GAN Skewb Standard (8 Magnets)

GAN’s skewb was the first to offer adjustable tension and spring compression together. The GAN Skewb Standard gets you into that system at the lowest price, and it is a decent puzzle.

Eight core positioning magnets sit with one polarity in the core and the other in the pieces. The GES Pro system gives four nut distances and six levels of elasticity, so 24 configurations in all. It corner cuts to 90 degrees, and at 79g it is the lightest skewb you can buy.

The two adjustments do different jobs. Nut distance sets how far the pieces sit from the core, so shorter is tighter and more controlled and longer is looser and faster. Elasticity sets how hard the spring pushes back, which changes how quickly a layer settles.

Core positioning is the other thing worth knowing. Sitting one side of each magnet pair in the core gives low resistance at the start of a turn and a firm sense of where it ends.

The GAN Skewb Enhanced above it has 32 magnets instead of eight. The difference is real without being enormous. If you are buying one skewb, buy the Enhanced.