Theory: Subconscious F2L Lookahead

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darthyody

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May 14, 2008
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I have a theory that I need you guys/girls to help me with. I think that there is something that just clicks subconsciously which drops f2l speed (just like learning to ride a bicycle, or speaking a new language). However, I don't think this happens without a lot of practice for lookahead (same as bicycle/language idea). So what I need your help with is for lists of how long it took for your times to drop in reference to each time before it.

EXAMPLE averages
sub30:reference time (no actual time length needed)
sub25:3 months
sub20:1 month
sub19:1 week
sub18:
sub17:
etc. until your current time

If you don't know some of them just leave them blank. Please everyone, I know this seems like a lot of work, but please fill this out.
 
--edit--
reformatted like OP asked for.

sub60: reference time

sub30: 6 months.
comment: This is the point when I finally 1) learned all of Fridrich, and 2) learned to lubricate the cube

sub25: 4 months

sub20: 3.75 years
comment: I spent a long time when reaching this stage not learning anythying new, only doing solve after solve after solve when practicing.

sub19: 3 months
sub18: 1 year
sub17: 6 months
sub15: 1.5 years

Currently I've been cubing 10 years 9 months and I've gotten 3 sub-14 averages. Mostly I am 15.0-15.5 average average with somewhat frequent sub-15 averages at home. My best competition average is 14.35.

Chris
 
Last edited:
judging from the last couple comments on here i dont think there is a set time span that it takes to improve your f2l. i guess it just comes naturally as you practice lookaheads (not saying that it comes naturally without practice). it takes time, but i dont think that there can be a set time period that it takes because everyone is different and improves at different speeds
 
sub60: 3 weeks.
In the first week I used 4 look OLL and a 4 look PLL. After the 3 week, I had learned 2-3 look OLL and 2 look PLL.

sub-40: 6 months
I hadn't learned anything new for a few months, then one day decided I would learn full PLL (except G perms), and this really improved my times.

sub30: 10 months
I knew almost all the OLLs and all of the PLLs. I still used LBL for the first 2 layers.

sub25: 11 months
I finished learning all the OLLs, then I started to learn F2L.

sub20:15months
I had really gotten used to intuitive f2l and I was getting better at fingertricks.

sub17: 16 months
I just practiced a lot to prepare for a competition, and so I dropped a few seconds.

sub15: 20 months
I learned a lot of "advanced" f2l tricks, and faster OLLs and PLLs


Thats it so far, I've been stuck at a 14 average for a few months :\
 
sub60: 5 weeks
Total beginner's method, Dan Knights style (sune and anti-sune for orient; permute corners, orient edges, THEN orient corners and permute edges)

sub-40 - 2 months
Learned Fridrich F2l (Intuitive) and 4LLL (2-look OLL / PLL)

sub30: 3.5 months
Learned full PLL, still 2-look OLL, but I suck really hard, so yeah. This is where I am now.

I officially started "speedcubing" in October of 2008, but never really got around to getting faster until I joined this forum in Dec. of 2008.
 
I'm not looking for a fixed time that everyone will subconsciously learn this step but for a correlation in difference in time frame. So, for instance, it may take one person 6 months to go from sub20 to sub19 and 2 months to go from sub19 to sub18 while for someone else it may be 6 months from sub20 to sub19 and 6 months from sub19 to sub18 and then a drop to 2 month for sub18 to sub17 because it took them a bit longer for 'it' to click. I think that everyone has a different time when this something clicks, if this is even at all remotely factual. C'mon people. I need more cubers to submit data.
 
Geez, I don't remember. These are estimates.
Sub120 (Lol) - A week or two.
Using the same method abr71310 described.
Sub90 - A couple weeks? 2-3 maybe?
I switched to F2L around here because I didn't want to bother getting faster with LBL.

Sub60 - I honestly don't remember. Month and a half maybe?
Started with 4LLL here I think.

Sub40 - about 3 months

Sub30 - 4-5 months I guess.

