Thread: OPD?

Is there such a thing as "Obsessive Pass Disorder" because I think I may have it. Since I only class BBS shaves as "successful shaves" I am finding that even the slightest roughness just won't do.

My normal shave now is a minimum of 4 passes (WTG, ATG, XTG, and finally XTG the other way) - bearing in mind that each pass itself might involve going over the same spot more than once and at final inspection perhaps a few more strokes over rough spots. This is not very good for my skin and obviously increases the chances of irritation.

Is there anyone else who does this? Is my blade not sharp enough? Should I seek help now, before its too late?

Originally Posted by MisterZadir

Should I seek help now, before its too late?

I think you may want to sign up as an early adopter for Gillette, I mean you are their main target audience - "get 5 (soon 7) passes in a single stroke"

I don't know what to tell you as I'm in the group that subscribes to Alan's dictum 'little stubble is better than little irritation'.
You may benefit from a sharper razor, or from improvement to the skin stretching/angle maintenance - hard to tell where the problem is.

Hard to say if you blade is sharp enough or not without knowing more about it.

If you bought a razor from SRD that was honed by Lynn, it is certainly sharp enough.

If you bought a zeepk razor on ebay, it's certainly not sharp, and never will be.


It's most likely a matter of technique. My first week I kept thinking the same way as you, but eventually the good advice on these forums started to sink in, and I focused more on comfort than smoothness.

Once you start to focus on comfort, several things happen. You enjoy shaving more, you are more comfortable after your shave. Then you start to get more comfortable DURING your shave. Before you know it, you're getting BBS every time, unless you deliberately stop short. (I'll do only 2 passes for work, 1 if I'm in a hurry. When I'm shaving for a night out with my girlfriend, it's 3 passes, and BBS almost every time.)

In any case, if you focus on comfort and confidence, the BBS just follows naturally. All you get from focusing on getting a BBS shave is a raw face and razor bumps.

Originally Posted by MisterZadir

Is there such a thing as "Obsessive Pass Disorder" because I think I may have it. Since I only class BBS shaves as "successful shaves" I am finding that even the slightest roughness just won't do.

My normal shave now is a minimum of 4 passes (WTG, ATG, XTG, and finally XTG the other way) - bearing in mind that each pass itself might involve going over the same spot more than once and at final inspection perhaps a few more strokes over rough spots. This is not very good for my skin and obviously increases the chances of cutting.

Is there anyone else who does this? Is my blade not sharp enough? Should I seek help now, before its too late?

I say seek help! It is an easy trap to fall into though, until you are doing daily shaves and that razor burn starts to show up. That should fix your wagon!

Originally Posted by joke1176

I say seek help! It is an easy trap to fall into though, until you are doing daily shaves and that razor burn starts to show up. That should fix your wagon!

The razor burn was enough to make me start asking questions, but it took having a cheek covered in razor bumps (which I'd never had before from any kind of shaving) to make it really sink in.


Seriously, to the OP, and any other newbie who reads this, focus on COMFORT. Once you start to enjoy the process, and get comfortable with what you are doing, the ultra-smooth shaves will follow all on their own.



Shaving with a straight isn't about getting the hair off your face. If all you want to do is get the hair off, go buy a disposable, or just get some of that Nair Facial stuff that hairy faced women use.

Using a straight is about enjoying the shave, and getting the kind of smooth yet comfortable shave that only a straight can give.

Hmmm Gugi.... soon to be 7 passes you say... That sounds like it could be almost twice as smooth

One razor I have was honed professionally, and the other came from Dovo so I ended up honing it myself.

VeeDubb65 I demand both smoothness and comfort. I have been doing comfortable shaves a while but for real closeness I find upping the passes is all I can do.

Joke1176 I shave every other day so its not too bad.

The reason I asked about sharpness is that I've read that some guys on here get their razors shavette sharp and neither of mine were ever that sharp.

Hmm this is quite the dilemma. The sharper the razor, the lower the passes but the more likely cuts are.

