Preferred Rubik's cube?

[DaveyCow]

that is a good point, I guess we'll always still be buying the latest cubes, I still don't think anyone should be settling though for 2nd best, when the price difference is only a couple of dollars.

Of course there are people like me who are, in addition to cubing, collecting cubes so buying a few just to try them out is no biggy coz I'm collecting them also. But yeah I realize if someone's just starting out, they might not have any idea if they're gonna be a "collector" too ....

 

[Logan]

I actually have to agree with the people that say to start out with crap cubes. If you start out with the best, your turning speed may increase, but you won't be able to see the mistakes that you make. Turning slowly helps to recognize the things you do bad in your solves, and helps you come up with efficient moves and finger tricks. Having a fast cube forces you to overlook it, and causes you to frantically turn fast and inefficiently. Just my 2 cents.

 

[SpeedSolve]

Wow, a lot to think about here. I'm thinking about a Ghost Hand (I or II?) or a GuHong. Personally, I believe that I could do what unirox13 did, doing slow solves and focusing on the finger tricks. I met a guy last night with a 4x4, 3x3, and 2x2 from cube4you and got to try them all. His 3x3 spun like a charm and could cut at 30 degrees. Not lubed at all. Idk what type it was though. His 4x4 and 2x2 were pretty good, though his 4x4 would lock every once in a while. Otherwise, I really liked his cube. He averages sub 30.

I really appreciate all these comments! Glad I joined these forums, I couldn't have gotten this much help.

 

[DaveyCow]

Wow, a lot to think about here. I'm thinking about a Ghost Hand (I or II?) or a GuHong.

My first speedcube was a GuHong and I still love it. I have a Ghosthand II and its ok but seems to lock alot, so I'd recommend the GuHong between those. And yes these forums are awesomeness

 

[Vinny]

My first speedcube was a GuHong and I still love it. I have a Ghosthand II and its ok but seems to lock alot, so I'd recommend the GuHong between those. And yes these forums are awesomeness

Seeing how this is his first speedcube, I don't think that's a great idea. GuHongs are only really at full potential when they're lubed with either Lubix or Maru, and I'm assuming he doesn't have either. Especially at the price, Lubix isn't really worth it for him if he only has 2 speedcubes... Ghost Hand IIs are obviously better lubed than unlubed, but they're a lot better unlubed than some unlubed GuHongs I have had/felt.

Just my opinion though.

 

[Yuxuibbs]

i started with a rubik's brand and when i got about 40 sec averages i got a haiyan type A and my average dropped 10 seconds within two days.... average is low 20's now and im getting a guhong soon. try to get sub minute solves first because now when i use my rubik's brand i can sub 25 it.

 

[SpeedSolve]

What about an F-II 3x3? Ive heard a lot of stuff about this one.

 

[Cheese11]

Get an Alpha V F(eng) off of Lightake, there like $4 and there still pretty good.

 

[Godmil]

What about an F-II 3x3? Ive heard a lot of stuff about this one.

FII's used to be one of the top cubes before the GuHong came out, It's very nice, fast but stable. The pieces are rounded so it has a different feel. Only problems with it (other than reverse corner cutting isn't as good as a dayan) is that the stickers are awful and will need replaced within a week or two. Also it has caps on all the edges/corners that will pop off if dropped, so it's best to stick them in (with blue tac or glue). But it's still a great cube, and pretty cheap too.

 

[SpeedSolve]

I think I'll try and get a few cubes, as I've heard it's better to try them all and see which you like best, which then I could still use the others to just play with. I think my decisions are: a GuHong, even though I've heard people against that for a beginner, because I can control how fast I solve it and practice looking ahead with it; a Ghost Hand II, because I like the look of it and I've seen lots of good feedback and reviews on it, so why not try it out; and an FII. A couple posts earlier I said that this guy had an awesome 3x3, it wasn't an FII but something kinda silvery. It had caps on it and one popped off during one of my solves with it (much better than my storebought solves, btw) and it was easy to put back on and not a big deal, I think. I also am going to try and get a 4x4 and 2x2, just to challenge myself a bit more when I get more accustomed to the notations and such.

anyway, let me know if you think this is a good decision or not, I couldn't have come to this conclusion without all of your help, so my hat's off to you. If you think I should get something different, just reply.

 

[Vinny]

I think I'll try and get a few cubes, as I've heard it's better to try them all and see which you like best, which then I could still use the others to just play with. I think my decisions are: a GuHong, even though I've heard people against that for a beginner, because I can control how fast I solve it and practice looking ahead with it; a Ghost Hand II, because I like the look of it and I've seen lots of good feedback and reviews on it, so why not try it out; and an FII. A couple posts earlier I said that this guy had an awesome 3x3, it wasn't an FII but something kinda silvery. It had caps on it and one popped off during one of my solves with it (much better than my storebought solves, btw) and it was easy to put back on and not a big deal, I think. I also am going to try and get a 4x4 and 2x2, just to challenge myself a bit more when I get more accustomed to the notations and such.

anyway, let me know if you think this is a good decision or not, I couldn't have come to this conclusion without all of your help, so my hat's off to you. If you think I should get something different, just reply.

Some recommendations: For the FII, superglue all the caps down (except for the centercaps!). They fall off like crazy.

Oh and for the Ghost Hand II, I woulf suggest moffing it by sanding down the tips of the corners, and sanding down the tips on the inside parts of the center pieces.

