Hello! I'm cjquines!

[cjquines]

Hello to all. I just wanted to say hello and all. I've just pretty recently gotten serious about solving. I mean serious. I've been solving for a year(?) now, but I wasn't practicing very much and I wasn't even a serious cuber.

My current average is now 2:23.68 (yeah, soooo zetta slow...). Yes I know it's slow. That's the reason why I'm in the forum in the first place! I've only been serious cubing for 4 days, and I've improved by 40 seconds since then. My next goal would be to get sub-2 minutes.

First time I held a Rubik's cube, I was a kid. I was far too young to comprehend the intricacies of solving the cube and tried rotating things randomly to solve it. Some unknown amount of time passed, and my aunt came by, saw my cube, took it (with permission of course), and solved it in about 4 minutes. I was amazed. Yes, my amazement may be shallow, but I was a kid. I wasn't even close to knowing how. So ever since then, I wanted to know how to solve the cube. I never actually made much effort on it.

High school. I bought my cube to school. Classmate thought me how to solve the cube. The method I used was kind of like a CFOP mixed with an obscure LL method. It hasn't been documented anywhere in the Internet yet. It's a little bit more basic than beginner CFOP, with just about 5 algorithms. (I've been thinking of writing about it, but I'm scared.) It wasn't actually meant for speed. It was meant to wave in the face of other people who can't solve the cube and say you can solve it. Yes, I've been through that stage.

Then I went on the Internet about cubing. I wanted to be fast. You know, as fast as those sub-15/20 cubers posted on YouTube everywhere. I guess that's my inspiration. I got a new cube, and found a nice tutorial, and learnt it. (That was a week ago.)

Now, I'm in the process of learning F2L. The weird cases still get me from time to time, and F2L is a really big part of solving the cube. It's like the soul of CFOP, (with the cross being the heart) [me and my analogies...].

I use a regular generic cube. I'm planning on getting a better one pretty soon, maybe as a present for me once I get sub 1:30? Haha. I "lubricated" my cube with some Wipe Out Dirt and Stain Remover and I'm happy to say that it works. (It's a bit too slippery for the first few minutes, but after a couple of solves it gets just right.)

 

[makssl6911]

Hello, and Welcome!
First of all, thanks for joining us.
Ehm, side note: i'd recommend trying to get faster at the beginners method before learning f2l, as you will probably adapt faster to it and it will take a while before you will have the F2L>Beginners things-ma-jig.
I'd recommend just practicing what you know, until you have gotten to a 1min more or less stage. Then go onto 2-look oll and 2-look pll.
Cheers. -Makss

 

[CubezUBR]

the way i got faster was watching random cubing videos to pick up tips and advice. i recommend learning the beginners method (noobs method) from madmephisto as he is an exellent teacher and a good cuber unlike dan brown etc who know not much about cubing just how to solve it. improve on finger tricks and dont learn f2l, instead learn how to solve 2 look oll and 2 look pll, then do advanced cfop method. 1 year and only 2.23 is interesting... i was 52 seconds after 1 month. but stop learning advanced stuff before you learn the basics. good luck

 

[cjquines]

Thanks for the advice. I'll keep it in mind.

 

[stoic]

i'd recommend trying to get faster at the beginners method

dont learn f2l

There's some strange advice in this thread.

cjquines: welcome! and I hope you enjoy it here. Good introduction. It sounds like you've got a pretty good idea about cubing and how you want to progress. I'm sure you will break some of the barriers you mention very quickly.

 

[sneaklyfox]

1 year and only 2.23 is interesting... i was 52 seconds after 1 month.

Yeah, great way to welcome a new member to the forums. ("I was a lot faster after much less time.") Didn't you see the part where he said he's only been serious for 4 days and improved 40 seconds?

Anyway, welcome to the forums, cjquines! Don't hesitate to ask for advice or tips. There are plenty of people here willing to help you with anything at all.

 

[CubezUBR]

There's some strange advice in this thread.

cjquines: welcome! and I hope you enjoy it here. Good introduction. It sounds like you've got a pretty good idea about cubing and how you want to progress. I'm sure you will break some of the barriers you mention very quickly.

thats not strange advice... you should go learn how to do beginners method before moving on to some of the most advanced aspect of CFOP. its logical

 

[sneaklyfox]

thats not strange advice... you should go learn how to do beginners method before moving on to some of the most advanced aspect of CFOP. its logical

Well you can learn beginner's first and then move to CFOP, but what's the point of practicing beginner's when you already understand the idea? Might as well practice F2L if you have enough brains to understand it. After that it is mostly a matter of practice. I say to cjquines that if you can understand F2L then go for it. I'd only recommend doing beginner's first if you are a kid and don't have the intelligence to grasp a slightly more advanced concept.

 

[jayefbe]

thats not strange advice... you should go learn how to do beginners method before moving on to some of the most advanced aspect of CFOP. its logical

I learned F2L the same day I learned to solve a cube using a beginner's method. F2L is a relatively simple concept, and as long as you can comprehend how it works, I see no reason not to start learning it as soon as possible. After all, it is the most important part of any CFOP solve and is the step in which the most time can be saved. It's logical.