# Silicone, Rubiks Cube



## Magix (Dec 13, 2010)

I just bought the Rubik's brand 3x3x3 cube and it it's so stiff my hands literally get tired from solving the first cross.. So obviously I need to lubricate it, I went to a hardware/construction store thing, when I told them I need silicone lubricant they just looked at me with dumb faces and basically had no idea what I was asking for..

I've used search and people say go to walmarts for it, or k-mart and stuff like that, but I don't live in the USA and I don't have any shops that go by any of these names, so the "CRC Heavy duty silicone" that people are suggesting seems to be unavailable (and I'm not going to deal with all the taxes from ordering it online). 

So if I just buy silicone oil or something, from like a gas station, will that be alright? I'm assuming those don't come in sprays so I'll have to actually drip it in there or something..


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## Godmil (Dec 13, 2010)

What country are you from, cause there are lots of local brands that people use. Like Tablaue (sp?) in the UK, and Prostaff D-39 in Asia. Some lubes are easier than others to buy online (maru lube and D-39 (the orange can) can be bought from Lightake.com) while Lubix is sold in lots of US online stores. Shock Oil is a good liquid silicone that can be got from hobby shops (I think it's used in model trains or something). But first thing I'd recommend for a storebought is take it apart and wipe down the cubies, cause they tend to come covered in white dust that really slows it down.


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## Magix (Dec 13, 2010)

Godmil said:


> What country are you from, cause there are lots of local brands that people use. Like Tablaue (sp?) in the UK, and Prostaff D-39 in Asia. Some lubes are easier than others to buy online (maru lube and D-39 (the orange can) can be bought from Lightake.com) while Lubix is sold in lots of US online stores. Shock Oil is a good liquid silicone that can be got from hobby shops (I think it's used in model trains or something). But first thing I'd recommend for a storebought is take it apart and wipe down the cubies, cause they tend to come covered in white dust that really slows it down.


 
I'm from Estonia. 

I'll try wiping them down thanks, I saw a video where someone showed that if you actually sand them all down it'll become a lot better, but is that a good idea? I don't wanna ruin the cube and I'm afraid of doing it too much.


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## theace (Dec 13, 2010)

Don't sand the surfaces that make contact. I did that and it made the cube feel real horrid. Instead, you could try sanding all the edges of the pieces. For lube, try looking for Cyclo Silicone Spray from some auto parts store. A local garage might have some. It's a big orange can.


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## Magix (Dec 13, 2010)

theace said:


> Don't sand the surfaces that make contact. I did that and it made the cube feel real horrid. Instead, you could try sanding all the edges of the pieces. For lube, try looking for Cyclo Silicone Spray from some auto parts store. A local garage might have some. It's a big orange can.


 
Is basically any silicone spray ok? I saw something like that in the car repair section of a supermarket, but I was kind of hesitant to buy it because I wasn't sure if I'd end up paying 6 dollars for something that's gonna just turn my cube into a big chunk of rock.

And yeah, I sanded down the contact parts of some cheap cube I had lying around and now it feels like it's gonna fall apart any second I touch it. Feels really loose and nice though, except corner cutting is still non existant.


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## ~Phoenix Death~ (Dec 14, 2010)

You don't have to worry about corner cutting too much. Try to do R U R' U' with ease. If you feel anything majorly wrong, you should buy a lube. D39, Lubix, and Maru are very excellent choices.


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## peedu (Dec 14, 2010)

Magix said:


> I'm from Estonia.
> 
> I'll try wiping them down thanks, I saw a video where someone showed that if you actually sand them all down it'll become a lot better, but is that a good idea? I don't wanna ruin the cube and I'm afraid of doing it too much.



Hi,
I'm from Estonia also.
Your first mistake was buying the Rubik's brand cube. F-II is 200kr in Taibula.

If I remember correctly I bought my silicone spray from Prisma or was it Rimi. Generally you can find it among car related stuff. Cheapest I've seen was 45kr, expensive (and big) ones are almost 100.

You could sand down the remains of plastic molding. I have done that.

Also you should not worry about the taxes when ordering a cube online. Get an F-II or Guhong or whatever you prefer from Lightake, receive it in January and be happy. It will be cheaper than this 200kr in local store.

I have not ordered any lube online, but I don't think it will cause any problems either.

Peedu


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## Magix (Dec 14, 2010)

peedu said:


> Hi,
> I'm from Estonia also.
> Your first mistake was buying the Rubik's brand cube. F-II is 200kr in Taibula.
> 
> ...


 
Damn, I actually went to Taibula first but I thought it would be another shitty nonamer cube that can't turn well if its life depended on it. But now that I already have the Rubiks one I won't be buying another one anyway. 

And yeah, then I think I know where to get the silicone spray.. Can you tell me the exact name of what you bought just in case?
I'll probably go to the prisma in kristiine.

And if I'd buy a cube online, I'd probably get something they recommend in one of the stickies here, like a type A or something. I'm still on like 3 minutes with the beginners method, so there's a lot of room for improvement, so I don't really need a good cube right now. But the current one without lube is just ridiculous.


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