Eight complete edges are stored in U and D, four unpaired groups remain in the middle, and centres are restored.
Place the two groups you are working on at FL and FR.
1. Find a useful partial match
Inspect the four remaining groups. Look for a wing that already matches its neighbouring midge. Find the missing wing with the same two colours in another group. Use outer setup turns to put those groups at FL and FR.
If there is no partial match, use the slice–flip–slice-back operation on two unpaired groups to rearrange wings and create one. Inspect the new state before choosing another operation.
2. Set up the wing exchange
Choose the upper working slice. Arrange the groups so Uw carries the selected FL wing into FR. The FR flip then changes which wing will travel back when the slice is restored.
Use the FR flip to change a group’s orientation if the matching or checkerboard pattern on the front face is wrong. Compare both faces in the starting net below. Check more than one visible sticker before choosing the setup.
If the pieces are in the lower slice, rotate the whole cube to bring that slice into the upper working position, then identify FL and FR again. Keep the same layer width for Uw.
3. Slice, flip, slice back
Uw R U R' F R' F' R Uw'
Work through the sequence in three steps.
- Uw: move the selected upper-band wing towards FR.
- R U R′ F R′ F′ R: flip the whole FR group.
- Uw′: restore the centre rows and exchange the selected wings.
The sequence changes which wing returns with the slice. With the pieces set up to match the example, it improves the edge grouping and restores the centres. Finish the whole sequence before checking the result.
4. Check the result before repeating the sequence
Check which groups now contain all three matching pieces. Protect those groups and work on the remaining unpaired ones. A new partial match may need a new setup or a flip before the next operation.
Continue until eleven edges are complete. If the last group also matches on both faces, pairing is finished. Otherwise compare it with the parity case in the next lesson.
5. Separate a last-edge mismatch from general pairing
The final repair applies when eleven groups are complete and the last group’s two wings are reversed relative to its midge. If several groups still contain different colour pairs, stay with ordinary pairing. A parity sequence does not replace the missing setup work.
Need a reminder of the move notation?
R right · L left · U top · D bottom · F front · B back. A letter on its own means a 90° clockwise turn as you look directly at that face. An apostrophe (′) reverses the direction. A 2 means a 180° turn. Keep the same face at the front throughout the algorithm.
Rw turns the rightmost two layers together. 2R turns only the second layer from the right. 3Rw turns three layers. x rotates the whole cube like R, so the old front becomes the new top.
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
This example shows a prepared upper-band wing exchange. Inspect all three stickers on both faces of FL and FR, then watch the slice–flip–slice-back sequence. Set up the same piece arrangement on your own cube before applying this version.
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 / 9
Loading 3D cube…
Prepared position · 0 / 9 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.
Uw R' F R F' R U' R' Uw'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
Find a partial wing–midge match and its missing wing. Compare both colours with the prepared case, exchange the required wings, and inspect all remaining groups after every operation.
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
The same sequence keeps undoing my progress.
After completing each operation, identify the partial match and missing wing again. Repeating the sequence with the same grip can undo a useful exchange.
More than one group is still mismatched.
Continue pairing those groups. The next parity lesson assumes eleven complete edges and one specific reversed-wing group.
Before moving on
Check your result
Your cube at this stage
Eleven edges complete
Eleven groups match. In this example, the final group at the top-front edge has two wings that are reversed relative to its midge. If you see this case on your cube, fix it next.
Confirm these on your cube. Watching the animation alone does not complete the lesson.
Tick each item once you can do it yourself.