Miscellaneous

3 Ball Tricks

Various 3 ball tricks I have mastered throughout my juggling years :)

Cascade Variations

423 Variations

  • 423 Tennis
  • 423 MM, FMM (Takeouts)
  • 4D2U3 MM with 2 active as wrist drop
  • 423 with 2 active goes outside and is caught below other hand
  • 423 claw (every throw)
  • 423 penguin variation (4 or 2 as penguin catches)
  • 423 (3 as bxx)
  • 423 follow variation: active 2 that circles the 3 (carry around), claw throw the 4
  • 423 tornado: 2 active in infinity motion
  • 423 Weave (S)
  • 423 with 2 active drop, catch under the leg (nice)
  • 423 (4 high throw and 3 overhead throw, catches 4)
  • 423 overheads
  • 423 with 4 as a pinball throw!

Columns + Factory

Box

Others

4 Ball Colored Patterns

My favorite 4 ball colored siteswaps :)

The most interesting patterns (visually) have 2 or 3 colors.

2 colors

2+2

  • Base pattern is 552. There are two chromaticities for the 55 throws: monochromatic 55 and dichromatic 55. We have 1 period per color when 55 is monochromatic and 4 periods when it is dichromatic - 2 as {blue,red} and 2 as {red,blue}. So after 2 periods, there is a color order change in the 55 dichromaticity case.
  • Switch (monochromatic => dichromatic): 552 - 534 - 552 - see video
    • The reverse transition (dichromatic => monochromatic) via a 534 must happen after the first 552 or after the first 552, but never during the change from {blue,red} to {red,blue}! I shall say that this transition happens at 1st or 3rd period of the global dichromatic 552.
    • A siteswap that can be started from a dichromatic 552, after the 1st or 3rd period, and does not have transition throws, can be equivalently started from each hand holding two balls of the same color! This means that you can go from a dichromatic 552 after the 1st or 3rd global period, to a fountain pattern with different color balls in each respective hand!
  • Start with monochromatic 552: 552 - 55613 - 63551 - see video
  • Start with monochromatic 552: 552 - 55 |714 - see video (last sequence)
  • Start with 1 color per hand: 642 - 63641 - 64613 - 5|561 - see video 1 (full sequence) and 2 (part of sequence)
  • Start with 1 color per hand: 75251 - see video
  • Start with dichromatic 552 and switch after 2nd or 4th period (*): 5|741 - see video
  • (*): 5|6616162 - see video
  • (*): 7427242 - see video
  • (*): 5|8518501 - see video
  • (*): 8441841481441 - see video

(*): These are equivalent to starting from 4 ball fountain with throws corresponding to colors as (blue,red,red,blue). Note that the placement of the balls in your hands, so that the above throw sequence respects the coloring, forms a crossing pattern.

3+1

With red the one ball that does something completely different from the other 3!

  • 55514 - 46451 - 63524 - 53444 - 534 - see video
  • 55514 - 74414 - see video
  • 55514 - 5|68141 - see video
  • 55514 - 55|81461 - see video
  • 55514 - 5|68501 - see video
  • 534 - 5|75161 - see video
  • 1-7 to 6716161 - see video

3 colors

1+1+2

  • 45641 - see video
  • 46451 - see video
  • 1234567 + the 2 above all in one sequence - see video
  • 7362514 (start from fountain with throws corresponding to colors as blue,red,red,green) - see video
  • 75314 (start with 2 balls of the same color in one hand) - see video
  • 5|58142 (start with 2 balls of the same color in one hand) - see video

4 colors

Mills Mess

Notation:

  • R = Reverse (in time)
  • F = Flipped
  • Unless specified, each siteswap is done at all 3 positions: U (UP), M (MIDDLE), D (DOWN)

2 balls

3 balls

Period 3

Period 5

Other siteswaps

Tricks

4 balls

  • 4MM
  • 4FMM
  • 4 Windmill, 4 Reverse Windmill
  • 4 Ball Boston Mess
  • 534 (from easier and nicer to harder and not-so-nice => 5{D} < 5{M} << 5{U})
    • 53444 (2-colorable, nice)
  • 552 (nice stuff!)
  • 642 (6{M} and 6{D})
  • 5{M}|5{D}61 (tricky, but nice)

5 balls

  • 5 MM is enough :)

One Hand

  • 60 Inward (most basic)
  • 60 Cascade, reverse cascade, columns
  • 8040 (hi-low var)
  • 80 (4 balls in one hand!)

