hand advantage but my point was, that aside, my left is fully capable of making the exact same movements as my right... also keeping in mind I'm not all that far removed from learning finger tricks from scratch. I'm probably still in the 2-3 second range on average PLL execution, the absolute best I've logged is a 1.6 for Ua (though it's been a while since I timed algs). At my fastest I still don't turn all that "fast" and my right never managed much of a head start in cubing before I started giving the left some attention.

RUD is one area I haven't mirrored with LUD algs. Those are primarily PLLs, which I learned before I got into mirroring and practicing as much with the left and there hasn't been a compelling reason to convert any yet. I don't do lefty U2s very well at all but sexy and sledge triggers don't lag behind my right-handed ones by too much. Oddly enough, I primarily do all my M slices with the left and those have always been naturally more comfortable for me than with the right.

I think the main reason which I have seen J-Perm on YouTube mention is due to the regrips required to swap between righty and lefty algs

Regarding the left and right hand discussion, another thing to consider is regrips.

Yeah I didn't fully consider the regrip factor, though it's difficult for me to tell which contexts will end up costing me and which might actually be beneficial. My F2L lookahead is so bad that I typically can't run fast enough to evaluate the long term cost of regrips there. Hopefully, if I'm hurting myself it'll fall into the "good problem to have" category and because I'm stuck at 13s averages or something.

I'm also not sure how much that still applies for OLL, assuming I go into it in neutral grip. P (OLL 44) has the beautiful 6-move Fw - sexy - Fw' and I love the mirror for OLL 43 equally. And even though the T's are symmetric it's nice to avoid U2s if they end up aligned lefty.

 

[openseas]

Yeah it's one of those things I've been meaning to get round to for ages. It'll help both 3BLD and big BLD but will mess with my multi so I'm undecided what to do about that.

Regarding the left and right hand discussion, another thing to consider is regrips. It costs time to switch between hands and generally if you can keep all the work on one hand you'll get a better flow. And, if you're going to do that, the logical hand to choose is your dominant one.

I decided to learn Orozco for corners as a bridge to 3 style then realized that better start switching to this UL/UB swap.
My left hand trick (L & D) is not good / fast, it will take a time for Orozco (meaning being faster than OP). I have 3 comps in next 3 months but as always, not gonna focus on comp results (except 5BLD success , plan to stay on this practice.

 

[phreaker]

I decided to learn Orozco for corners as a bridge to 3 style then realized that better start switching to this UL/UB swap.
My left hand trick (L & D) is not good / fast, it will take a time for Orozco (meaning being faster than OP). I have 3 comps in next 3 months but as always, not gonna focus on comp results (except 5BLD success , plan to stay on this practice.

Is there a good english tutorial for Orozco? I've got an interest in learning more BLD stuff.

 

[Bart Van Eynde]

It's hard to believe the year is coming to an end and a new is around the corner.

Sticking with Yau on 4x4, I've got my head wrapped around half centers and that changed everything. From there it's 3-2-3. For parity, I've got down an edge flip and edge swaps. So far, those have helped me solve any parity issues. Been sitting on the couch with the TV running doing solves all night without peeking at algs. I picked up a 3x3 after hours of 4x4 and was blown away by how fast it felt. haha

I also started directly with yau for 4x4x4. Have it for like a week or so and still messing things up quite easily
Also just learned about half centers and it also did wonders for me. Was averaging like 7 min before half centers and now like 5:30 mins. Still very slow i know, but comming from 10+ min solves i reduced my times by half

 

[pglewis]

Definitely instant main, but also very different from what I expected. First impression was that magnets are a lot weaker than I expected. I also noticed it does things no other cube has done so far, like overshooting a single U or M' flick all the way to a U2 or M2. It will take a while to get used to the new style of turning required.

I probably should have tempered my earlier comments with the note that I've developed a fondness for very fast cubes and developed a lighter touch over this past year

 

[Selkie]

Thanks all for the feedback on the ao5. I will reemphasise what I have said for years. I gain more motivation from my fellow oldies to progress than from any other source.

@JohnnyReggae - Loved the display project, great work, might have a stab at something Windows IOT if I can find the time. Great Ao12 PB too sir

@CuberJK77 - Welcome to the cubing equivalent of the old peoples home. Always good to see another more mature cuber join the fold. Hope you enjoy your new found addiction sir!

@Jason Green - Hope you are keeping well buddy and the boys looking forward to Christmas? Any practice recently matey?


