[Hammaduersnes]

A few things: I've noticed (and Robert confirms it theoretically) that most RTZ projections are best done around your area- that any RTZ projection that appears to be very far from where you are is actually an astral projection, and I tend to agree. So I do think that physical proximity has to do with the reliability of an RTZ projection, and I have personally gotten lost when trying to fly away and cross the ocean. Ended up needing guides to take me there.
Now, I have seen many techniques to go astral, (although I don't recall Robert saying that looking at your hands somehow transports you to the astral, that's a new one for me) so I'll just repeat them and list them to see if any seems easier than others:
1- Fly up in the air as fast as you can. I mean fast. When you end up in space, do one of these:
a-Look at the stars, pick one and fly there. You'll end up in an astral environment.
b-Look behind/under you, to where the earth should be. You may see an astral plane (such as the picture in Robert's book). Fly towards it, pick one of the cubes/squares on the grid, that's one.
2-Look around your room. See if there's any anomalies, like a door or window that shouldn't be there. Go through it. It's a portal.
3- Same as two, but look for vortexes/light tunnels and go into them. It's a 'wormhole' to the astral.
4-Go to a mirror and try to go through. If you get bounced, it may 'skip' you to another region in the RTZ, or to a virtual reality projection, or directly to the astral. It's hard to tell which you went to until you come back and analyze the experience.
5- This one isn't from RTZ to astral, but it's directly to the astral: Phasing. There's a 'how-to' thread in the OBE research & discussion subforum.