Become a Rubik's Cube Speed Solver

While it's perfectly possible to become adept at solving the Rubik's cube, this grows a little tiresome after a while. The trick is to then take it up a notch and become a speed cuber or a Rubik's cube speed solver, someone capable of solving that Rubik's cube as fast as possible. On your mark, get set, go!

Steps

Readying the cube for speed performance

  1. Get a good quality cube. A Rubik's brand is fine if you really played with it for a long time but you may prefer a cube built for speed, such as the actual speed cubes, Moyu, YJ, Dayan, Shengshou or Fangshi (Funs puzzle); these are all good, high-quality cubes. The advantage of a quality speed cube is that turning takes very little force and the cube turns even if the layers aren't perfectly aligned so that you don't need to be 100 percent accurate with each turn.
    • If you're using a Rubik's brand cube, or a cheap knock-off cube you picked up from a dollar store, it is recommended you upgrade to a cube that is easier to turn.
    • Modern speed cubes cost anywhere from $4-$15 (£3-£11).
  2. Lubricate the cube. Do not use Vaseline, as this harms the cube over use. Instead, use purpose-made cube lube, such as Z lube and Maru.
    • Some heavy lubes (Cubicle lube, Traxis, Lubix, etc.) will make your cube slower for a short period of time, but make it smooth after breaking in the cube; breaking in means wearing out the plastic and making the cube smoother and faster. .
  3. Break in the cube. This means doing a lot of solves or turning one layer at a time for a period of time. However, a more efficient way to break in a cube is using a drill for hard work:
    • Take a big Lego sheet and build Lego bricks that will fit around one layer of the cube.
    • Connect the Lego bricks to the drill with screws.
    • Put your cube in and turn it on. Do take breaks with the drill though, otherwise you can burn the plastic.

Learning to solve the cube faster

  1. Know how to do the beginner's method. Learn the beginner's method if you haven't already. You need this to know the move notation, in which each face turn is represented by a letter and an apostrophe denotes that the turn needs to be counterclockwise.
  2. Practice. Practice doing the method you might be doing right now to begin with. If you are doing beginner method, or layer by layer, practice that. Then, try to learn CFOP, Roux, ZZ, or some other method to solve it faster.
    • CFOP is the most popular method; it is basically an upgraded version of the beginner's method.
    • Roux, Petrus and ZZ are very popular methods as well. You can find excellent tutorials for each on YouTube.
    • You should take a look at each of these methods to see which one you enjoy most.
    • Try not to worry about time while learning these methods. You will naturally get faster once your learning has become so ingrained that you are solving automatically.
  3. Try to learn finger tricks. You might be wondering" what is a finger trick?" A finger trick is a way to turn the cube with only one finger. If your cube cannot turn without one finger, and is very stiff, get a new cube right away. Try to practice your finger tricks because they will decrease the time needed to solve the puzzle tremendously.
  4. Learn algorithms (sequences of moves). Algorithms are ways to move the cube to get to another position. Such as if you get a case with yellow and do a algorithm such as R U R' U R U2 R' you will solve yellow. These letters are faces of the Rubik's cube and you can search for these online.
    • When learning algorithms, it is usually best to learn one algorithm per step, using the beginner's method. When each algorithm is applied properly for each step you will end with a solved cube. Stick with it and try not to get frustrated. It is hard, but if you stay focused, you'll get it in no time.
  5. Hone your technique. Practice your method and learn finger tricks and subsets for that method for maximum performance.
    • Do slow solves (start with 1 turn per second or TPS), concentrating on not using many moves for each case, turning accurately and being precise with finger placement.
    • Gradually increase your turns per second when you are confident of solving efficiently and precisely at that speed.
    • When you can solve it in an average time of 40 seconds, advance to the next step.
  6. Learn to look ahead, to ascertain upcoming moves. When you average around 30 seconds, practice looking ahead. This helps, no matter which method you use. Looking ahead is when while you're solving, you are multi-tasking and tracking pieces to see what comes next.
    • For example, if you're using the Fridrich Method, practice your first two layers so that while you're solving one pair, you are looking ahead to find your next pair, which will eliminate any pauses in between steps. Work on this, and other subsets of your method, to improve more.
  7. Practice as much as you can. Practice your method, your finger tricks, and learn more ways to solve the cube faster. The only way to progress to the point of solving without thinking is to practice regularly so that each case becomes locked in your muscle memory. You cannot get fast without practice.
    • Look around on the Internet for different variations and mirrors of algorithms and pick ones that you find most efficient.
  8. Aim to get your times under 10 seconds. If you get to be this speedy, you might be a contender for some world records! However, learn at your own pace to begin with. Don't try to get sub-20 times in a month. Enjoy the experience. Don't just do it to get world records and awards. Understand that it takes most cubers at least 6-12 months to become sub-20.

Being part of a speed-cuber community

  1. Join a community. The best way to solidify your desire to improve is to join a community of speed-cubers.
  2. Try making your own community. Better yet why not teach a friend how to solve and do it together. Remember motivation is the key to practice, which is the key to success.
  3. Enter competitions. It doesn't matter how fast your times are, feel free to look up some local (near-by states, regions, provinces) competitions on worldcubeassociation.org and compete! You will meet other speedcubers and can work to improve on your techniques .

Tips

  • Be happy with your results. And don't get mad if you are not sub 10 or sub 20 in a week. It takes time. It is not uncommon to have been cubing for 6 months and averaging around 35 seconds.
  • Memorize all the Perms because it will decrease the time in solving a Rubik's cube. This makes a sub 20.

Warnings

  • If you use the drill method for a long period of time without pauses, your cube will burn due to heating



Things You'll Need

  • Rubik's cube, preferably one made for speed cubing
  • Cube lubricant

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

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