All six 3×3 centre blocks are solved.
Keep FL and FR as working positions. Completed groups are stored in U and D.
1. Choose a midge as the reference
The midge is the middle piece of a three-piece edge. Find a midge, check its two colours and locate both wings with the same pair of colours. A completed edge has three matching stickers on each of its two faces.
If the wings match each other and the midge is reversed, the stickers form a checkerboard pattern and the edge is still incomplete. Always check the midge as well.
2. Bring the pieces into the working band
Use outer turns to put the target midge at FR. Put a matching wing at FL in the upper or lower horizontal slice so a wide turn can carry it to FR. Arrange the pieces so the wing’s colours match the midge on both the front and right faces.
Use the following sequence to flip the whole FR group.
R U R' F R' F' R
This move flips the whole group together, so you cannot use it to flip a single wing on its own. The example below shows the flip on its own so you can see how the wings change position and the midge changes orientation.
3. Add a wing, protect the match and restore the slice
Use Uw or Uw′ to bring the selected upper-band wing alongside the midge. To work on the lower-band wing, reorient the cube so that band becomes your upper working band, then set up FL and FR again.
After making a useful match, move the group out of the active slice using outer moves, bring an unpaired group into the working slot, and undo the wide turn to restore centres. A two-piece match is worth preserving, but do not count it as a finished edge yet.
Bring the partial pair back into a working position with its matching pieces outside the next active slice, then add its remaining wing. Check all three pieces on both faces before storing the full group.
4. Store eight complete groups
Move finished groups into U and D with outer turns. Keep bringing unpaired groups into the middle working band. If a storage slot already contains a finished group, choose another slot so you do not replace useful work with an unpaired group unnecessarily.
Restoring slices after each operation makes it easier to track the centres. Once four completed edges are above and four below, restore all centre blocks and leave the four unpaired groups in the middle band.
5. Switch methods for the last four
With little storage space left, it becomes awkward to join pieces, store the group and restore the slice. The next lesson uses slice–flip–slice-back to exchange selected wings and restore the centre rows. Keep stored edges in place when looking for a temporary slot.
Watch, then try
Work through an example
Start by stepping through one move at a time. This prepared example shows a specific action. Use the lesson’s setup instructions to recognise when to use it on your own scramble.
Watch one worked example
Study the FR flip before using it to pair edges. It flips the whole front-right group and keeps the centre colours in place. This drill lets you practise changing the group’s orientation. Pairing the edge takes further moves.
Example grip: Start with yellow on top, blue at the front and red on the right. Follow any written instructions for rotating the whole cube.
0 / 7
Loading 3D cube…
Starting position set · 0 / 7 moves
Use Next move to follow the sequence.
Drag to inspect other faces. Use the arrow keys to rotate the view when the cube has keyboard focus.
Copy this exact example on your own cube
Start with a solved 5×5, with yellow on top and blue at the front. Apply the setup moves below from left to right to create the example’s starting position. Keep this separate from the scramble you’re solving throughout the course.
R' F R F' R U' R'Then follow the lesson sequence. If your cube has a different colour scheme, use the relationships between your own colours to identify the equivalent pieces.
Compare the starting position and the result
Drag each cube to inspect its other faces.
Explain it to yourself
Check your understanding
Now use your own cube
Your turn
Choose a midge and find the two wings with the same pair of colours. Join each wing to the midge, store the complete three-piece group and restore the slices. Continue until eight groups are complete.
Open a 5×5 Digital Cube for practiceOpens in a new tab so you can keep this lesson open while you practise. Check for yourself whether you’ve met the lesson goal. The Digital Cube doesn’t assess your result.
If you get stuck
I counted twelve edges, but some still have stickers that don’t match.
Only count three-piece groups matching on both faces. A wing–midge pair still needs its third piece.
The correct wings surround a reversed midge.
The checkerboard pattern shows that the edge is still incomplete. Use the slice–flip–slice-back method in the next lesson. If only one edge remains, check the last-edge parity lesson.
Before moving on
Check your result
Your cube at this stage
Eight complete edge groups
Four completed groups are stored above and four below. The four vertical edge groups in the middle are still unpaired, and all centres have been restored.
Confirm these on your cube. Watching the animation alone does not complete the lesson.
Tick each item once you can do it yourself.