Algorithm notation. The Windmill Cube is read on its own layers: U and D are the top and bottom, and R L F B are the four tilted side layers that the r l f b keys turn. M E S are the middle slices (M follows L, E follows D, S follows F), Rw or r turns a face with its slice, and x y z rotate the whole cube. A plain letter is clockwise seen from outside, an apostrophe is counter-clockwise and 2 is a half turn. Brackets repeat or invert a group: (R U R' U')x3 or (R U R' U')3 plays the trigger three times and (R U)' plays its inverse. The second input loads an algorithm into the player under the cube, played on the cube as it stands (set up a scramble with the first input): step through it with the buttons, press play, or click a move to jump there.

Windmill Cube simulator: solved on the left, scrambled on the right

Online Windmill Cube Simulator

Free Windmill Cube simulator: twist the pinwheel 3x3 shape mod in your browser, scramble it, time your solves and watch algorithms play move by move.

Windmill Cube simulator: the pinwheel 3x3

The Windmill Cube is a 3x3x3 shape mod whose cutting grid is turned around the vertical axis, so the top and bottom faces are cut diagonally instead of in a straight grid. Seen from above, the pieces form a pinwheel around a slanted centre, which gives the puzzle its name. The U, E and D layers turn without changing the outline, but a quarter turn of a side layer (R, L, F, B) or of the M and S slices makes the cube shape-shift. In this simulator the grid is rotated by about 31 degrees, chosen so that the side cuts meet the vertical edges of the cube exactly.

A scrambled Windmill Cube next to a solved one with the pinwheel cuts on its white top
Scrambled and solved: the slanted cuts make the Windmill Cube change shape as it turns.

How to solve the Windmill Cube

Underneath, the Windmill Cube is a normal 3x3, so you can solve it with the method you already use, whether that is the beginner's layer-by-layer method or CFOP. The shape is what makes it hard: each side shows fewer distinct pieces than a regular cube and many pieces show only one colour, so recognising corners and edges takes practice. The Ruwix Windmill Cube tutorial notes that the last-layer permutation (PLL) is the hardest step to recognise. It also points out that the four side centres have a visible orientation, like on a supercube, and gives algorithms to twist them.

  • Start with the top layer and use the slanted top centre as your reference.
  • Treat the middle layer as on a 3x3, but check that each side centre points the right way before you move on.
  • For the last layer, orient first and then permute, checking colours rather than outlines.
Windmill Cube with its white first layer finished and the rest still scrambled
Step one done: a full first layer, solved with ordinary 3x3 moves.

Using the simulator for practice

Drag any layer to turn it, or drag the background to look at the cube from another angle. The keys u e d r l f b m s turn layers, with Shift for the opposite direction. Scramble gives you a random position; start the timer yourself with the Start button or the Space bar, because scrambling never starts it automatically. Undo steps back one move and Reset restores the solved cube.

The two inputs under the buttons are the most useful tools for learning. The first applies a scramble or any move sequence. The second loads an algorithm into a step-by-step player under the cube, so you can play it, pause it or jump to any move and see exactly which pieces it moves on this unusual shape. Demo algorithms such as the sexy move, Sune and the checkerboard pattern are listed below the notation notes. To share a position, copy the link box, which stores your scramble and algorithm in the URL, or use the embed code to put the puzzle on your own page.

Is the Windmill Cube the same as the Fisher Cube?

No, although they are related. Both rotate the grid of a 3x3 around the vertical axis, but the Fisher Cube turns it by 45 degrees, so its side layers face the vertical edges of the cube, while the Windmill uses a smaller angle and gets its pinwheel pattern. Solving technique carries over from one to the other.

When is the puzzle solved in the simulator?

When it is a cube again and every face is a single colour, seen from any angle. The status line then reports the number of moves you needed.

Is the Windmill Cube an official speedcubing event?

No, it is not a WCA event, so there are no official records. That makes the built-in timer handy for tracking your own progress from one solve to the next.