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Kelsey Geller focuses on practical Rubik's Cube learning for beginners. Her guides simplify complex steps, explain the "why" behind moves, and help new cubers build confidence with a reliable solving approach. Every guide follows CubeSolver's editorial review standards before publishing.
Unlock faster solves with our 2-Look OLL guide. Learn essential algorithms and recognition tips to master the 2-step flow for a consistent last layer.
This guide is about how to solve a Rubik's cube in 20 moves, providing specific steps and facts about solving cubes in 20 moves.
This post provides you with a simple, beginner-friendly guide on how to solve the last layer of a Rubik's cube. There are only four steps.
The Sledgehammer Move is a short cubing trigger that many players learn after Sexy Move. It usually means R' F R F', a four-move sequence used to insert, shift, or set up pieces without making the solve feel awkward. You will see it in F2L, longer algorithms, and finger trick practice, so it is worth learning early. Once you understand the turn direction and rhythm, sledgehammer becomes easy to recognize and repeat in real solves.
In cubing, a trigger is a short move pattern that you can reuse in different algorithms or solving cases. The sledgehammer move is one of the most common triggers after Sexy Move. Most tutorials use "sledgehammer" to mean this four-move formula: R' F R F'
It uses only the right face and the front face. Read it as one compact motion: right face down, front face turns, right face back, front face back. That is easier to remember than treating it as four separate turns. In Rubik's Cube notation, each move means:
Some cubers also use a left-hand version, L F' L' F, but you can learn it later. Start with R' F R F' first, since it appears more often in beginner F2L examples and algorithm breakdowns. Once the right-hand trigger feels natural, the left-hand version can help with left-side cases and reduce cube rotations.
If the moves still feel hard to picture, use CubeSolver AI to slow the process down before you practice on a real cube. You can scan a 2x2, 3x3, or 4x4 cube with your phone, enter colors manually when needed, and follow each move with clear visual guidance. For sledgehammer practice, the useful part is not just solving the cube; it is being able to pause, replay, and see how a short trigger changes the pieces without guessing.
Cubers use sledgehammer to move a corner-edge pair in a controlled way with a short sequence. It is also easy to spot inside longer algorithms, which makes OLL, PLL, and other algs feel less random.
| Use Case | Why It Helps |
|---|---|
| F2L pairs | It can insert or shift a corner-edge pair without making the solve feel clumsy. |
| Longer algorithms | It gives you a familiar block inside OLL, PLL, and other algs. |
| Finger tricks | It trains smooth right-face and front-face turns together. |
| Cube rotations | It can help with some cases where rotating the whole cube would slow you down. |
Before you try to do sledgehammer fast, make sure each turn goes in the right direction. The move is short, but one wrong front-face turn will change the case completely.
Step 1. Hold the cube with the front face facing you and the right face on your right side. Keep the cube stable instead of rotating it in your hands.
Step 2. Do R'. Turn the right face counterclockwise, as if you are pulling the right side down.
Step 3. Do F. Turn the front face clockwise. This is the step many beginners mix up, so check the direction before speeding up.
Step 4. Do R. Bring the right face back to its original direction.
Step 5. Do F'. Turn the front face counterclockwise to finish the trigger.
After the last turn, look at how the corner and edge pieces moved. That check matters more than speed at first, since sledgehammer becomes useful only when you understand what it changes on the cube.
The most common mistake is turning the front face the wrong way. If the cube feels scrambled after the trigger, slow down and check F and F' first. Also make sure you are turning only one face at a time, not rotating the whole cube during the sequence.
Sledgehammer and Sexy Move are both short triggers, and many cubers learn them around the same stage. They are not the same move, though. Sledgehammer uses the front face, while Sexy Move uses the upper face, so they affect pieces in different ways.
| Trigger | Algorithm | Main Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Sledgehammer | R' F R F' | Uses the front face and often helps with F2L pairs, setup moves, and algorithm blocks. |
| Sexy Move | R U R' U' | Uses the upper face and appears often in beginner last-layer steps and many common algorithms. |
The easiest way to separate them is to watch the second move. If the second move is F, you are doing sledgehammer. If the second move is U, you are doing Sexy Move. You should not swap one for the other unless the tutorial or algorithm specifically allows it, since they move different pieces around the cube.
Repeating R' F R F' helps you learn the motion, but real practice starts when you can see what it does to the corner and edge pieces. Do not only drill the trigger in place. Set up simple F2L situations and watch whether the pair gets inserted, shifted, or broken. Start with a simple practice order:
Do not force sledgehammer into every F2L case. Use it when the pair is already in a position where the trigger makes sense. Forcing it into the wrong setup can create extra moves and make recognition harder.
Sledgehammer is worth practicing slowly before you try to make it fast. Pay attention to the front-face turns, keep the cube stable, and watch how the corner-edge pair changes after each move. Once the direction feels clear, you can start using R' F R F' in F2L practice and recognize it more easily inside longer algorithms.
No. Sledgehammer is not an official WCA term, and you usually will not see it listed as a formal event rule or notation category. It is a community nickname for the short trigger R' F R F'. The name is still useful because many cubers, tutorials, and algorithm notes use trigger names to make longer sequences easier to discuss.
Yes, but only after you understand basic cube notation. If R', F, and F' still feel confusing, learn the turn directions first. Once you can read those moves, sledgehammer is a good early trigger to practice because it introduces front-face turns and prepares you for F2L examples, OLL algorithms, and PLL breakdowns.
The awkward part is usually the front face, not the right face. Many beginners practice a lot of R and U turns, so F and F' feel less natural in the hand. Another common issue is moving the whole cube instead of turning only the front layer. Slow the trigger down, keep the same front face toward you, and check that F and F' go in opposite directions.
Not at the beginning. The right-hand version, R' F R F', is the one you should make stable first. The left-hand version, L F' L' F, becomes useful later when you want to handle left-side cases without rotating the cube as much. Learning both versions can make your F2L more flexible, but it is better to build one clean habit first.
