Modifications and Custom Puzzles

One thing I love seeing so much is a brand new idea being put into reality. Things like hand mods and custom puzzles are just so cool to me, because they take an idea of something someone thought would be cool, and put it into action. And I’m constantly amazed because these mods and puzzles just keep coming, with no stop. But right now, I want to look at a few of my favorites.

                The first big one I love is the Mix-up Cube. For those of you unaware, this puzzle moves like a regular 3x3, except it includes the ability to move a middle slice 45 degrees, and then the corners switch with the center pieces. Now while I don’t have this puzzle, it amazes me because it turns on a level that increases the difficulty of the already super hard 3x3. In addition, it just amazes me that a mechanism can support this. I would love to look at a Mix-up cube just for the insides, as I’m sure it would be complicated but easy enough to be economical.

                The next awesome puzzle I love is actually a series of puzzles. Basic cuboids. While not so super amazing all by themselves, it’s so cool to watch designers like Traiphum put together massive cuboids that shouldn’t exist. Things like the 10x10x8 are so awesome, and I just marvel at the collassalness. But the real amazing thing for me is the small but wide cuboids. Things like the 2x5x5, which seem to be a physical impossibility. Imagine how close someone would have to work to be able to construct something like that. Pieces would have to reach to the edge of their long, fragile, sticks just to be attached. And yet somehow, these puzzles are made with relative ease and they work just as well as many other custom mods.

                Finally on this list, are simple mods that I enjoy for just that, their simplicity. For instance, Crazy Bad Cuber showed a 248 mod, where he basically just glued parts of an 8x8 together. While the building of the mod may not be overly difficult, the solving definitely is. The puzzle bandages on so many different levels it’s hard to believe you can still turn it. It appears to be impossible at first glance, but you could never tell while making it, as it is as simple as gluing pieces together.

                This is just a small list of puzzles; I will be out with another soon. Pictures for each puzzle are below, in respective order.

The Journey On Up?

Today I want to self-reflect a little bit as I begin to examine my future in cubing. If you have read any previous posts, you know that I will soon be going to a competition, and that a reasonable goal for me is to know all the PLLs by the time I get there. But this raises a very large question in my mind, what do I do after that? The obvious and simple answer is to learn OLL and other advanced bits to add to my CFOP abilities, but that is a commitment of a large amount of time to learn it all. 50 Algorithms for basic OLL, plus probably a few tricks of the trade here and there, just to master the CFOP basics. I look at it, and wonder how I will ever get done with it all. Truth be told, my practice has stalled now that school and its never ending commitments have begun. I want to keep going, but I can’t seem to find a solid chunk of time in which to do so. Which leaves the question, do I stay a mediocre cuber by our intense standards, or do I try to hack my way through the endless stream of algorithms to come? I hope the answer will make itself clearer as I edge closer to my competition.

Moyu 6x6!

Moyu has announced their own 6x6, entitled the Aoshi!! I am super excited for Moyu doing this, because they are getting into all the WCA puzzles that they previously hadn’t been into. I hope the 6x6 holds up to the standards they previously set with the right of what I affectionately call, the “Ao” series. They have done such a great job so far, with the 3x3 and 4x4 being absolutely amazing, and the 5x5 and 7x7 holding their own in a smaller market of cubes. And I do think it will be well accepted, because 6x6 is one of the categories with the lowest number of cubes to choose from, and has quite a few issues with most cubes. I really expect and hope that Moyu has looked into these and has fixed many issues the other 6x6’s have. But overall, I just want to give Moyu a thank you. Whether they know it or not (probably not) they took my advice, and I think they will have good control of the WCA puzzles, at least for a while, until another company steps up their game.

Competition confirmed!!

Hey guys! As you might have read in the title, it is confirmed! I am going to a competition in about a month! Now for sake of privacy, I won’t be sharing which competition I am going to, but I wanted to give some pointers on competing and what you might want to do before hand to improve your spot in competition.

          To start, trust your gear. This is the same advice that Noah Arthurs gave in one of his videos on a similar topic, but I want to reiterate some key ideas. No matter the cube you use, it’s important that you make sure you feel confident that it will perform the way you need it to. Trusting your cube is a big deal, and it’s one thing I have a huge problem with. Also, make sure your cubes are well tensioned, lubed, stickered, and otherwise prepped so you can make sure you know your cube is on its game. In addition to bringing your main speedcubes, also include a backup for big events like 2x2 and 3x3, because if your main breaks or fails on some level, you need to have something to solve on for the rest of the competition.

