Stickers better than tiles?

[rjohnson_8ball]

I really like the look and feel of Cubesmith textured tiles, but whenever I use the cube, it seems slightly bigger and heavier and more clumsy and I feel I cannot turn as fast. I know the the tiles are thin and light, but not as thin and light as stickers. Am I crazy? Or do other people feel stickers are better for speed cubing than tiles?

 

[cpt.Justice]

It basically just takes some getting used to, thats all. But stickers are cheaper and they will last pretty long, so why change? Thats just my opinion though, but the speed will mostly depend on what you are used to

 

[rjohnson_8ball]

Actually, if the stickers are not placed perfectly or if a little lube gets on them, the corners of the stickers curl a tiny amount, just enough to bug me. But tiles last pretty much forever. And the textured tiles look real cool.

My point was that turns can physically be done faster if faces are smaller and lighter. I was wondering if anyone else detected this, that tiled faces feel bigger and heavier, and therefore solve times are more sluggish? I am sure someone can get used to either, but I suspect in the long run, the stickers should work faster -- if indeed the difference in thickness and weight are truely noticable.

 

[shelley]

I just don't really like the grip on tiles, textured or non-textured. I like stickers better. Really it's just personal preference though; the difference it makes in my solve times is probably negligible, and all it does is slightly annoy me.

 

[Lucas Garron]

It depends on the use. I used to like textured tiles, but no I prefer non-textured.
rjohnson_8ball

I actually find the weight of the tiles important on my cubes, because it gives the spin a really nice momentum that clacks into the next move - all my tiled cubes move better.
In particular, my white OH cube moves unlike my other white DIYs partly because of the tiles, and I really miss having some spare tiles around (because I've used them all) to see how important they are for a loose cube.

I recently assembled my type F, and it's the edges-filled cube I've always wanted to try. But it's rather light, and that "momentum" is the only thing really lacking. And iit's so curvy that there's not enough flat space for stickers, which results in this after very little use:
http://archive.garron.us/img/2008/type_F_new.jpg
http://archive.garron.us/img/2008/type_F_worn.jpg
But: 13.59 avg5 (It's hard to get something like that on film.)
The same happened to my ES5 stickers, and it's annoying, but I don't have tiles to replace them.
I'm trying to get another F to see if I can make it good...

So, I think that I prefer what the tiles do to the cube, and I find they have a more comfy feel. I'd tile almost all my cubes if I could. But it's best to have some of each.

 

[rjohnson_8ball]

Interesting, less momentum should help reverse twist direction quicker, but I guess momentum could help throw a face more dependably to where it needs to go. I had the impression that Harris Chan liked a "crispy" cube because it might imply light weight and hence responsive. Maybe not.

Regarding your "new" versus "worn" pictures... Is that orange instead of red in the "worn" picture? Because I doubt you would replace the yellow stickers with white stickers. Yes, I see the edges are curved too much to allow the stickers to sit cleanly.