Seen some great progress of late overall. If I was to pick a reason it is most likely motivation following Weston-super-Mare Open. In 2x2 - 7x7 I think I have had PBs in the last two weeks in all but 3x3 single. I have stood by "Slow down and lookahead" for many years but the irony is all my PBs are slow solves. Here are a couple of single solves this week...

 

[mark49152]

I decided to learn Orozco for corners as a bridge to 3 style

Is there a good english tutorial for Orozco? I've got an interest in learning more BLD stuff.

IMHO, if you intend to go for 3style Orozco is not worth the effort as a stepping stone. If you're going to learn 21 comms you may as well learn how to set up to them to solve two pieces at a time and get more bang for your buck. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Bemis]

That's awesome! My first timed solve was 5:19 with an edge swap and an edge flip. I'll take that. I wanted to make sure I didn't have to look anything up before I brought a timer into play. Now that I really have had some time with half centers, it's incredible. Really, really wrapped my head around 3-2-3 today. I was getting the concept of the first 3, but was a bit confused on how to solve as I was slicing back during the 2nd part. Now that I fully have those last steps, it's much better. Never had any interest in bigger cubes because I really wanted to focus on 3x3 for quite a while, but I'm glad I branched out. Switching back to a 3x3 after doing 4x4 makes 3x3 feel really quick and snappy.

I also started directly with yau for 4x4x4. Have it for like a week or so and still messing things up quite easily
Also just learned about half centers and it also did wonders for me. Was averaging like 7 min before half centers and now like 5:30 mins. Still very slow i know, but comming from 10+ min solves i reduced my times by half

 

[openseas]

Is there a good english tutorial for Orozco? I've got an interest in learning more BLD stuff.

Not that I'm aware of. But you can find it from 3 style tutorial. 3 style solves two targets at the same time which requires quite a lot of comms to cover all cases whereas Orozco is to solve only one as a subset of 3 style by fixing one target.
Just get the copy of a top blder's 3 style comm list and learn one case (meaning UFR or UBR or etc...). That is basically the Orozco.

You can find a basic concept from the link below, though.
https://www.speedsolving.com/forum/threads/how-the-orozco-bld-method-works.60487/

 

[Jason Green]

Thanks all for the feedback on the ao5. I will reemphasise what I have said for years. I gain more motivation from my fellow oldies to progress than from any other source.

@JohnnyReggae - Loved the display project, great work, might have a stab at something Windows IOT if I can find the time. Great Ao12 PB too sir

@CuberJK77 - Welcome to the cubing equivalent of the old peoples home. Always good to see another more mature cuber join the fold. Hope you enjoy your new found addiction sir!

@Jason Green - Hope you are keeping well buddy and the boys looking forward to Christmas? Any practice recently matey?


Seen some great progress of late overall. If I was to pick a reason it is most likely motivation following Weston-super-Mare Open. In 2x2 - 7x7 I think I have had PBs in the last two weeks in all but 3x3 single. I have stood by "Slow down and lookahead" for many years but the irony is all my PBs are slow solves. Here are a couple of single solves this week...

Yes they are! We are driving up to Missouri tomorrow to have Christmas with my family. We already did 2 Christmases so to speak, at our home and at my sister's house.

I had a pretty good day of practice the other day, like 100 3x3 and maybe 30 4x4 and some 5x5. Overall I haven't really felt like sitting down to do it much. There is a March competition with a 1:15 4x4 cutoff though so that is going to motivate me to try and get a PB average. I'll get back into practicing blind one of these days just not sure when yet.

 

[openseas]

Now, 2018 US Nats information & details have been announced including cutoffs.
Who will be going?

Cutoffs for all BLD events have been tightened compared to the last year, almost 50% in times.
3BLD - 4min (10 min in 2017)
4BLD - 10min (20 min in 2017)
5BLD - 20min (40 min in 2017)
MBLD - 6 points (5 points in 2017)

I'm only qualified for 3x3 and 3BLD, need to work more on all other BLDs to be able to compete in Nats. I guess pretty much this will be my main goal in terms of cubing for 2018

- 3x3 cutoff is 30s avg now. I need to start improving before it goes down to 20s cutoff.
- 2 rounds of 3BLD (compared to 3 rounds of 3BLD in Worlds) - it's debatable but looks like the concern is more related to organization (quiet events at the main stage but with the limited competitors)
- the registration fee has been gone up to $99. Not that I'm complaining, but I think they need to start considering fees from the spectators. When I organize the comp, the biggest challenge is the size of the venue - you need to factor 2x to accommodate spectators which kinda double the venue fee. Kit mentioned that they will consider after this year, the key point is how to implement and maintain (since it needs extra resources) which I agree.

https://cubingusa.org/nationals/2018