          Another great idea is to set goals for yourself a month or two before the competition, and practice and strive to reach the goal. Of course, the goal has to be reasonable, but if you find an appropriate level of difficulty, the goal can really push you to perform. For me, the goal I have set for the competition is a 20 second average, with an 18 second single. Now this is very attainable for me at home, but I want to make sure I can nail it in a competition. If you don’t like to time yourself at home, or just don’t think you will be able to perform well under the pressure of a competition, instead, set goals about your algorithm or method process. For instance, I might choose to set a goal of knowing all the PLL’s by this competition. Considering I only have 3 more to learn (4 if you count me wanting to switch on of my G-perms) my goal seems very easily reached. If you are not a great memorizer, your goals can be a bit more conservative, but one main idea to remember is that you should set goals that will challenge you. Don’t strive for the minimum, practice and put in some effort.

          Finally, on the day of the competition, I recommend a warm up strategy. Simply start with slow turns when you wake up. Don’t do really fast, complicated, or hard stuff, especially not at first, save that for later. As you continue through the day, make sure you keep your hands warm. A good way to do this is to always have a cube in hand, and be doing basic, slow solves. You want to be ready to go when the time to compete comes, but make sure you don’t wear out your hands in the process. Also, when the time comes, you will have to hand over your main cube for scrambling. This might take a bit, and is when your backup cube will be useful. At this stage, right before you compete, it is fine to do fast solves on you backup to not only keep your hands warm, but allow you to build up some speed for our solve. However, the rule of not wearing your fingers out still applies here.

          Take or leave these tips, but I think they are quite helpful and are very useful when a competition rolls around. I will be updating you guys with blogs about my cubing progress and how my goals are going, but this is it for now. 

Algorithms

 Imagine a world where we would have to create all our own algorithms for our own cubing needs. Now stop imagining the world because it sounds terrible! We use algorithms for every solve we do, they are a very important part of it and we really couldn’t solve without them. But just think about every algorithm, and how long the must take to make.

                I have no clue how most people create algs, I haven’t personally done much with them, but I bet it starts with them have a case that needs solving. From there, they experiment with certain moves, and use things like sledgehammer and parts from other algs to create their newest invention. But I think that is just the beginning. I want you to try the J-perm, and if you don’t know it, re-read this post when you do. The J-perm is one of my favorites because it flows really well in my hands, is very comfortable with no need for extra finger tricks, and is incredibly fast. No imagine the time it must have taken to figure out this perfect set of moves. I’m almost positive that there are ways that require many less moves to do something like a J-perm. That’s not what I find so cool. I think the sweetest part is that someone can find a set of moves that flow so well together that it can become an incredibly fast and fluent algorithm.

          And the fact is, someone does this for every algorithm! I think that is just insane. So if you ever meet someone who has created algorithms, be sure to ask them their process, and thank them for making your life a whole lot easier.

Aolong V2- A New Opinion

So I have been messing around with the Aolong V2 recently and I must say it’s amazing. I don’t know what changed, whether I just got used to the feeling, or did enough solves to grind out any previous problem, but the cube is much better now. It turns well and is so stable. I am able to keep it on loose tensions and have no lockups at all. The small feeling of the cubies has completely gone away and I can’t find anything wrong with it to tell. It is so good in fact, that I annihilated my previous best average at 19 seconds with a new best at 16.86! In addition, I also got a 13.75 no lucky solve, which is very close to my personal best. This cube has also improved my overall average by about a second and it continues to perform astonishingly well.

                 Issues with this cube are, as I said before, nonexistent. This V2 is the new plastic version, so I don’t have the issues that many cubers had with the other plastic. Corner twisting, as I have said before, doesn’t happen to me so I can’t really attest to that, but from what I hear in other reviews, this is fixed too. The only sort of “problem” I have is the tensioning. While it is great performing, the feel isn’t perfectly what I want but I am not great at tensioning and I fear if I try to change it from its current state, it will feel very bad. This won’t be an issue for most though as I assume a lot of cubers are much better at finding the perfect feel for their puzzle than me.

