pglewis
Veteran
I'm no help at all, I don't track long sessions and just keep a simple Google sheet to track my PBs. Good to see ya back around though!
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- Thread starter MarcelP
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I'm no help at all, I don't track long sessions and just keep a simple Google sheet to track my PBs. Good to see ya back around though!
mark49152
Premium Member
I have a GTS2M, and a YueXiao Pro home magnetised that I bought from Chris Morris at Weston. I like both but the YueXiao feels more solid so I think that will become my BLD main. I've ordered the Pro M new, as the stickers on Chris’s are only borderline legal for BLD and I need a backup cube anyway.
mafergut
Legend
I was planning on buying a Yuexiao Pro M to compare with the GTS2M and, as I have said a couple times here, one of my main issues with most modern cubes is the pointy corners causing catches, so a top notch cube with light magnets and rounded corners could be main material for me.
If you happen to receive yours before I decide to buy one myself do not hesitate in sharing your first impressions here.
I was preparing some stuff to make a video on my channel comparing my Juki WuQue M with the new Aosu GTS M which I will have, I hope, in a few days. So I was recording some solves and got my 1st sub-1min 4x4 solve on camera!
When watching it I only see pauses and pauses
I could get sub-45 easy without the pauses. Makes me wanna cry.
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Bart Van Eynde
Regular
Does anyone has a good tip on how to practise OLL cases? I'm just starting to learn some extra algs (using 2-look OLL mainly) for the dot-cases. But in real solves they rarely happen ... seems like 1 in 57 solves 
And yes i have the OLL trainer from badmephisto
And yes i have the OLL trainer from badmephisto
pglewis
Veteran
Does anyone has a good tip on how to practise OLL cases? I'm just starting to learn some extra algs (using 2-look OLL mainly) for the dot-cases. But in real solves they rarely happen ... seems like 1 in 57 solves
And yes i have the OLL trainer from badmephisto
I can spam a new alg a bunch to get it into muscle memory but I haven't found any shortcuts for recognition short of spamming solves... and it's the recognition pauses that really kill me with new algs, not execution.
Besides the dot OLL cases I'm finally down to 3 I-cases and the awkwards; recognition on the small lightning bolts and Ls is still dodgy which is compounded by the fact that my 2-look OLL for L edges was automatic from 2 angles before I started tackling those.
I'm also replacing a couple G-PLLs right now since I'm already tinkering with my solves, the goal being to have them all be "headlights left" and to swap out a couple of my least favorite algs for RUD:
Gb: R' U' R U D' R2 U R' U R U' R U' R2 D
Gc: R2' U' R U' R U R' U R2 D' U R U' R' D
Technically, if I keep the old ones that are in muscle memory in practice I don't have to "ditch" them so much as have two angles at my disposal, but I definitely prefer the flow of the RUD versions better.
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I found that good way to help learn the OLLs, although a little bit of work, was to learn to do the inverses, at least temporarily. Then you can do the inverse, "recognize" it, then solve it. Sure you already know it's coming, but somehow seeing it come up and responding to it helps.
It's also good when you find that applying a different OLL some number of times to a solved cube yields the case you're trying to learn.
It's also good when you find that applying a different OLL some number of times to a solved cube yields the case you're trying to learn.
pglewis
Veteran
Actually, a thought that hadn't occurred to me is drilling last slot, last layer scrambles. You'd get a to see a lot more OLLs per session that way.
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mark49152
Premium Member
@Shaky Hands , did you really go to Dublin and only get one result, a DNF in 7x7?
JanW
Veteran
When I was learning OLL, I would blindly do a few random OLL algs with some AUF in between, then look at the cube to solve whatever I was presented with. This works pretty well for example while watching TV. Only need to look at the cube once in a while, most of the time eyes can focus elsewhere.
In the past few months my cubing has been limited to only fiddling with the cube in front of the TV. I did realize that during all this time, I've been solving mostly non-white crosses. So now seems like a better time than ever to go all color neutral, instead of trying to get back to my old times with white cross. Especially with all my old records wiped from csTimer, it would still seem like I'm constantly breaking my records, even if it would take a while before I threaten my actual pbs.
I did a couple of hundred full CN solves, choosing what cross to solve during the 15s inspection. Ao100 around 22.8, best Ao50 at 21.5. This is definitely a lot faster than I did CN solves in the summer! I think I'll continue like this.
Most of the really bad solves are still due to forgotten or messed up OLLs. The best Ao12 reveals that it's quite a bumpy ride:
avg of 12: 20.40
21.96, (13.91), 24.96, 15.92, 21.59, 18.07, (32.27), 23.07, 21.21, 18.70, 15.34, 23.19
13.91 was yellow cross (PLL skip), 15.34 red cross (full-step) and 15.92 white. Possibly my fastest yellow and red cross solves ever.
pglewis
Veteran
Yeah, I'm gonna go with this as my final answer. I cranked out over 100 LSLL solves in the time it would take me to do 50 full solves. If you're really out to just pound on OLL you could skip PLL to get even more practice in.
Bart Van Eynde
Regular
This is actually a very nice idea. Thanks allot for the advise.
Bart Van Eynde
Regular
earth2dan
Veteran
Awesome! I have yet to break the 1 minute mark on 4x4. My closest was a 1:05, with no parity. Now after taking a long break from it I'm having a hard time just getting back under 1:20 times. 2017 has been a bust for me on the cubing front. If anything, I'm slower than I was at the end of 2016 in all but 3x3I was preparing some stuff to make a video on my channel comparing my Juki WuQue M with the new Aosu GTS M which I will have, I hope, in a few days. So I was recording some solves and got my 1st sub-1min 4x4 solve on camera!
