Good Value for the Price.
* I’ve finally replaced my 25+ yr old tri-fold wallet with this Main Street Forge tri-fold wallet. This Main Street Forge wallet wasn’t exactly what I was looking for, but I’ve given up on finding exactly what I’m looking for (short of having one entirely custom made).
* I carry my wallet in my front pocket; and I use only one wallet all the time, including when I’m engaged in sports. So I need a wallet that is practical, durable, and comfortable. The tri-fold design is practical, but I appreciate that it is bulky. A wallet fabricated from full-grain leather is durable, but I appreciate that full-grain leather may require extensive break-in before it becomes comfortable.
* One great feature of this wallet is that it’s fabricated entirely from full-grain leather (with the exception of the stitching, of course). No vinyl ID window; no cloth liners. For a Made in USA product, this wallet is a good value, even at full list price. With discounts and promos, it’s a very good value.
* On better-grade wallets, the edges are typically turned (rolled) before stitching. On this wallet, they are not. Edges are left straight cut. I don’t know whether this will affect durability (I’ll find out). But this does affect initial comfort. Turned edges are softer (especially at corners) and require less break-in.
* There are some features that I knew in advance would not fully meet my needs. But I’ve come up with workarounds. I’ll discuss these, because they may be helpful to others.
* The billfold compartment has no divider. To be fair, wallets with billfold dividers appear to be extremely rare these days. But I was able to readily add my own. There are inexpensive placemats and shelf liners these days fabricated from woven plastic mesh. The material is thin, flexible, durable, and easily cut to size with scissors. I created a divider by cutting a rectangular piece of mesh and carefully trimming it for a snug fit inside the billfold compartment. The divider is held snugly at the two ends of the billfold compartment; it stays in place and does not roll up. In fact, I’ve added two such dividers to form 3 compartments (large bills, small bills, receipts and miscellaneous notes). Problem solved.
* This wallet has relatively few card slots; a total of only 5 (2 horizontal slots each on the left and right sides, 1 vertical slot in the middle). My old wallet has a total of 9 card slots. For some people, especially those who store various IDs on their phone, 5 slots may be enough. But not for me; I need enough slots for credit cards, ATM card, driver’s license, library card, insurance cards, discount cards, ....
* With some careful pre-conditioning, however, each slot can accommodate 2 cards. Out of the box, each slot was very tight, and it was difficult to insert a card. In each slot, I carefully inserted and removed a card about 6 times to break-in the slot. I then filled each slot with a card and let the wallet sit overnight to stretch out the slots and form thicker pockets. The next day, with 1 card already inserted in each slot, I carefully inserted and removed a second card about 6 times to further break-in the slots. I then filled each slot with a second card and let the wallet sit overnight. The next day, problem solved. Each slot could accommodate 2 cards, but could still hold only 1 card snugly if needed. This is not as convenient as an individual slot per card (I need to be more careful when removing a card to make sure that a second card doesn’t fall out); but this is a solution I can live with.
* To speed up break-in of the entire wallet, I filled the wallet, closed it, and then wrapped 6 wide rubber bands around it (3 horizontally, 3 vertically). I left it wrapped up overnight each night during break-in. I also pinched each of the 4 outer corners between my thumb and forefinger and wiggled them back and forth to break them in faster.
* After about a 2-week break-in period, I could ice skate (my primary sport) comfortably with my new wallet; no jabs into my thigh from sharp edges and corners. That’s not too bad an initial break-in period; and the wallet should continue to further mold to my body over time.