                As an overall grade, I want to raise this cube to an 8.5 out of 10. It has given me many new records and I have great hopes for it in the future, but until I can find some more comfortable tensions, I can’t raise it any higher. However, expect another blog at some point with the progress of this cube, because I can see huge potential in it yet, and can’t wait to sort it all out! 

Cubing in Public

Every time I pull out a cube in public, an aura of amazement instantly surrounds me. I’m sure you know the feeling, as you start turning, slowly a puzzled look enters here face and they lose comprehension of the entire world. Then, they come forward, and speak words that to us sound about as uneducated as a first grader trying to talk about math.

“Yeah I know a guy that can do one of those!” or the ever so annoying “I just peel the stickers off.” These comments might seem funny or important to the person first seeing someone solve a Rubik’s cube in 20 seconds, but to someone who has done this for a while, I can say these annoy me greatly. And those are just a few examples. I love silently laughing at people who say that their friend can do a 3x3-5x5 in a minute. Yeah, because your friend shatters every speedcubing world record in those categories on a regular basis. It’s actually kind of funny to listen to these preposterous claims of those trying not to feel inferior.

But this isn't the only surreal thing that occurs in the magical world of cubing in public. Never forget the people inquiring how you solve it so fast, implying that you can take one alg and solve it in 5 seconds without trouble. It makes me laugh thinking that the general consensus is that speed equals simplicity. Let me inform any none cuber reading this that speed takes lots of work. One algorithm, or even only one set of “patterns” is never enough for anyone fast. To say so is actually kind of insulting to me, and I assume it is for others as well.

But there are positives to cubing in public too. It is a moral boost to have people rave over your solving abilities, even if they are less than par by speedcuber standards. Plus, even when nobody is around, cubing is just great for passing time. And all these examples are just my personal experiences; imagine what someone like Anthony Brooks had to deal with. He met hundreds of people every day at the Liberty Science center, and had to hear everything I have mentioned PLUS MORE. I have to respect something like that. It may be cool to be a professional cuber and just solve all day long, but I would think this would be a serious down fall. However, I love cubing enough to deal with all of it, and I think that is the main idea.

Moyu Pyraminx!

Moyu did it! Finally they have announced and are about to release their own take on the Pyraminx! I’m very excited to try it out and I can’t wait to give a review on it. And from the looks of the puzzle, and my experience with moyu, I can bet this Pyraminx will be top notch. But even before it comes out, I do want to commend Moyu on their expanding to new fields of the speedcubing competition.  The fact that they have now released almost every puzzle used in competition shows how serious they are at providing the best puzzles possible, and while things like Pyraminx and Skewb are kind of a one puzzle deal, where massive improvements or multiple different variations from the same company are unlikely, I still trust Moyu for their 3x3’s and other main speedcubes, and hope this is a sign the they will not only diversify their products, but continue doing their  already great work.

How to Get Better-Speedcubing

No matter the sport, no matter who is playing, getting better and being the best is a huge part of being a part of the whole experience. But especially in the amazing competition of speedcubing, getting better is very hard. So for any those who might find it applicable, I’m going to give my short list on how to get better at speedcubing. Now first you should know that I average around 20 seconds, so most of this will only be useful if you average higher than that.

So for a big idea, learn your method. For me, the method of choice is CFOP. Therefore, this is the method I will be talking about, and if you know Petrus or ZZ, you are going to have to look elsewhere. Now when I say learn your method, I don’t refer to the algorithms directly. Yes, in the long run, algs are going to be necessary for any speedcuber, but for now, I don’t even know every PLL, and still do pretty well, so I can guarantee it isn’t required at first. The main idea behind learning your method is to know where you are going next. It should be second nature to transition from F2L to OLL or from OLL to PLL. The thing to make sure is that if someone asked you to solve a cube, you would be able to, using your chosen method, without too much thought. This is very difficult for some, I understand, so let me give some simple ideas.

First, learn F2L intuitively. This may be very hard to grasp, but believe me; it will save you loads of time later, and helps you understand how the cube moves much better. Add to this a more planned out cross. These two items, while they don’t include algorithms, are very beneficial, because if you can move the cube to solve these in your own way, it helps develop your style and shows you that you are in control of the cube, it’s not just a bunch of algorithms running the show.

