Tips

These are some tips that will obviously help you become a faster and more consistent cuber. During the second half of 2002 when I was improving my speed, I applied these tips to my cubing and they obviously paid off for me because I'm only 15 years old and average 15.4 seconds. I still use many of these tips, but some don't apply to me (like memorization) since I know the method completely.

1. Lube your cube every few weeks. This will help you out the most when you want to take an average because the cube is at its smoothest just after working the cube after you lube it. This will let you get the fastest times.

2. Start out with a simple method. Don't attempt a Fridrich F2L and a 2-look LL from the start. A good method would be the last one described on the Methods section of my page which allows for an easy but fast F2L and a 3-look LL. From there, you can build up to the expert method.

3. Go slowly during the F2L. Since you have to look ahead for your next corner/edge pair you have to go slow or else you won't be able to look ahead. Practice doing this by going very slowly and looking for a pair. After a few days of this, you can start to build speed. After a few weeks, your F2L times will be much faster.

4. Eliminate the delay between the cross and the first pair by taking your time. If you spend 3 seconds doing the cross but also find your first pair, you will have a faster time than if you do the cross in 1.5 seconds and spend 2 seconds looking for a pair. Also, with no delay, your solutions become more consistent and more rhythmic.

5. Learn the shortest solution to the cross by using the 15 second inspection time to figure out a short solution. I average close to 6 moves for this step and you must figure out ways to accomplish multiple things with one move. Here are a few tips for shortening your cross:
- Do the wrong move. For example, if doing R would place an edge, but doing R' would make it easy to place another edge in it's correct slot, then make the 2nd edge easy to place by doing R' and then do R2 to place the first edge after placing the 2nd.
- If putting two edges in the wrong slot makes it easy to place the 3rd and 4th edges, then do that so once all the edges are in their correct position in relation to each other, then rotate that face CW or CC to get them lined up.

6. USE PETER JANSEN'S OPTIMIZED MOVES!!!!!!! This should be the #1 tip but it doesn't matter. I can't emphasize this more, but if you want to get to be sub-20, you MUST LEARN PETER'S VERSION OF THE FRIDRICH METHOD!!!! Here are a few reasons why:
- When I decided to learn the Fridrich Method, I went to different sites looking for good sequences. I came across Jess Bonde's permutations, Ron's F2L on bottom, and Peter's orientations. I learned the permutations in about two weeks, then learned the F2L in eight days, then did a 3-look LL for awhile, then started with the orientations. Those took about three weeks. I noticed that the F2L and the permutation was going too slowly so I went back to look at Peter's page. I saw all the R and U moves, and the L and U moves, and decided this was the way to go. I re-learned the permutations in about two weeks. I decided for the F2L I would learn how to do each pair with both hands and to reflect each case over to the y2 rotation. This meant learning all the triggers with my left hand. That took about two days, then in about two weeks I knew the F2L again, using Peter's method. I was getting so fast! It felt so good to use such a fast method. I still use it to get 15.4 seconds.

7. Minimize the rotation of the cube during the F2L. Don't do y, y', or y2 too often or you will waste time turning the cube to angle where you can solve the pair in FR. That's what I had in mind when I learned Peter's F2L: learn to use my left hand so I don't have to rotate the cube. Every once in awhile it's necessary to rotate but if you don't have to, then don't do it. Also while the cube is spinning to a new rotation, it makes it even harder to look ahead for the next pair so you lose more time by not learning the F2L with both hands. Once you get used to it, it becomes easy.

8. Go full speed on the last pair. The purpose is to go slowly during the F2L to look ahead, but on the last pair you have to ask: What is it I'm looking for? The answer is nothing. Just go full speed because you will get to the orientation and have a short delay anyway. If you took my advice about learning Peter's F2L, then most likely, you will only be turning two faces for each pair. Look at the top face to see the orientation of a few of the cubes during the last pair so you can get an idea of what the orientation will be.

9. Learn only one rotation for each orientation. There are 57 orientations excluding a solved one, so learning multiple orientations is just not necessary. Just learn how to recognize each orientation from all 4 rotations and turn the U face to the angle you know. It doesn't waste time because once the face is at your angle you can immediately get started on orienting.

10. For the permutations, learn one rotation and the y2 version. This way if the U face is in the y2 version, then you won't have to turn the cube in your hand, instead you will already know the moves. The reason why you can learn two rotations for each permutation is because there are only 21 excluding the solved one, which isn't much compared to the orientations.

11. It's OK to use triggers during the F2L. After seeing Ron's video (16.48 seconds) I noticed he used some triggers and I learned that style. Just remember it's easy to get impatient and go full speed since triggers are extremely fast, so pace yourself and keep a smooth rhythm of about 3 moves/second. Going medium speed during the F2L works best for me, but learning your own limits so that you're also able to look ahead can take weeks to figure out and get used to.

12. When learning the F2L, do each case slowly and learn what's happening to the cube for each move. This way if you get lost, you will understand what to do even though you don't know the exact moves. Once I was able to understand why I was doing each move, I was able to understand how the F2L works much better. Understanding a step is more important for the more intuitive steps than for the orientation and permutation. It's OK to learn what's going on there, but generally, all you need to do is learn to execute the moves at around 4-5 moves/second.

