some Questions for a new fella

[Nunga]

He all im new here as you can probably see. Ive been doing this funny little square thing they call a cube for a few years now. but put it away and only just started getting back into it again. I consider myself a Beginner, ive seen how fast it can be done and im not even going to think i can get it done even close to those times.

I do have a couple of questions tho. I see posts about F2L and your times on completing this. i also see times posted for the cross at the first stage. Ive seen Youtube videos on how to do this F2L and they all start with the completed cross. so are the times posted for finishing F2L taken from the start of the completed cross or from the cube as it stands all mixed up?

Also, the way i do the cube is so different form what ive seen posted. my first two layers i do are nothing like what ive seen. Ive tried doing this the other way but it's like learning how to do the thing again. Ive been trying this new F2L way every day for a couple of months now with the cross at the bottom and i can only get it finished it in 1:30 (from the completed cross to the second layer solved).
With my way i can get the first two done in around 40 seconds from the start of the completed cross. I do it with the cross at the top and use my own made up way of completing it. My question is this...do you think i should keep up with this new F2L method i see everyone going on about? is two months long enough to know if im going to get faster or not? keeping in mind when i first started this new way it was taking me 4 minutes to solve the second layer after the completed cross.

The bottom (third) layer. again i do this a totally different way and im looking for a faster way to get this done. You guys all start with making the cross first, I do the corners first and the cross last, I use two algorithms for my corners one algorithm moves and flips three corners at the same time. You normally only have to run that twice to get your corners in the right spot facing the right way up and it is very quick. the second algorithm will swap two corners if they are out of order. The cross on my method is where the time comes into it. Again i have two algorithms for this one algorithm moves the three cross peaces clockwise and flips two edges and leave the third the same way...this can take a while to complete. The other algorithm i use for the last cross moves three of the cross peaces clockwise without flipping. the problem with this is it is a bit of a lottery how the cross is and it can take some time to finish.

Ive seen a advanced beginners method that uses a few algorithms to make the cross from any combination on the bottom layer. this is pretty cool and is very quick (like my way with the corners) but it has the same problems with flipping the corners as my flipping the cross does at the end. both my way and the advanced way looks to be around the same time because the last stage on both take time.

I can solve the cube my way in 1:45 from start to finish. I have no idea if that is slow or good or what...I think im looking for direction here...keep my way or keep at this new way?

Thanks for taking the time to read this!

 

[Luke8]

The method you state is the CFOP, or Fridrich method. It is one of the many, many methods, but is the most popular. There is no "best" method, it's what fits you best. If you want to get sub 1-minute, I say ditch your method and try Petrus, Roux, CFOP, or Layer-By-Layer(a watered-down CFOP). The fact that you solved the cube using your own method is incredible, that is a feat few can manage(by few I mean probably >200 people); but I'll be blunt here, 1:45 is not great. It's fine, but it's not great.
I think you should try Layer-By-Layer first( these links are helpful: http://badmephisto.com/beg.php OR https://www.rubiks.com/solve-it/3x3/ .) Also, F2L is one of the slowest stages to learn. It takes many, many months of practice, but it WILL, and I promise you, it WILL pay off. Just solve the F2L, scramble, repeat. Do this so often.
Also, the cross method that you say is new to you has limitless potential, just practice the cross, over and over again. By this, I mean solve the cross, scramble, repeat. Do this so often. Also, solving the cross on the bottom is awkward at first, but after a lot of practice, it will become awkward to solve it on top!
I think you have as much potential as anybody, just practice, practice, practice. If you don't like CFOP(the method you are learning), try Petrus, Roux, or any other method. They are all just as good, and Roux is catching up with CFOP in terms of popularity.
If you have anymore questions, just ask me in this thread, it will be my pleasure!
Happy Cubing!
-Luke8

 

[One Wheel]

It sounds like your corner alg is a sune, but I'm curious about the other ones. Can you write out the moves by any chance? And would you be able to give a little more detail about your F2L? What kind of cube are you using? I was running around 2:00 with LBL on a Rubik's brand, and pretty quickly dropped to about 0:50 with 2-look OLL and 2-look PLL on a Zhanchi. 1:45 is a good start, and you can probably improve more quickly than you think.

 

[Nunga]

Hi my cube is a Moyu YJ Guanlong. I got it because of the price, tho i do need to figure how to adjust it correctly, it seems to be too lose or too tight. whats a LBL?

My F2L...now thats a long story. I used to do it like this. finish the top layer any colour anyway i could and keep one corner uncompleted. The finished first layer is on the top. i used this unfinished corner as my working corner to put the middle layer in place..i just followed the top corner around and just popped the second layer in as i went around, very quick and simple, find the bit you want to insert to the second layer move the bottom around to the spot where it goes, move the uncompleted top corner to the same spot insert the second layer and move to the next bit. then put the top corner back in when its at the last stage then insert the last second layer bit in then move to the last layer. useing this way i averaged 2:20- 2:30

BUT....then i discovered F2L on youtube a few months ago. i tried that Fridrich method and just couldnt get my head around it...then i had a brain storm, why not do the same thing but with my way of doing it. and going the cross first did help in my times. so ive started to do it my new way, i do the cross first (and yes cross on top) then pop in a corner and then the pair to go with it doing the same as before moving the uncompleted top around as my working point and finishing it the same way as before. Ive been doing this new way for probably a week now and ive already knocked 30 seconds off my best time, probably due to the fact i always start with the white cross now, before i would sit there looking and wondering what colour looked easier to do and i would get myself in a stupid spot and time ticked over, now i know im doing white first and it will be a cross and that helped 10 fold.