Sub25- about 6 months.
About here, look ahead started to be possible for me. I don't have to think as much about how to insert a pair, and my brain's free to think about other stuff, like the next pair.
 
ok here i am.
Sub- 120 First Week(November 25).(Using Heise Methods beginner solution it was very good)
Sub- 90 1 Month(December 25) Cubing(Heise Methods beginner solution)
Moth of December i am learning the Fridrich Method.
Sub- 60 January Learned Fridrich but on CF(Cross and F2L(Intuitive)) im using it that time..
Maintained the time till feb 14... using 2 look OLL and 2 look PLL....
Sub - 40! Learned the full PLL using 2 Look OLL.. Intuitive F2L! Practicing LOOOK AHEADS!
i think im on sub 35.. but still weak on LOOKAHEAD! now i can get the F2L in 20 secs but planning to change my method by april... going on EJF2L+MGLS Method.... or ill go ahead with CFOP!
 
It´s a intersting thread. For sure that a sub 13 solver must see things that a sub 40 cannot see. For me it seems "impossible" that the eyes have the ability to recognize (and follow!) the F2L-pairs when the speed is that fast (about 6 turns/sec).
 
i started back at mid-sep 08. at that time i already know how to solve lbl except for last layer. ( which i look upon the youtube and memorize it that night i pick my cube again after 11 years LOOL).

So something like this;
1st week: 2min-2:30min
(absolute layer by layer method from RobH0629 + competing with my younger cousins whose doing lbl method the other way)

2nd week: 1min+
(include solves from dan harris beginner method + memorising fridrich f2l (blindly))

3-4weeks: around 50s

+3 weeks: sub-30 (nearly full PLL and 10+ oll)

8-10 week: barely sub-25
(finally realized that even with slow moves like 1.5tps, can easily achieve sub 40 ><)

Now entering the 6th month after cubing; ave 18.xx of 5 (but still not consistent)

Still need to improve my F2l alot T_T;;
 
I started decades ago, but I figure I should start from when I decided to do speedcubing, which was December 2006.

Sub-60: 1 month
This was Fridrich with 2-look OLL, 1-look PLL. Since I already knew how to solve the cube pretty well, sub-60 was pretty easy for me to get.

Sub-30: 1 1/2 years
This was full Fridrich with 1-look OLL. It took 1-look OLL to put me sub-30. Stupid, but true.

I'm averaging around 27.5 now after 2 years and 3 months or so.
 
let's see:

sub-60: probably less than a month

sub-30: about 2 months

sub-25: 3 months

sub-20: almost 6 months

sub-18: 8 months

sub-15: 20 months (wow! I didn't remember it took this long O_o)

sub-14: 33 months (holy cow! 1 second in a year!)

sub-13: 43 months

sub-12: not yet :D

my best avg is 12.30 now, after 3 years and 8 months
 
Start: 15 December 2008
sub-60: 2 weeks since beginning
I used Dan Brown's inefficient beginner's method for a while, then learned badmephisto's and then keyhole. Got my first sub-1 minute single on the 31st of December.

sub - 40: 1.5 months since beginning
I think I started using F2L and 4LLL at this time. 1st sub-40 avg./5 was on 31 January 2009.

sub - 35: <1.75 months? since beginning
My first sub -35 average was on the fifth of February.

sub - 30: 2.5 months since beginning
29.99 seconds 3/5. 28th of February 2009.

sub - 25: by the end of this month.

sub -20: preferrably by the end of this month. More likely next month.
 
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Did you all miss how darkyody wanted the times to be formatted? :\

sub-60 2 months
sub-30 5 months
sub-25 3 months
sub-20 3 months
sub-19 1 month
sub-18 2 months
sub-17 4 months
sub-16 5 months

Anyway, the results may be skewed because it depends on when people started cubing, and how much they've practiced.
 
Sub 60: 1 week
Sub 40: 2 weeks
Sub 30: 4 months
Sub 20: 1 year
Sub 18: 1 year 3 months (a very fast transition from 20 avg to 18 avg in about a week)
 
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