# The Dayan Zhanchi



## windhero (Jun 8, 2013)

This is a puzzle with a lot more to it than what people think. Most just go and buy the one feliks uses and some go for the stickerless because people say its the best. I searched the forums and I've been looking around for quite a while and gathered the following data. Some of these are my personal opinions only.

Sold in 57mm (original), 55mm, 50mm and 42mm. Smaller cubes are mostly used for OH solves.

*The stickerless Zhanchi and stickerless cubes in general:*
People say, that their stickerless cubes are way better than stickered ones. I agree that I solve faster with mine. I didnt think it was because I could see the colours on the sides and back thus getting a better lookahead but turns out it was just that. I used a stickerless guhong for a long time and swapped to a stickered zhanchi. My times got slower by like 2-3 seconds at least.

The rumour is that the stickerless cube has a better feel because it has better plastic. This is why people do force cubes (Buy 6 stickerless cubes, diassemble and reassemble to form 6 different coloured cubes that are essentially made from stickerless cubes). Crazybadcuber also tried to dye a stickerless zhanchi to see if it could be possible to make it competition legal. Turns out it felt just like any other black zhanchi. Personally I don't believe in the "different feel". I think its just a placebo caused by hype when someone didnt realize that it was just easier to lookahead on a stickerless cube. 

CBCs video


Spoiler



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KymTVz12yvQ



*"Original plastic" vs new plastic*

There are mixed opinions about this, but some think that the old Zhanchis were better because they were made from a different plastic. According to crazybadcuber who allegedly asked Dayan, the cube plastic was indeed switched. Personally I dont believe that the feel could change that much, so I believe its also just a mix of hype and placebo.

*The Milky Zhanchi (Or original/primary color)*

Can be bought from 
lightake.com
zcube.cn
thecubicle.us


The milky zhanchi is made from a milky plastic, not white. Some say that this is the best zhanchi there is and I have to agree (works for me). It has nothing to do with the plastic, but the colour of it. I think the milky colour is somehow especially neutral, that the stickers pop up as much brighter. A Milky zhanchi with half bright or super bright stickers has a great contrast.

*The Pink Zhanchi*

As far as I know only a very small batch of these cubes were produced making the pink Zhanchi a rare and collectible cube. 

*Pre-modded cubes and modding*

The basic idea of modding is to round everything that is sharp on the pieces. Some cubes like the Lubix Fusions, Elite and others like the camcuber zhanchi have been pre-modified and pre-lubed with some "secret and special way", which can be seen in the price tag. Some people prefer to do the mods themselves to save money.

Here is a video that lists and shows most of the mods:


Spoiler



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHqNqVOuujw



*The center piece mod aka CPM - shortcut mod*

Afaik it was invented by Izovire and the idea is to replicate the effect of the 48point edge mod by just modding the center pieces. Same result with a lot less effort basically. 

Video of the mod:


Spoiler



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8QtPetMAK0




*Lubing*

Lubix cubes are lubed with lubix and lubed the proper way. There are tutorials on the internet on how to replicate the effect. Lubix is basically around 40K wt differential oil and it works great with the Zhanchi.

CBC's lubing guide


Spoiler



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4paID_54lQ



*Zhanchis and aging*

Many consider breaking in a good thing, but some think that the Zhanchi is best when it is brand new. I noticed this with my Guhong and I've noticed this with Zhanchis as well. Too much use and breaking in and the Zhanchi might deteriorate. It might also be that using it bends the core, which means that a simple core swap would fix the problem. I havent tried it so I dont know for sure.

*C4U core in the Zhanchi*

The C4U core has the reputation of being very durable, if not the most durable core on the market (lets just forget the 99 dollar atomic aluminium core..). It fits inside a Zhanchi perfectly and its an easy "mod" to assure that the core will never bend even after long and heavy use. Some say it makes the feel of the cube better, but I dont see how that could be since the screw stands just the same in a Dayan core and the pieces dont actually touch the core.

C4U core test


Spoiler



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K7ep_uoUnM&feature=player_embedded





I'll be updating the thread when I remember more quirks to the Zhanchi.

For those interested I made the thread because I used to have a hard time trying to figure out what all the different things mean. The wiki about the zhanchi is pretty horrid so this works as a wiki article instead.


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## Username (Jun 8, 2013)

Zhanchi <3 

I have done the CPMod (somehow atleast)

Many people also like the purple zhanchi better than any other (i think)


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## windhero (Jun 8, 2013)

I just finished the CPMod on my Milky Zhanchi and swapped mains from the FangShi. The only problem with the zhanchi were the "crunchy" lockups. With the CPM all that is left is just perfection.


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## Username (Jun 8, 2013)

Video Plz

I have 2 ZC's and they feel completely different. I still don't know why... I wishI did


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## Ronxu (Jun 8, 2013)

ZC 2nd prototype <3


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## Lid (Jun 8, 2013)

I believe Lightake also has the milky zhanchi, but its named "Original Color" instead.


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## uniacto (Jun 8, 2013)

The Cubicle has "primary color" Zhanchi's as well.


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## windhero (Jun 8, 2013)

Username said:


> Video Plz
> 
> I have 2 ZC's and they feel completely different. I still don't know why... I wishI did



Can't make one for at the very least for a week, but I'm on it!

Also OP modified on the milky zhanchi.


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## Lagom (Jun 13, 2013)

I figured out a new mod to the Zhanchi the other week... The center caps touches the center pieces and the friction slows down the cube. Remove the center caps and notice that the cube feels way better, so just sand down a little bit on each side of the center pieces
This goes for a lot of cubes,not just the zhanchi


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## jayefbe (Jun 13, 2013)

CPM is a shortcut for the 48 point edge mod? The CPM takes a lot longer to do than the 48 point edge mod for me. Less pieces, but you're removing a lot more plastic. Plus, those mods don't feel the same to me.


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## MaeLSTRoM (Jun 13, 2013)

jayefbe said:


> CPM is a shortcut for the 48 point edge mod? The CPM takes a lot longer to do than the 48 point edge mod for me. Less pieces, but you're removing a lot more plastic. Plus, those mods don't feel the same to me.



The 48point edge mod isn't needed on the ZC due to where the contact surfaces are. The CPM is slightly different, hence the feel change, but the 48point doesn't actually affect the turning, just the feel slightly.


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## Lagom (Jun 13, 2013)

I've got 2 black zhanchis comming in a few days that I will try different mods on. I can start with cpm on one cube and 48pm on the other


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