Early evolution of the Earth–Moon system with a fast-spinning Earth

•This paper reexamines the Cuk and Stewart (2012) scenario forthe formation of the Moon, but with an actual constant Q tide.•This paper finds that the evection resonance studied by Cuk and Stewart (2012) removes too much angular momentum.•This paper finds a new dynamical phenomenon, a limit cycle, that may be more promising for explaining the angular momentum of the Earth-Moon system than the mechanism proposed by Cuk and Stewart (2012).