Second, one common misconception is that you have to learn everything at once. I did step one a long time before I learned two look OLL and PLL. I still used the beginner method for the entire last layer. However, I laid the support for it early by allowing myself to learn a more advanced cross strategy and F2L, which made the transition to two look a whole lot easier.

Lastly, get inspired. I went on a vacation, and met Anthony Brooks at the Liberty Science center over the summer. I was so inspired watching him solve a cube in 8 seconds flat that I spent the rest of my vacation learning algorithms and practicing. In total, I learned about 15 algs and dropped 10 seconds in two weeks. Yes, this seems like a lot of work and probably sounds miserable, but I was having the greatest time and I just kept going from there. Some people won’t tell you this when they explain how to get better, but one of the biggest things you can do, is just to have fun with it. Enjoy the practice; enjoy having fun solving your cube. Feliks Zemdegs gave a seminar on speedcubing, and he said practice is what you have to do to get better. But he also said that if you aren’t having fun at it, or you are just forcing yourself to practice, then there is no reason to do it at all.

In the end, you can follow every piece of advice I give, or another blogger or Youtuber gives, but all that really matters is you  discovering and being confident in your own cubing style, and learning how to master one of the world’s greatest puzzles.

Shengshou Pyraminx

This is the review on the amazing Shengshou Pyraminx! I have to say, this puzzle is making me love the idea of the of competing in Pyraminx, because it’s just such a great puzzle. Now I must say, I’m not a Pyraminx expert by any means, I just bought this puzzle 2 months ago, but I can say that it is one of the best turning puzzles out of the box I have seen.

                Immediately when you open it up, you can feel how smooth and controlled it feels. Of course, it has the standard ball bearing mechanism that allows for a proper turning and placement when doing so, but as it turns, it is very fluid with no real catches or issues. For this reason, I have not lube or tensioned this puzzle at all, and it still works perfectly for my solves. This puzzle is a very easy one, that is for sure, but I can say that the lack of difficulty isn’t a concern. I still have a lot of fun solving it, and I average about 16 seconds on it.

           Over all, I can say only good things about this puzzle. If you like YouTube reviews on puzzles, check out TehCubeDude’s video about this puzzle and his comparison to the other Pyraminx’s on the market. So final grade, 8 out of 10, only because I don’t have enough knowledge on Pyraminx to definitively say it’s perfect, but I do recommend buying this puzzle. If you want to purchase it, I prefer using TheCubicle.us, I picked it up there for about  10 dollars.

New WCA event suggestions

A while back I had a blog post about having more competitions, in which I talked about adding new/ different events. In this post I would like to expand on that.

                To start, I feel like some puzzles are becoming too easy as new methods are created, and are almost becoming redundant. Things like 2x2, pyraminx, and skewb are reaching their limits as far as world records. While I love having these events, the fact that they only take a few seconds to solve means that more events could be added and not add a whole lot of time to the schedule. One main puzzle I really want to see is a floppy cube added, just for a little fun. Yes, I understand it would probably have a world record of .5 seconds of something crazy like that, but it would be all in the interest of fun, not for true competition. Another idea for a regular event would be the 8x8. This would be a longer puzzle to speedsolve, but I think that the best could probably do it in about 5 minutes.

                But I don’t only think single puzzles should be added. Group events could be added as well. Maybe a national team relay at big competitions for 3x3. Have 4 people for the same country each solve a 3x3 then slap the next person’s hand, until all 4 are done. This would be a whole other level of competition, as you would have to have 4 great cubers, instead of only one. In addition, you could have variations of the relay, like a 2 person one, or maybe a 4 person relay on 4x4. Another great multi-person event idea is a best “shot” kind of competition. 4 cubers do a solve, and the best solve of all 4 is used as the actual time. All 4 do 5 solves, and the best 5 of these 20 create the average for the group.

                Finally, I feel like we need a multiple cube event. Making something like a 2x2-4x4 relay events would add a whole new level of challenge, as new strategies would have to be created to solve in the best order and how to inspect all of them in the best way.  Also you could have the cubing “marathon” which is doing every speed event all at once, or for a simpler version, just the 2x2-7x7. I feel like this would measure the very best of the best, and could be used as the newest standard of achievement.

                But overall, I just would like a little variety, I feel as though the WCA could use just a little spicing up.