The Ridge Aluminum Wallet
Overview
I've owned The Ridge Aluminum - Black Wallet for over a year and can honestly say it has impressed me greatly. As one would expect, this metal wallet is very durable being that it is made out of aluminum. The flagship wallet produced by "The Ridge" varies in material, color, and even how the cash is held, but they all share some common features that make this wallet unique. All in all, despite its somewhat high price point and a few drawbacks, which I will discuss later on, I do recommend this wallet for people who like this rugged and minimalistic look.
I've owned The Ridge Aluminum - Black Wallet for over a year and can honestly say it has impressed me greatly. As one would expect, this metal wallet is very durable being that it is made out of aluminum. The flagship wallet produced by "The Ridge" varies in material, color, and even how the cash is held, but they all share some common features that make this wallet unique. All in all, despite its somewhat high price point and a few drawbacks, which I will discuss later on, I do recommend this wallet for people who like this rugged and minimalistic look.
Lifetime Warranty
There are two great non-physical things you get when you purchase this Ridge wallet. Firstly, The Ridge gives you 45 days to return the wallet if you don't like it, which is a really nice feature to have since I don't think they are sold in stores. Secondly, this wallet comes with a lifetime warranty. I'll start with saying that I haven't had a chance to use a their warranty on the wallet, but I have used a warranty on one of their bags and they shipped me a new one once I showed the defect, so I know they have quality customer service.
There are two great non-physical things you get when you purchase this Ridge wallet. Firstly, The Ridge gives you 45 days to return the wallet if you don't like it, which is a really nice feature to have since I don't think they are sold in stores. Secondly, this wallet comes with a lifetime warranty. I'll start with saying that I haven't had a chance to use a their warranty on the wallet, but I have used a warranty on one of their bags and they shipped me a new one once I showed the defect, so I know they have quality customer service.
Exterior
From the title of the product, it is clear that the wallet is made out of Aluminum. More particularly it is made out of 6061-T6 aluminum. If aluminum isn't your style, they also offer this wallet in Titanium and Carbon Fiber, costing $105 and $125, respectively. The design is simple, there are two metal plate assemblies that are held together by small screws, that "tied" together by a stretchy strap on 3 of the 4 sides. The aluminum plates, so all the cards inside of the wallet are RFID protected. For those unfamiliar with RFID, this basically means it is protected from a malicious person walking by with a scanner and stealing the information on your cards. As you can see in the picture, the paint on the plates does chip away over time. This wear is over more than a year and I often keep my metal keys in the same pocket as my wallet, which could be the cause of a lot of this. The only other issue I've had with the exterior besides losing some of the black finish is the screws that hold the assembly together. I recently noticed that I had a few tiny screws missing, which doesn't have large impacts on its performance. This can be prevented by tightening the screws monthly. If you don't do that, luckily they have provided a few spares or you can buy a set of them online for a few dollars, so it isn't a huge deal!
From the title of the product, it is clear that the wallet is made out of Aluminum. More particularly it is made out of 6061-T6 aluminum. If aluminum isn't your style, they also offer this wallet in Titanium and Carbon Fiber, costing $105 and $125, respectively. The design is simple, there are two metal plate assemblies that are held together by small screws, that "tied" together by a stretchy strap on 3 of the 4 sides. The aluminum plates, so all the cards inside of the wallet are RFID protected. For those unfamiliar with RFID, this basically means it is protected from a malicious person walking by with a scanner and stealing the information on your cards. As you can see in the picture, the paint on the plates does chip away over time. This wear is over more than a year and I often keep my metal keys in the same pocket as my wallet, which could be the cause of a lot of this. The only other issue I've had with the exterior besides losing some of the black finish is the screws that hold the assembly together. I recently noticed that I had a few tiny screws missing, which doesn't have large impacts on its performance. This can be prevented by tightening the screws monthly. If you don't do that, luckily they have provided a few spares or you can buy a set of them online for a few dollars, so it isn't a huge deal!
"Cash Strap"
Years ago I was gifted a money clip and used it for a few months, but one day I went to grab it and somehow all my cash had fallen out, so since then I have been skeptical on cash holders besides a traditional wallet. After over a year of using my Ridge wallet, the cash strap has retained the bills very well! Even when I try to knock the money out it holds tight. I believe there are three reasons why the cash strap performs so well:
Overall, I am a big fan of how the Cash Strap holds my money AND how it looks when there is some money in there. I do have a few complaints about the cash strap:
Years ago I was gifted a money clip and used it for a few months, but one day I went to grab it and somehow all my cash had fallen out, so since then I have been skeptical on cash holders besides a traditional wallet. After over a year of using my Ridge wallet, the cash strap has retained the bills very well! Even when I try to knock the money out it holds tight. I believe there are three reasons why the cash strap performs so well:
- The strap is very tight regardless of how many cards are in the actual wallet
- The back of the strap has "traction bubbles" that grip the bills
- The metal peace on the strap has fine corners that dig into the compressed bill
Overall, I am a big fan of how the Cash Strap holds my money AND how it looks when there is some money in there. I do have a few complaints about the cash strap:
- It attracts pocket lint (the whole strap does)
- I've had a few frayed parts of the strap come along and it probably need to eventually be replaced
- The Ridge Sells replacement straps for $7 - https://www.ridgewallet.com/collections/elastic/products/replacement-elastic-kit-black-screws
Card Fit
The overall card fit works very well! I typically run anywhere from 5-9 cards in my wallet on most days and when I take out all the cards and only have 1-2, the band elasticity still seems to perform well, so this is a very good sign. It did take we awhile at the beginning getting used to popping the cards in and out of the wallet. Other people I've talked to and myself have experience a "52 card pickup" moment or two, but with the thumb hole and some experience, these occurrences wane.
The overall card fit works very well! I typically run anywhere from 5-9 cards in my wallet on most days and when I take out all the cards and only have 1-2, the band elasticity still seems to perform well, so this is a very good sign. It did take we awhile at the beginning getting used to popping the cards in and out of the wallet. Other people I've talked to and myself have experience a "52 card pickup" moment or two, but with the thumb hole and some experience, these occurrences wane.
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Durability
Overall, this wallet is very durable when you compare it to traditional leather or cloth wallets. The metal does show signs of wear after a year of keys digging into it while in my pocket, but overall it still looks great. If you tighten the screws monthly and replace the strap every couple years, you will have a wallet that could last decades…. |
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Conclusion
At first, with a money strap and having my cards fly out of my wallet, I was a bit concerned, but with some practice removing the cards and success in holding my money, the wallet has grown on me. I always get compliments on it and it fits in my pocket much better than a traditional leather folding wallet. With the digitization of things this simple wallet is perfect for carrying around just the bare essentials and would recommend it to anyone!
At first, with a money strap and having my cards fly out of my wallet, I was a bit concerned, but with some practice removing the cards and success in holding my money, the wallet has grown on me. I always get compliments on it and it fits in my pocket much better than a traditional leather folding wallet. With the digitization of things this simple wallet is perfect for carrying around just the bare essentials and would recommend it to anyone!
Ridge Wallet YouTube Review
