Aolong, Weilong, Hualong, Meiying, Gans 356 and Thunderclap

[Deleted member 12389]

Got the aolong v2 (enhanced) and weilong V1 last month. Have fiddled with it, finding the tension that I like.
Today I got my hands on the hualong, weilong, meiying, thunderclap and Gans 356

Right out of the box the latest 4 can't cut line-to-line - this is expected at their default tensions. It was the same with the aolong and weilong until I break it in and tensioned it differently. But their performances were top notch.

Mentally, I kinda group the aolong, hualong and thunderclap together - their turning feel almost the same with the hualong being the quietest, followed by aolong. Thunderclap is, as its name implies, loud! First impression is that the hualong is the better cube. Budget-wise, I think I can live with the thunderclap, being the cheapest of them all (for those still under 20s or so).

The meiying reminds me of a more controllable dayan linyun. And I really like the slightly larger stickers - help recognition tremendously. Didn't time myself, but right out of the box, I felt like I broke out of the 20s a few times (one can dream, right? ). I really like this meiying.

As expected, the gans beat them all. I thought I had gone deaf - after all the noise from the other cubes, this one is so quiet. The turning - wow. You would have thought that there is a thick layer of slick and non-gummy oil on the inner surfaces!

I think the future is in gans-type design.

No pics - we have seen enough of their pics. And I am too tired after a hard day's work. Plus walking the dog. And hitting the gym.

But here is my last order from lightake- just in case someone says 'pics or it didn't happen' - delivered all within 2 weeks from lightake.

 

[NewCuber000]

Ok, I'm getting a new cube and I'd like to know one thing: How does the gans speed and smoothness compare to the hualong? I have a hualong but after a lot of use it's out of the box speed doesn't really last (After 3 months my hualong feels horrible now) so I'm thinking of trying a gans.

 

[Deleted member 12389]

Feel like cubing on air...but at default tension, it doesn't cut line-to-line.
The Hualong have really nice turnings of the whole lots but loses to the gans. To me gans is exceptional.

Not keen on the darker shades though. Prefer the default meiying scheme. But that is just me.

Don't know if it will make help shaves those millisecs off your best, for those of you already in the sub 15s range. "Feels nice" may not translate into better times. Some reviewers hate it. Who knows - once I start using it substantially for timed solves, I may 'hate' it too...
And definitely don't know if it will last more than 3 months.

Felix reviewed it here: http://www.speedcube.com.au/blogs/feliks-zemdegs/28828419-may-2015-gans-356-review
He used "noticeable bumpy/crispy feeling" - I don't get that...strange. Maybe its the lube (factory?)

 

[Praetorian]

I don't think anyone acknowledged that the 356 is a flimsy cube, mine is flimsier than my 357, I was expecting a way more stable feeling cube, but atleast it's near-impossible to pop or corner twist. I can't control it cause it flops out of my hands too easily and my turning is inaccurate

 

[CubeWizard23]

I don't think anyone acknowledged that the 356 is a flimsy cube, mine is flimsier than my 357, I was expecting a way more stable feeling cube, but atleast it's near-impossible to pop or corner twist. I can't control it cause it flops out of my hands too easily and my turning is inaccurate

i had this problem but after tightening a couple of turns on each face and gumming up with lube and a week or so of getting used to it its much more stable/controllable

 

[Makarov]

One thing I agree with is that the aolong v2 and thunderclap feel pretty much identical. I lubed and tensioned both of them and they came out almost feeling like the same cube. Thunderclap slightly better being lighter and maybe a tiny bit smaller, with smoother turning but if you have one you don't need to try the other imo because it's so similar.