WALLET STUFF

Some time back, when I was flush with cash (we're talking almost a year ago), I went a little nuts on buying stuff for myself.

2011 was a depressing, ugly year and we all have our little ways of dealing with depression. One of my ways is buying stuff that catches my eye.

Somewhere on the Internet, I saw the Toner Machine Technologies wallet reviewed.

It came in aluminum or delrin plastic. It purported to block RFID signals (not really something I need, but I like to honor the gods of paranoia, where possible) and had all kinds of neat extras. It advertised a compass in the middle, a glass-breaker on one end, some tweezers, a toothpick, and a little pen. Further it advertised a sharp-ish striking edge for "those situations".

My inner-geek howled "I WANT ONE!"

Their site seems a bit wonky for taking orders so I actually mailed in a check. After a while, I called them up to follow-up and make sure they got my old-fashioned order. The very pleasant customer service rep advised me they hit a bit of a production snag and their wallets were delayed.

Long story short, I cancelled the order and checked in with them from time-to-time to see if they were back in production. When they had a shipping ETA, I renewed the order.

I'm guessing I made some kind of impression with my persistence. By this point, I really couldn't afford the wallet purchase as I was prepping for the holidaze and I really didn't need it, but I was somewhat obsessed. This was my Holy Grail for 2011. It became that itch I couldn't scratch. I was determined to see if I could get such a creature.

Wait, I promised to make the long story short, didn't I? Bah. Okay. By this point they were/are only selling the delrin wallets (I'd originally wanted an aluminum one, but they were not available for order at the time). There was another unforeseen delay in the delrin wallet order so they upgraded me to an aluminum one and it arrived shortly thereafter (I guess there were a few left in stock).

After all this time, I'd sort of forgotten why I was so determined to get the thing. I'd gone with CountyComm's Traveler RFID wallet for my needs.

Then I got the TMT Wallet and I remembered.

Oh this thing is a joy!

It's a solid little thing. It's like a Swiss Army Wallet! I ought to include pictures someday. It feels like it's going to outlast civilization and I believe the claims that it's water-tight. It comes with all kinds of specification information and has a fair amount of storage space for cards, cash, and what-have-you.

My Traveler RFID wallet has more storage space, but that's only because the thing is made of ripstop nylon that has a bit of stretch-and-give.

The TMT wallet feels like it could stop a bullet (I will never test this theory willingly). It's got removable clips within for cards and cash storage in addition to the other advertised features.

I stick with the Traveler wallet for EDC, simply because it holds the ridiculous number of cards and crap I stuff in my wallet as well as my little Eon Extreme Floodlight.

I like to switch to the TMT when I go out and don't need all the cards related to driving (insurance, AAA, etc.). Plus I just like the variety, 'cause I'm a dork.

But I'm a dork with cool stuff.

The TMT wallet is pretty bulky for "normal" people, but EDC types might find it holds appeal. I'm certainly glad I went through all the trouble to get one.