Defective Dayan ZhanChi 3x3x3 cube

[CarlBrannen]

So I was happy to see a black Dayan ZhanChi arrive in the mail today from speedsolving.com I tore the package open. The white face was very difficult to turn. Difficult as in requiring strength. WTF?

I took it apart and found the problem. One of the screws was out of spec, it's head was too wide and was snug against the plastic center cubie. This might have been noticed at the factory because it was sufficiently hard to turn the screw that I slightly damaged it as you can see in this photo (defective screw on the left). On the other hand, I suppose they use power equipment to screw these things together:


That was easy to fix. I had a couple packages of spare Dayan screws and swapped it out. (Interestingly, the Dayan ZhanChi uses a different spring from the GuHong. I'm tempted to measure these and see exactly what the difference is.)

Now that I had it apart, I discovered another defect. Two of the edge cubies were missing their torpedoes:


WTF?

Anyone else get these kinds of problems?

 

[cubernya]

I actually just had this. The yellow side of my ZhanChi is messed up, and am getting replacement parts from theCubicle with the rest of the order. One edge was missing a torpedo, and the screw went up against the center (although I think it's the center, not the screw)

 

[sa11297]

I think I got 2 extra torpedoes in a diy zhanchi I just got. Does that mean someone else is not going to get those 2?

 

[drewsopchak]

I think I got 2 extra torpedoes in a diy zhanchi I just got. Does that mean someone else is not going to get those 2?

Of course not they're just spares.

 

[tx789]

my zhanchi came stiff after lubing it was fine same with the witwo

 

[J4CM4N]

I haven't had this problem before, but lubricating the screw and the plastic it's rubbing against might help.

 

[Kattenvriendin]

Contact the seller, I'd say, I am sure they will be of perfect assistance!

 

[~Adam~]

my zhanchi came stiff after lubing it was fine same with the witwo

Sounds like your lubing method.

 

[CarlBrannen]

I think that if your screw rubs against your plastic (which was the problem I had), you need to replace (or modify) your screw if it's bent or too big, or maybe your spider. It shouldn't do that. No amount of lube is enough to fix broken geometry.

 

[Cheese11]

Could you not just take a metal file to the screw to even it out? Just contact the seller about the torps.

 

[cubernya]

Could you not just take a metal file to the screw to even it out? Just contact the seller about the torps.

And if you don't have a metal file?

 

[Cheese11]

And if you don't have a metal file?

Umm... buy one? I got mine for about $2.

 

[cubernya]

Umm... buy one? I got mine for about $2.

Well I don't have one, and I live in rural areas (an hour or so from any city)
Anyway, the screw should have been the same as the others. Why it's like this, who knows, but it's not the only one of a kind (I also have one)

 

[Cheese11]

Well I don't have one, and I live in rural areas (an hour or so from any city)
Anyway, the screw should have been the same as the others. Why it's like this, who knows, but it's not the only one of a kind (I also have one)

I too live in rural areas. Do you not have ANY sort hardware store near you area?

 

[CarlBrannen]

I love working on stuff and have all the tools I need. As to the torpedoes, I ordered three more from GreatSKU which should arrive tomorrow or the next day. I was going to wait to see how many torpedoes were missing from that group, and then take care of them all.

The only reason I'd ordered the one (defective) cube photographed above was because I realized I could get it faster than the Great SKU (cheaper) could arrive from China.

 

[CarlBrannen]

The three Great SKU Zhanchis arrived today and each is in perfect condition. Interestingly, the tensions were wildly different among them. So now I guess I need two torpedoes. That said, I've never seen stickers fall off this fast. I went ahead and ordered a set of torpedoes.