When watching it I only see pauses and pauses
It's been a long while since I posted here, which seems to be a trend for me :/ , but I love how this thread just keeps going strong. You guys are awesome
I just received my first magnetic puzzles and since the topic came up recently I thought I'd chime in. I bought an Aosu GTS M and a Gans 356 Air SM. Long story short; I really like them both. I'm still in love with my Cyclone Boys mini 4x4, though I think that's mostly because of it's size. If I could get a 57mm WuQue or Aosu GTS, that would be heavenly.
The Gans Air SM has taken some getting used to. It's very light, airy, and really really fast. I've had to really adjust my turning style to be more gentle. This is definitely a "soft touch" 3x3. You could put stronger springs in it and apply some heavier lube to slow it down a bit and make it more controllable, but I think that would negate the effectiveness of the magnets. The magnets are not very strong, and I think a slower puzzle requiring more effort would kill the effect. As it is, if you can turn lightly, and are a fan of the Gans 356 feel, this 3x3 is just awesome.
I don't have any other magnetic puzzles to compare to, but having used the non-magnetic versions of both of these puzzles I definitely prefer the magnets. That extra bit of stability is very welcome, especially with the notoriously wobbly Gans 356.
Not sure when I'll be back, but keep on keep'n on folks. Cubing is For Old People too
pglewis
Veteran
A little while ago I was watching an "older" vid of Feliks on like a 10.x second solve and was surprised how much I now notice the pauses. I can't imagine watching one of my own atm
It also shows some great potential in the making, I'm a little jealous. I've kinda given up on full CN, though I will still go opposite neutral once in a blue moon if white looks annoying.
That looks really interesting at a quick glance, I need to play with it when I have a moment.
Same conclusions here, from the moment I got a GTS2M it's been hard to go back to a non magnetic cube, doubly so for blind. There were a few weeks when my Yuxin Little Magic was crisp and brand new that it was my go-to, but I've been back to the GTS2M for a little while.
Shaky Hands
Premium Member
Ha ha. Erm, no. I registered a while back so was still listed in cubecomps although ultimately I decided not to go. Nothing got transferred from there to my WCA profile so I assume it got spotted and fixed.
Sounds like Ciarán had some excellent results over there. I'd like to get to an Irish comp at some point. Another time perhaps.
I have them all, Yuexiao Pro M, Gan Air SM, UM, GTS2M etc.
The 'stock' GTS2M has problems with the magnets coming loose. The cubicle manually magnetized GTS2M does not have this problem and has better and slightly stronger magnets. Nothing comes close to the cubicle GTS2M. Yuexiao Pro M is not very good at all in my opinion. It feels very much like Gan Air UM. UM had too strong magnets, SM catches/locks up way too much.
Yuexiao Pro M is still a good cube in relative terms, much better than earlier generations. If you run it at very loose tensions and tweak the setup it might approach its competitors.
mark49152
Premium Member
3x3 PB single 11.70. My first 3x3 PB single in over two years! The scramble doesn't look especially easy so I'm not sure if I mis-scrambled. It was a PLL skip but whatever .
.
h2f
Premium Member
Najs Mark, @mark49152. I've started practicing square-1 with Lin Method. Got sub40 ao100, but still missed sub30 ao5 by a little (30.44).
A classic example of regression to the mean! (Although with cubing I usually find that it's an issue with maintaining concentration rather than luckiness/unluckiness; I know I've had 12-second solves with unlucky cases and 20-second solves with lucky cases.)
JohnnyReggae
Veteran
I built my own Stackmat timer display ... @Jayanth .... posted a tutorial for a DIY timer display on the forums a while back. I figured, why not give it a go.
https://jayanth-rajakumar.github.io/ledmat/
I bought all the components needed on eBay from China. The components took around 3 months to arrive Unfortunately my soldering skills are very rusty and I managed to fry both the LED units trying to solder and desolder and resolder and desolder connections. The 4 panel still works but any outgoing connections from it don't, and the single panel is dead Anyway I bought replacements locally as I didn't want to wait another 3 months to finish the project.
Jayanth was awesome as he helped with the software as some of the software required is no longer available. He sent me the software versions that he originally used. I again solicited his help with the wiring of the single panel as it was different to what he used, and also with the battery/charge unit wiring. Again they were different to what he used.
I bought a case from a local Electronics retailer which is not the best but will do for this project. Dremelling the case to make the cutouts was more tedious than I had expected. The case didn't so much get cut as get melted through. My handy work in the end wasn't great but again will suffice for this project. Putting it all together and glueing everything in was quite quick. Finally I spray painted the beige case with matt black, the same paint I've been using for my modded cubes.
If you have a Stackmat timer I would highly recommend you attempt this little project. It's been awesome, despite the shaking head my wife has been giving me
https://jayanth-rajakumar.github.io/ledmat/
I bought all the components needed on eBay from China. The components took around 3 months to arrive
Unfortunately my soldering skills are very rusty and I managed to fry both the LED units trying to solder and desolder and resolder and desolder connections. The 4 panel still works but any outgoing connections from it don't, and the single panel is dead Anyway I bought replacements locally as I didn't want to wait another 3 months to finish the project.Jayanth was awesome as he helped with the software as some of the software required is no longer available. He sent me the software versions that he originally used. I again solicited his help with the wiring of the single panel as it was different to what he used, and also with the battery/charge unit wiring. Again they were different to what he used.
I bought a case from a local Electronics retailer which is not the best but will do for this project. Dremelling the case to make the cutouts was more tedious than I had expected. The case didn't so much get cut as get melted through. My handy work in the end wasn't great but again will suffice for this project. Putting it all together and glueing everything in was quite quick. Finally I spray painted the beige case with matt black, the same paint I've been using for my modded cubes.
If you have a Stackmat timer I would highly recommend you attempt this little project. It's been awesome, despite the shaking head my wife has been giving me
