All-Ett Thinnest Wallet Sport
The Worlds Thinnest Wallet by All-Ett.
Andrew Buskov
Initial Report: April 22, 2010 Field Report: July 25,2010 Long Term Report: September 17, 2010
Tester Biographical
Information:
Name: |
Andrew Buskov |
Age: |
35 |
Gender: |
Male |
Height: |
5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
Weight: |
216 lbs (98 kg) |
Email: |
Rescue(at)Corridor9(dot)net |
City, State Zip |
Madisonville, Kentucky
USA |
Backpacking
Background:
I’ve been backpacking for years now,
and have
slowly started
developing my ideal style. I’ve gotten my pack weight down to roughly
25 – 30
lbs (11.3 - 13.6 kg) before water, and am whittling it down every hike.
Day hiking is
nice, but
getting out over multiple nights is really what I enjoy. I like to take
my
time and enjoy the scenery as opposed to hiking hard. I also like being
comfortable and insist on an air mattress. I usually tent or hammock,
but stay in shelters when needed.
Product
Information:
Item: |
Thinnest Wallet: Sport
|
Manufacturer: |
All-Ett |
Website |
http://thinnestwallet.com |
Year of Manufacture: |
2010
|
MSRP: |
$14.95
|
Listed Weight: |
.1 oz (2.83 g) |
Actual Weight: |
.1 oz (2.81 g) |
Listed Dimensions: | 3 1/8” x 3 3/4” (7.94 x 9.53 cm) | Actual Dimensions: | 3 1/8” x 3 3/4” (7.95 x 9.52 cm) |
Product
Overview:
(From Manufacturer's documentation
& Website)
This is the World's Thinnest Sports Wallet. It is composed of spinnaker
cloth, also known as rip-stop nylon. Although it is as thin as paper,
it is incredibly strong and breathable. This breathability is supposed
to help prevent you from sweating while wearing. The cloth itself is
water resistant which may help to keep the contents dry, but is still a
washable material. As per the manufacturer the spinnaker cloth is 100%
recyclable. The manufacturer also states that no animal byproducts
were used in the manufacturing of the product and that the expected
lifetime of this wallet is between 3 to 5 years. However, it may last
much longer.
Initial Impressions:
The package arrived t o my door in complete condition, without any
missing pieces, and as expected. After opening the envelope, I found the
packaging for the All-Ett Thinnest Wallet Sport. You can see by the top
picture that the wallet is very small in relation to the packaging.
The initial weigh-in was necessary for testing purposes. It was
very hard to get a reliable weight due to the item being so light
weight. In its thickest spot, there are only 3 sheets of
spinnaker cloth worth of thickness; almost immeasurable.
The
sewing quality is spot-on. There isn't a single bad stitch in the whole
piece. The design is strikingly simple; it appears to be a single piece
of ripstop fabric that is cut in a way that it can be folded and sewn
into three different pocket areas. Two pocket areas are the size of
credit cards and each hold roughly 5 standard credit cards before
stretching the stitching. The third area is slightly larger than a
standard size US dollar bill.
In
all, general impressions are good. This wallet holds all cards that I
want it to hold, and even has a pocket for cash that I didn't have
before. It may not be a big wallet, may not have a multitude of
pockets, but it does everything that I need in a wallet. It lived up to
my expectations from everything I saw on the website. It is designed to
be small... and it does that quite well. I look forward to testing this
over the next few months.
Field Report: July 25,2010
Testing Locations:
I've had the opportunity to use the All-Ett Thinnest
Wallet Sport since the day that I received it. It has been my primary
wallet for almost three months now and has seen quite a lot of use.
I've worn it on hiking trips in western Kentucky in temperatures
hovering around 85 F (29 C), as well as vacation trips that I've taken
with my family to big cities where I really didn't want to pack around
a large wallet. My primary testing information actually comes from
wearing it at work where it is exposed to sweat and water on an almost
daily basis.
Performance:As
mentioned above, I've used this wallet every day for the past three
months. I've had the opportunity to use it with virtually all styles of
pants, in various pockets, and with various results. My primary
carrying position is on my right thigh in a cargo pocket. I've never
been one to wear a wallet on in my hip pocket simply due to the
fact that I don't like sitting on it while driving. Having such a thin
wallet to drop into the cargo pocket on my side has been quite an
experience. Being lighter than anything I've ever tried and also so
compact, I think I've found my primary wallet for life.
I've
never needed to carry much in the way of cards or cash. Just a few fit
nicely in the All-Ett Thinnest Wallet Sport. In fact, I've had up to 15
different cards in one side of the wallet without it stretching or
bulging. As it stands now though, I carry 5-7 cards on each side along
with a couple dollars or some receipts in the cast section. Even after
stuffing it with a few extra cards, the material held up real well and
didn't rip or stretch. All of the stitching remains intact also, and
there are still no hanging threads. It has been quite a durable wallet
so far.