 

[SpeedSolve]

Ok, now my last question. What site should I get these from? Speedcubeshop has all three, cube4you has the GuHong, a cheap GH and does not have an FII, and I don't know any other websites.

 

[Bapao]

I'm in with recommending the GuHong. The GuHong is the best all round cube IMO, it's more "style neutral" than the rest. It's easier to control if you have average to large sized hands though. You might not like it if your hands are small (that's why it's not my personal fav). Once you've mastered the GuHong, you may just want to stick with it as your main. If you want to explore 3x3x3 world, then you might want to consider getting the rest of the DaYan cube versions at some point. They're all good in their own way and every one of them has their own defining characteristics. Be warned that the LunHui is a bit of a hassle to get your head around at first though .

Also consider getting the F-II and the AV-f at some point. Both have the pre-DaYan style mech, but both are very characteristic and nice cubes to own.

Once you get more 3x3x3s, you'll notice that nearly all of them fall into a category related to the above cubes. I place all my cubes into five categories:

- DaYan type feel = DaYan, MuFang, Gans.
- F-II style = Type F(but not including the F-III), GhostHand, CubeTwist.
- Alpha feel = Alpha, YJ, F-III.
- Type C style = Type C.
- Mf8 Legend (kinda like the type C, but out of control). One of a kind, although I recently purchased another ball-core type cube that feels a lot like it. Not my vid btw

Also; bad, hard-to-turn or locky cubes can cause injury after extended use. As I learned the hard way
I own tons of cubes to choose from, but I'm using the DaYan I as my main at the moment. It's not too forgiving, but nice to practice with. If I ever go to a comp to participate instead of just watching like last time, (I know, the shame) I would use a LingYun.

Whichever cube you get, have fun solving. If said cube is hurting your hands though, then either it's not very suitable for speed solving, or you may just want to rethink your style

Either way, kind regards,

Holger.

 

[SpeedSolve]

I think that was one of the most helpful posts. Does that mean, then, that the FII and Ghosthand are similar in characteristics? This post pretty much reassured my decision, I think.

 

[BC1997]

I'd either go with a Ghosthand II, maybe an A-6 from puzl.co.uk (those are quite controllable), or an F-II as the F-II is a good all around cube.

 

[SpeedSolve]

I guess what I meant with my last post was, is there a point in getting the GhostHand and the FII if they are so similar?

 

[Hershey]

is there a point in getting the GhostHand and the FII if they are so similar?

Probably not.

 

[geekygeek]

My first was a rubik's brand cube which I bought like 3 years ago. It wasn't until 2 months ago when I finally got interested in it. A week later I bought a Ghosthand II. 2 days later, I hated the ghost hand and I bought a sticker less Lubix Guhong. I would suggest a dayan guhong. or a lubix guhong. I use badmephisto's youtube tutorial for f2l 2loll and 2lpll. Just search badmephisto on youtube. Make sure you watch it a few times to get it, and rewind it if you don't understand.

 

[Godmil]

I haven't tried the GH2 but I've heard many people say that it's like a 'not quite as good version of the F2'. If you want something else that is good and feels very different, you could try an AV (then do the memory mod on it - only takes 15mins). Although if Bapao is recommending the AV-f, that may be worth a shot, as I think it's much cheaper. AV's have a super light (and almost cheap) feel to them I found I had to use a much gentler turning style with them, but they are really nice.

Also, www.cubedepotusa.com is a good shop too.

 

[Bapao]

I think that was one of the most helpful posts. Does that mean, then, that the FII and Ghosthand are similar in characteristics? This post pretty much reassured my decision, I think.

IMO, definitely. The shape, feel and speed of the two are very alike. Same goes for the CubeTwist (the new one, not the GHII clone) The GHII is smoother and seems faster out of the box, but without a decent mod, it's lock-fest-extreme. The way it's so smooth and sexy out of the box is unbelievable, until you go fast and it starts eating its own innards. Xxoxia has a nice mod-tut for the GHII that I haven't tried out myself though.
The F-II is hands down the better cube out of the box IMO. But then there's the notorious F-II degradation thing that I still have to experience for myself.
The CubeTwist is somewhere in between the GHII and the F-II.

I haven't tried the GH2 but I've heard many people say that it's like a 'not quite as good version of the F2'. If you want something else that is good and feels very different, you could try an AV (then do the memory mod on it - only takes 15mins). Although if Bapao is recommending the AV-f, that may be worth a shot, as I think it's much cheaper. AV's have a super light (and almost cheap) feel to them I found I had to use a much gentler turning style with them, but they are really nice.

Also, www.cubedepotusa.com is a good shop too.

The AV-f is the best cube Alpha have to offer IMO. An extremely underrated cube. I used to rant about it back when it came out, but my opinion has changed. It's faster than a regular AV out of the box. The thing that put me off at first was the extreme "crunchy-ness" of the AV-f. It feels and sounds like it's locking even though it isn't, at least not to a point that the lock-up actually results in the layers getting stuck like a regular AVs would. Sure, it's an old type mech so it will lock more often than a DaYan type mech but still, it's faster and demands less force to turn the layers.

I don't like the regular AV much, but to be fair, I haven't modded mine. There's also the CC though; It locks about as little as the AV-f, but is a sluggish turner in comparison. I would even dare to say that the regular AV is almost on par with the CC in terms of out of the box performance.

To clarify; by "out of the box" I mean 50 initial solves and prelubrication with 30,000wt shock oil. So not exactly "fresh" out of the box, but still not broken in all the way. I think a proper breaking in requires several hundred+ solves depending on the plastic used and mold quality.