# 3x3 example solves



## TDM (Sep 28, 2014)

Usually I do more VHLS than this, but these scrambles didn't really have any good opportunities for it. I originally was going to do it on scramble 3, but I solved it differently to how I had planned it.

1) U' L2 F2 U F2 U R2 B2 F2 D F D L F2 D' F2 U B' U' F2 U'
2) D2 U' B2 D' L2 U' F2 U' B2 R2 U2 F R F' D L2 B' L' B2 L2 B2 
(T perm: R U R' U' R' F R2 U' R' U F' r' F r)
3) L F2 R2 D2 R' B2 L D2 B2 R B2 F' R2 B' D B F2 D2 U' B2 R' 
4) L2 F2 D' B2 D F2 R2 B2 D R2 B2 L' F' U F' D R2 B' L B2 R2 
5) D2 U2 L2 D2 B F L2 U2 B' F2 U' R' D F' U2 F' R2 B2 R' U' L 
(Y perm: R' U2 R' F' R2 U' R' F' U' F R U R' F U2' R)
6) D L2 R2 D' R2 F2 D' B2 F2 D' B2 L F R2 U' F2 U' F L F R2 
(2GLL: backsune AUF left antisune)



Spoiler: Another solution to scramble 3



L F2 R2 D2 R' B2 L D2 B2 R B2 F' R2 B' D B F2 D2 U' B2 R' 

x2 // Inspection
R' D R U L2 D2 // Cross
U2 L' U L U2 L U' L' // F2L-1
U' L' U L d' L U' L' // F2L-2
d R2 F R2 F' // F2L-3
U' R' U2 R U2 R' U F' U F R // VHLS
R U R' U R U r' F R' F' r // COLL
M2 U' M2 U' M' U2 M2 U2 M' U // EPLL


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## Artic (Sep 29, 2014)

Wow, this was actually really helpful to me. I honestly learned a lot and it made me reconsider a few things. I do have a few thoughts/questions if that's okay.

1) How exactly are you performing the U perm at 4:05? What is the alg? Also, what finger tricks do you use. I'm hoping you could share how you perform it because it looks awesome. 

2) I'm averaging 18.2x right now. I like the use of M-slices and Roux so I've tried to make my CFOP as Roux-y as possible. It's been fun and I've enjoyed integrating cool tricks. But at the same time, it would appear that I've overlooked some very common intuitive insertions. In particular, the keyhole method you used throughout your solves is fast and efficient and something I knew about but totally forgot/neglected. I may have to abandon my M-slice tricks in favor of more CFOP style insertions if I hope to get faster. I'm not sure yet. But I like your style. It's simple but efficient, and in the long run, that may prove better. But it's soo hard to quit using M-slices since I love them soo much 

3) Thanks for taking the time to film these solves. I honestly really learned a lot and your slow clear explanations were very instructive! I know I need to improve/learn so much more if I hope to ever reach my cubing goals, but it's cool to see I'm not too far off. Thanks again!


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## mark49152 (Sep 29, 2014)

Yeah great walkthroughs, thanks. The explanations are clear and at just the right pace for me and there's a good selection of interesting solve features as well. Excellent stuff.


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## TDM (Sep 29, 2014)

Thanks for the feedback!
That U perm is the Ua perm, M2 U' M U2' M' U' M2. I do the first M2 as R' [r M'], which is a bit of a weird fingertrick. I might upload some of my weird PLL fingertricks/algs at the weekend, or maybe during the week if it's possible.
The best text explanation I can give of that U perm is:
M2: executed as R' [r M']. During the R' you put your right ring finger (or left if you do M moves with your left hand) on UB, and then as you do the r move, use that ring finger to push M' at the same time. The great thing about this fingertrick is that it allows you to keep your right hand in a good position to do U moves as well as U' moves; this way of doing M2 is really useful for the other U perm, M2 U M U2' M' U M2.
U': normal
M: right ring finger pushes FD to DB. You don't use the end of the finger though; the best frame I could get that showed the part of the finger used was this, but when I make a PLL video hopefully it should be more obvious.
U2 M' U' M2: normal, M2 is ring finger then middle finger
sorry for my bad explaining skills, hopefully you can understand that

Keyhole is something you can't really use too often; it requires a corner or an edge to already be solved, and an adjacent slot to be unsolved (it doesn't have to be adjacent, but D2s are slooow). As a result it's quite hard to practise, because cases where you can use it don't come up a lot. But when they do I find it's much faster to use keyhole than a normal alg, especially when the corner is solved and you're inserting the edge.