I have not found this wallet to be as water resistant as
I would like, but the quick drying aspects of the wallet make up for
that fact. I would assume that the water resistance capabilities of the
fabric are easily overcome by the environment that I usually wear use
it in. On my days off, I don't have a problem with water. If I'm hot, I
generally go inside to cool off. Because of this the wallet stays nice
and dry. However, at the fire department, there are quite a few times
when going into a cooler environment is not an option. It is times like
this that the wallet really shines.
Though the cash, and
sometimes the receipts inside the wallet often get soaked with sweat or
water spray, the wallet continues to hold the contents in place nicely.
Because the cash and receipts are placed in an outside fold of the
wallet, they dry really quickly. I've never had a receipt so wet that I
couldn't easily read the printing on it. This is definitely a plus for
me as I often have to turn receipts into the department for purchase,
and having a blank or smudged receipt doesn't generally fair well. The
cards, even though they get a bit wet, don't really stick together so
this isn't too much of a problem either. One definite plus that I have
noticed is the lack of a nasty moldy smell. Due the frequency that my
wallet gets wet, other wallets that I have used with smell moldy after
a few months of use. This is not something that I've had to deal with
so far.
One thing that does occasionally get me is the fact that
it is at times easy to lose the contents. If I don't make an effort to
keep the wallet in a position where the cards are on top, it is easy to
lose them all over the floor. This has happened a couple of times when
I pulled the wallet out of my pocket and didn't have a good hold on it.
One entire side of cards will inevitably go sprawling over the
floor at the most inopportune time. It's something to get used to, but
not something that I feel is a major problem. I really couldn't
recommend a solution either due to the construction and light weight
characteristics.
In all, I've been very pleased with the All-Ett
Thinnest Wallet Sport. It has served me well and will continue to be my
primary wallet for years to come.
Long Term Report: September 17, 2010
Testing Locations:
I've continued to use the All-Ett Thinnest
Wallet Sport since the day that I received it. It has been my primary
wallet for almost 5 months now and has seen quite a lot of use. I've
worn it around town, at work, on vacations, and on the trail in a
recent trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. It has been used in
temperatures ranging from 30 F (0 C) to 115 F (46 C). It's been used in
rainy conditions as well as dry. It has even survived being soaked
completely a few times while at work.
Performance:I'm
quite glad that I had the opportunity to test the All-Ett Thinnest
Wallet Sport. Had I not tested this item, I can't say that I would have
forked over the suggested $14.95 for it. However, after testing it, I can
truly say that it's well worth the price in my opinion. If the one I'm
testing does eventually wear out I will not hesitate to purchase
another as a replacement.
The fabric is still in excellent
shape with no rips, tears, or blemishes at all. The pocket that I
usually carry my wallet in is lined with a metal zipper. Even after
scraping the wallet along that zipper for hundreds of times there is no
signs of wear at all. All threads remain intact and in place with no
hanging or lose threads to be found on the entire wallet. Even the
screen printing on the tag manufacturers tag is still in great shape.
I've
learned how to better hold the wallet so as to not throw the contents
on the ground. It hasn't been that much different than with my other
wallets. I just need to remember that I can't swing or throw the wallet
open else I risk losing the credit cards on one side. I recently
cleaned out a bunch of stuff that I wasn't using on a regular basis and
found that items fit a bit more loosely. However, this hasn't been a
problem to date.
There is still little to no feeling of the
wallet during wearing. As I wear it on my right thigh, it tends to sway
back and forth while walking. However, this doesn't feel bad, nor does
it feel uncomfortable in any way. Even during my hikes or while
scrambling up steep slopes I have yet to find it uncomfortable. In all
reality, I usually don't even think about it as I don't realize it's
there.
Water resistance is still the same and still not a
problem. I don't carry around too many paper documents that I need to
worry about having my stuff protected from water. Besides, I've yet to
carry a wallet that provided protection from the elements or being
dunked in water. If anything I'd have to say that having the All-Ett
Thinnest Wallet Sport makes it easier to retrieve my items after an
accidental wetting due to the fact that they aren't sticking to the
wallet like they would in a traditional leather wallet.
I can't
say enough about how happy I am to have tested this. I've never cared
for a thick wallet, but until now have never found a wallet that was
thin and served my needs. I can honestly say that I will never go back
to a traditional wallet for anything. I will likely use the All-Ett
Thinnest Wallet Sport for the rest of my life. I'd like to thank All-Ett
and BackpackGearTest.org for allowing me to test the All-Ett Thinnest
Wallet Sport and become a true convert.
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|