I have read this forum for a while and just got around to joining. I tried shaving with a straight razor about 20 years ago and it did not work out too well so I just kind of gave up. There was little interest and no support at the time. Even older relatives had little info as they used safety razors when they were young. Most of the opinions I got were negative, some people remembered their fathers using them and said they were dangerous, hard to use and are obsolete for that reason. My dad used a straight razor as a teenager in Europe during the war and said that many guys went back to using them then since it was hard to find safety razor blades in those days. He was also baffled by my interest in these razors and does not understand why anyone would use one out of choice...
So why am I interested in straight razors? I like them because they are "green" (environmentally friendly) and also because I love nostalgia. I watch silent movies and collect antiques so I enjoy shaving this way since it is a link with the past.
I have 5 straight razors in my collection and would like to buy more. I just bought a Norton hone and also have 2 old barber hones. I am now working on my honing skills which do seem to be improving.
I hope that in time, I will become an expert at this kind of shaving but I do have to limit it to my days off for the time being since it is more time-consuming that using my Sensor razor.