Sync

3 balls

  • 312-sprung: (6x,2x)(2x,2x)(4,2x)*
  • 330-sprung: (6x,2x)(2x,6x)(0,2x)*

4 balls

  • Shower (6x,2x)
    • Hi-low: (8x,2x)(4x,2x)
    • Hi-mid-low: b17131 (sync version)
  • 3-sprung cascade: (6,4)|(6x,2x)*
  • 423-sprung: (6,4)|(8,2x)(2x,4)(6x,2x)* (NICE)
  • Box: (6,2x)(6,2x)*
    • Stacked Box: (6x,4)|(8,2x)(4,2x)*

Nice combinations

  • (6,4)(4x,2x)*
  • (6x,4x)(2x,4x)* (sync version of 75251)
  • (6x,4)(4,2x)* (box-like)
  • (6,4x)(2x,4)* (box-like)

5 balls

Base pattern here is (6x,4)* (transition with ~757 from 5 ball cascade).

From this you can go to the following:

  • Shower (8x,2x) - transition with (8x,6) to bring 4 balls in one side
  • (6x,4)(6x,4x)* (NICE, no transition required)
  • (6,4x)* (no transition required, sister pattern :)

Multiplex

Duplexes

3 balls

  • [43]1421, 3|[43]0521 (5 in) - color-coded
  • [43]5021 (5 out)
  • [54]1131, 3|[54]0141
  • 3[54]012

4 balls

  • 4[42]2, 5[21][22] (feels like 501), 6[22]2[21][32]
  • 3|[43]5521
  • [43]23 (423-like)
    • 3 MM variations
  • [43]14 (441-like)
    • [54]1622
    • 3|[54]6122
  • 6[43]142, 642+1[43]
  • 3|[54]21
    • 3|[54]2423
  • 4[54]502, 3[54]512
  • [54]1424, [54]1451
  • 3|[64]2521, [64]1621, 3|[64]6121
  • Multiplex shower: [75]15121

5 balls

  • 1up4up
  • 1up3up (the 1up crosses)
  • [54][22]2 (normal duplex)
    • Reverse
    • MM with [54] as the ‘down’ throw
  • 24[54] (Gattoplex)
  • [33][33]3 (Cascade)
  • [44][22]3 (423 Var)
  • [44][44]14[22] (441 Var)
  • 25[62] (Martin’s)

6 balls

  • [33] (Duplexes - Cascade)
  • [54][52]2 (552, multiplex version)
  • 2up4up (sync, async)
  • 3up (4,[44])*

Triplexes

5 balls

[44x4x]-base:

  • 22[43][22]3[345]5 (Denis Paumier from Siteswap DVD)
  • 24[22]3[345] (same hand => triplex, 4 and 3)
  • 25[22]2[345] (same hand => triplex and 5)

6 balls

  • ([444x],[22])(4x,[22])* (building up for the 7 ball version)
  • ~ [54]24[444x]262 (nice, complex one)

7 balls

  • ([444x],2)*

Train 7b Cascade

A 7 Balls training program! Warm-up with the 3 and 4 ball section, put more effort and time to the 5+ ball sections. You can also skip sections or mix them, e.g. start from the 5 ball section. A good advice is to work yourself up to 7 quickly and do multiple short sessions/attempts on 7 during one practice (so not just once in the end when you are most tired).

3 Balls (warm-up)

  • 3-cascade: play with dwell time, high throws (722+), 3up

4 Balls (more warm up)

  • 741, 714
  • 71 (shower), 5|7272712 (baby juggling)
  • 56|7707070 (snake)
    • 2 Variations: start with 3 in one hand and 1 in the other. Either throw the 3 first or the 1
  • 5|7770700 (3 and 1), 555|7077700 (1 and 3)

5 Balls

  • 5-cascade (endurance!) + play with dwell time (high throws)
  • 77722 (3up), 7777700 (5up)
  • 5|77272 (snake - tough)
  • Others: 744, 66|771

6 Balls

  • 7777770 (six 7’s)
  • 77772 (four 7’s)
  • Others: 75 (half-shower), 756

7 balls

  • 7b cascade