Or you could just switch to Roux


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## Artic (Sep 29, 2014)

TDM said:


> Thanks for the feedback!
> That U perm is the Ua perm, M2 U' M U2' M' U' M2. I do the first M2 as R' [r M'], which is a bit of a weird fingertrick. I might upload some of my weird PLL fingertricks/algs at the weekend, or maybe during the week if it's possible.
> The best text explanation I can give of that U perm is:
> M2: executed as R' [r M']. During the R' you put your right ring finger (or left if you do M moves with your left hand) on UB, and then as you do the r move, use that ring finger to push M' at the same time. The great thing about this fingertrick is that it allows you to keep your right hand in a good position to do U moves as well as U' moves; this way of doing M2 is really useful for the other U perm, M2 U M U2' M' U M2.
> ...



Dang, that's a cool trick! Both for executing the initial M2 and then later for the M. I have a really hard time executing M moves. I always end up resorting to using my right index finger to push UB to FU, which makes executing any alg with M moves really awkward. Hence why I try to avoid them. But I know there are some fast algs that if you're somehow able to master M moves would be super fast to perform. Also, I can't seem to get my Moyu Aolong loose/fast enough to execute M moves easy using your method. But perhaps I just need to practice it more.


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## guysensei1 (Sep 29, 2014)

Artic said:


> Dang, that's a cool trick! Both for executing the initial M2 and then later for the M. I have a really hard time executing M moves. I always end up resorting to using my right index finger to push UB to FU, which makes executing any alg with M moves really awkward. Hence why I try to avoid them. But I know there are some fast algs that if you're somehow able to master M moves would be super fast to perform. Also, I can't seem to get my Moyu Aolong loose/fast enough to execute M moves easy using your method. But perhaps I just need to practice it more.


Or you could try M2 u M' u2 M' u M2


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## TDM (Sep 29, 2014)

Artic said:


> Dang, that's a cool trick! Both for executing the initial M2 and then later for the M. I have a really hard time executing M moves. I always end up resorting to using my right index finger to push UB to FU, which makes executing any alg with M moves really awkward. Hence why I try to avoid them. But I know there are some fast algs that if you're somehow able to master M moves would be super fast to perform. Also, I can't seem to get my Moyu Aolong loose/fast enough to execute M moves easy using your method. But perhaps I just need to practice it more.


I think I got it from Stefan's website where he was showing M2 as a BLD method. I will quite often do M as right index BU to UF when doing Roux; my fingertrick is good sometimes, but at other times my hands aren't in a good position to do it.
I use a 54.5mm AoLong... I never use normal size cubes, so I don't know about using slices on them. I would have thought slices would be even easier on them, because the slices are bigger (except the 54.6mm ShuangRen, which has normal size slices).


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## goodatthis (Sep 29, 2014)

Great example solves!



TDM said:


> but D2s are slooow



Really? I use the M2 doubleflick fingers for D2 and it's even faster than my U2 lol.


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## TDM (Sep 29, 2014)

goodatthis said:


> Great example solves!


Thanks!


> Really? I use the M2 doubleflick fingers for D2 and it's even faster than my U2 lol.


I can do D2 fast outside of solves, but I can just never doubleflick in solves without regripping, and regrips are even slower than just doing D' D' or D D for me. I hate D moves unless I can do them without regrips.


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## CriticalCubing (Sep 29, 2014)

Atlast you got around doing it. Learnt a thing or two so thanks for this


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## MarcelP (Sep 29, 2014)

Yeah, learned a thing or two also. Great walkthroughs


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## TDM (Sep 29, 2014)

Thanks! Does anyone have any advice on how I could do these better? Constructive criticism is always helpful.


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## GuRoux (Sep 29, 2014)

Artic said:


> Dang, that's a cool trick! Both for executing the initial M2 and then later for the M. I have a really hard time executing M moves. I always end up resorting to using my right index finger to push UB to FU, which makes executing any alg with M moves really awkward. Hence why I try to avoid them. But I know there are some fast algs that if you're somehow able to master M moves would be super fast to perform. Also, I can't seem to get my Moyu Aolong loose/fast enough to execute M moves easy using your method. But perhaps I just need to practice it more.



For M you can just push DB to BU with your ring or middle finger. For M2 I just use the regular double flick and do U with my left hand OH style.


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