I can only do two passes and a touch up here and there if I am to avoid irritation. It is frustrating to shave and not get close enough. As my technique improved that became less of an issue. Now it is only a problem if the razor isn't sharp enough. Sometimes I have to go back to the hones with one but as far as the closeness is concerned I always remember that tomorrow is another shave.

Originally Posted by MisterZadir

Hmmm Gugi.... soon to be 7 passes you say... That sounds like it could be almost twice as smooth

You don't say you use single swipe with a Gillette, do you? I think the premise with these is that you reduce the number of passes your hand does while while maintaining the total number of passes the steel does... Skin grows back afterall, at least in most cases

Originally Posted by MisterZadir

The reason I asked about sharpness is that I've read that some guys on here get their razors shavette sharp and neither of mine were ever that sharp.

Hmm, I tried using a shavette few times just to try out and I don't think it was 'sharper', but it was not nearly as enjoyable for sure. I think it's the really thin DE blade and the whole thing kind of feels flimsy which probably makes my angles not quite right.

I haven't noticed an increase in cuts related to razor sharpness though, actually I have, but it's the opposite dependence than your graph. The few times I've nicked myself is usually due to pushing it with a razor that is not too sharp.

And lastly my honing results in different razors being differently sharp. They're all shaving but some are definitely sharper. And some are definitely smoother. And the best ones are extremely smooth while being very sharp.

My advice would be to work on your technique for another 2 months and if you don't think it works get one of the best shaving razors out there and have it professionally honed. I guess from the currently available ones I'd say get a friodur. Unfortunately if you want smaller than 7/8 you probably have to check ebay and the classifieds for a vintage one, but it shouldn't take more than 2 weeks to secure one (you'll have to be prepared to pay a "new dovo" prices, which I think shouldn't be a big problem since you already have done so).
However, since you seem impatient, perhaps that's not a very good option, so get the razor now. It most certainly can be shavette-level sharp and really smooth. That would most certainly eliminate the razor sharpness question and you'll either be in the same situation but know it's not the razor, or you'll have solved the problem

I completely understand that you demand smoothness AND comfort. What I'm saying is that there are 3 ways to work towards that, focus on comfort, focus on smoothness, or focus on both.

If you focus on both, you will be trying to think and do too much while shaving, leaving you with a shave that isn't comfortable OR smooth.

If you focus on closeness, you will tear your face to shreds making unnecessary passes, and IMO, razor bumps and razor burn do not count as a smooth shave. So, again, you will end up with a shave that isn't comfortable OR smooth.

On the other hand, if you focus all of your efforts at comfort, starting with excellent beard/face prep, and continuing with gentle but consistent pressure, and good angles, and a solid scything stroke to minimize nicks, burn and bumps, you will start out with shaves that are comfortable but not so smooth. That's already an improvement over either of the other methods.

As your personal comfort level and skill grows, the closeness will come, and you'll have exactly what you're looking for, closeness AND comfort.

You cannot get that by making 5-7 passes. It's not possible. Likewise, if you view everything as a continuum of closeness vs. comfort, you'll always be making compromises.

Most of us have come into shaving with a straight as adults, with adult beards. Think back to when you were in puberty and just started shaving. You had light fuzz on you upper lip, that eventually spread to you chin, and then everywhere else.

Back when everybody shaved with a straight, you would have started learning to use one at the fuzzy-lip stage, and had plenty of time to learn what you were doing before your beard got tough and full. You also would have started out on the areas that we grown men find to be the most challenging, (upper lip and chin) but the hair would have been so soft, and the skin so much tighter that it wasn't challenging at all.

We're all trying to squeeze what would have been years of practice on a slowly developing peach fuzz into a matter of days or weeks.

Some guys just need more passes. I've been shaving since I was thirteen years old and my beard is a tough one. To get a smooth shave in one-two passes would be mission impossible. I usually do WTG, WTG, ATG and then a pass with water only lightly over the bits left over.