13. Don't rush yourself with memorization but don't go too slowly. If you try to learn the orientations in one week then you will find out that you forgot some of them. It took me only three weeks to learn all 57, and I didn't forget any and I also didn't get confused with reflections or inverses. Basically, most orientations have a reflection, and doing the inverse of that will give you another orientation. That one also has a reflection, which is the inverse of the first orientation. So there are four cases right there that you can learn in one day. Spend 10 minutes doing one of them until you don't need to look at the moves anymore. Then repeat that with the reflection. Later in the day, learn the inverses of those two you learned earlier. Then practice all four until you're convinced you know them.

14. Only learn new sequences during the week. Give yourself the weekend to review everything you learned during the five day week. That way you can be sure about which cases you know and which ones you need more time on. Learning 2-4 per day will give you 10 to 20 new cases of any step to review. I think 20 is a little too much so don't plan on four per day for five days at a time.

15. After learning one whole step of the solution, such as the F2L or orientation, spend about a week practicing the cube and really concentrate on that step. For example, do the cross and spend some time working on the F2L. Once you know the OLL, do the F2L (which you will be better at, and also naturally gain some speed with) and then work on the orientation. Then do the same with the permutation. By the time you have everything done, you will notice that you also improved the other steps as well, so you improve faster that way.

16. Practice in public. Ask anyone who was at the WC this, and they will agree with me. For many people, they haven't been under that much pressure before. If you look at the photo galleries of day 2 of the event, you will see (especially with Dan Knights) all the cameras that were in your face and the big audience that was watching over you. An average of 16 seconds means nothing if you can't match that in competition. Also in general, here are some reasons why to cube in public and what will happen as a result of that:
- The cube is coming back now, but unlike its popularity in the 80's which faded away so quickly, it's going to stay this time. You must do your part in bringing back the cube by inspiring people to find their cube in the attic or just to go to the toy store and buy a new one. By 2005, the cube should be making its way back into people's lives the way they were in the 80's.
- If timing yourself makes you shake, then you're getting nervous with the clock. Practicing in public at first will be even worse, but over time you will get used to it and then you will be perfectly calm when timing yourself.
- When preparing for a competition, public practicing will simulate the pressure of a competition. I did this at camp for six weeks dozens of times a day during the summer of 2003. I figured it would be a way to mentally prepare myself. At the end of each three-week session, there was a talent show: one for students, and one for staff. As normal, every other talent was either singing, dancing, or playing an instrument. I planned on changing that by doing the cube, but another reason was to see how well I could do under more pressure than I've ever been through. The first talent show I got 18.3 seconds, and the second one I got 19. I felt my practice had paid off.

17. Carry a cube with you wherever you go, because if you find yourself really bored (standing in line for something) then the cube is a great way to occupy yourself. Also this practice will automatically be done in public so you will get to improve your calmness under pressure.

18. Take a deep breath when waiting for your cube to come back to you at a competition. This relaxes your body and slows your heart rate. Try to breath smoothly also and this should calm yourself down. Look at Dan Knights in the finals at the WC and watch how he has his eyes were closed. This blocks everything else out of your mind so you don't really think about it.

19. Practice solving the cross blinfolded. You don't actually have to blindfold yourself, just don't look at the cube. This way, you are forced to make sure you know what the solution to the cross is before solving it. Practice this for some time every day for a few weeks and the result is this: you no longer have to think about the moves, instead, you can look ahead much more easily for the first pair. I mostly practiced this in mid-October and after going only from mid-27's to 27 seconds in a couple weeks, I immediately started going down to the 25's and further into November I continuously got better at this as I went further down into the low 20's.....

20. Preventing cube injuries: Here are a few tips for preventing injuries to you hands and/or wrists when cubing:
- Keep your hands warm. This is especially true during winter months or if you live in a cold climate all the time. Cold hands result in stiffer muscles, and by cubing really hard for a while can pull the muscles easier than in they are warm. One way to fix this problem is to wear a winter jacket at all times :) (Dan Knights did this at the WC which I'm sure most of you know about!) Or if that's not possible then wear thick gloves.
- Relax when you cube because this way your hands can turn the cube smoothly, and if you get in the habit of twitching your hands and fingers while cubing, then you will make mistakes and pop pieces. Also the effects of twitching your fingers remain after you cube, which is not good.
- Lubricate your cube after you buy a new one. If you use a stiff cube and attempt triggers right away, you will hurt your fingers and won't be able to cube for a few days.The worst thing you can do is to cube with cold hands, be tense and nervous when cubing, and using a stiff cube because of course you will encounter some more serious problems!

21. If you feel the need to change methods or try something new then learn the Fridrich method. If you've already been using that, then switch to Ryan Heise's method. View the optimized sequences here. It's been proven possible to average sub-15.5 with the Fridrich method (Ron and I average 15.4 seconds, and Thomas Templier averages 15.2 sec.). Heise's system averages 10 moves less than the Fridrich method, so it has some real potential for speedcubing but it hasn't been proven yet.

22. In a competition, try not to see your times. This way, if you achieve a very fast time, you won't get nervous for your next solve and you won't feel pressured to match that time again because you won't even know what the time was! Staying calm is the most important thing to do during any round of a competition, so don't let a fast time ruin that. It actually doesn't make much of a difference if the format is a "best of 3" for a round because it's likely that the fast time will get you to the next round regardless of your other solves. However, if the format is an "average of 3," then it does matter because the following slow times that could result due to pressure from the fast time could make your average slower than what you might want.