As to my moves, they are in my head. to complete the cross on the last layer i do this move. keep the peace you dont want to rotate to the front of the cube. (i do the last layer with the white cross on top and the unfinished yellow on the bottom)

so with the first white layer on top lets say that red face is solved already when we flipped the corners, the move i will try to explain if you can understand me will move the blue side middle to the green but not flip it, the green side will flip and move to the back orange and the back orange will flip and move to the blue side.

So,,,red side facing you, move the center down so there is now a white stripe in between the red face. move the bottom of the cube left then the center back up. move the bottom around two times, then the center back down move the bottom around to the left again then the center back up. thats very quick and simple, you can also do this in reverse

To rotate the three centers without flipping you start the same way (white facing up) this time spin the cube left so that the side you do not want to move is on the left side. Move the center down (like in the last move) move bottom to the left. center back up. this time the bottom only moves around once to the left (not twice like in the first move) then center down. The white center is now at the top of the cube and the other two whites are n the face. move the bottom two times and the center back up. move the bottom to the left and the middle down, bottom to the left (this will join the white back up) middle back up and bottom to the left twice.

I might try doing this up side down with the un completed last layer on the top, im thinking now that i might get faster because i can see the layer properly without turning the cube all the time to look at where im at.

I dont now if ive explained things properly or if you understood. maybe i should just make a video of how i do it? might be easier

 

[pglewis]

If you haven't learned how to ride a bike yet then walking will be much faster than a bike for you.

Learning F2L is a lot of work, there are a lot of cases to absorb in order to make your pairs fairly quickly. If it were easy everyone would be fast. But solving pairs is far more efficient than solving edges and corners one at a time.

 

[One Wheel]

Kudos for figuring all that out! You're off to a great start! I think your F2L method would be called keyhole, or something very like it. Your alg for moving and flipping edges is the same as an OLL that I use. When you are working with the top layer it is notated as M' U M U2 M' U M.

Your alg for moving edges without flipping is called a U-perm. The one I use on the top layer is very similar to what you have been using: M2 U M U2 M' U M2. That cycles the three edges on top other than the back one counterclockwise, and if you replace the U with U' it cycles them clockwise. For comparison what you describe would be notated M D' M' D' M D2 M' D' M D' M' D2.

 

[Nunga]

thanks one wheel it wasnt easy to figure all that out. i just kind of cheated a little bit. i would pull the cube apart and put it back together, then when it was finished i would try my moves to see where the bits of cube ended up. it was a lot easier for me that way rather than trying to figure out what move did what during the moves if you know what i mean.

Do you have a link to all these code letters that i can have a look at? whats the difference between a U and D? because both of my algorithms that you converted to that code have different letters for the bottom? am i reading that correct?

 

[One Wheel]

Here's a good basic introduction to notation: https://ruwix.com/the-rubiks-cube/notation/

D = down
U = up
R = right
L = left
F = front
B = back

I switched the one to execute on the U face, where you described it on the D face, because your algorithm is identical to one that I use, except executed from a different angle.

 

[Nunga]

how i swap my corners is as follows. Remembering i do my corners first.

with the first layer on top, turn the cube around so the corners you want to swap are at the back. this moves swaps the two corners that are next to each other in my case i will be swapping the green, red and yellow with the blue, red and yellow corners because the other two are in the right spot and just need to be flipped if you can understand that.

R'
B'
R
F
B'
F'
R'
B
R
B2

I think thats the right code?...

Right side goes down. bottom to the left. Right side back up. Face turns clockwise. bottom to the left. face back up (anti clockwise). Right side moves down base turns right. Right side back up. Base turns twice.

 

[One Wheel]

You have B and D switched, and it's counterintuitive to me to do the last layer on the bottom. The alg I would recommend for corners is:
R U' R D2 R' U R D2 R2
That will cycle the DFL, DFR, and UFR corners counterclockwise on the front face. You can mirror it to your left hand to cycle clockwise.

 

[Nunga]

Oh yeah the i got the B and D wrong ops

I just looked up the keyhole method that you talked about before, and yes thats the way i was doing this. But i have changed that now to a more advanced version of that after watching some youtube vids on Fridrich method F2L i had a play around and came up with a way to do both the first and second layers at the same time and that seems to be working.

 

[tx789]

On the topic off what cross colour to use. There is a debate that happens a bit about be colour neutral. That is being able to solve any cross colour equally well. It obvious why it's better than using one colour however switching is incredibly difficult and it's easier if you start that way. Feliks Zemdegs is colour neutral. So it is up to you if you want to be.

Look at the reconstruction database cubesolv.es and it might help you with F2L.

For inspection don't worry if you can't plan out the entire cross yet. Practise and you will. It'll only be a promblem for you if you have plan on completing while still not being able to do it. Also knowing what is the best cross comes with practise.

 

[Nunga]

one thing im not sure about. these videos ive seen. the guys pick the cube up and look at it first then put it back down then start. Isnt that cheating? i thought you were meant to just pick it up and go? thats the way i do it and have always done it.

 

[One Wheel]

Standard is up to 15 seconds of inspection time, set the cube down, start the timer, pick up the cube, solve, set the cube down (or drop it) and stop the timer. Those are WCA regulations, if you're trying to impress somebody with how fast you can solve they'll typically start the time when you start looking at the cube, which is what you're talking about.

 

[Nunga]

okay thanks for that...so much to learn!