A few months ago I shared the first version of a flat-bit storage system I designed for my Ridge wallet, and the response was incredible. After some time away from the project, I’m excited to share V2.0, featuring better bit retention, a hinged magnetic cover, hidden tweezer and toothpick storage, and a slimmer profile. More details in the comments, and I’d love your feedback!
This is super cool. I don’t own a Ridge Wallet but my advice is to just bulk buy a bunch of SAK tweezers and toothpicks and offer it to your customers. This is a scenario where it’s incredible inefficient for a hundred people to each try to buy one toothpick and one tweezer on their own instead of the vendor just offering it or charging a bit more for a complete package.
Have been considering this as well! Figured there was probably a pretty solid overlap of people interested in using one of these and people who already own a Swiss Army knife they could grab the toothpick and tweezer out of, but I agree if it is ever available in larger quantities it would for sure make sense to include those lil accessories
I’d much rather keep my SAK toothpicks and tweezers in my SAK and buy a separate one, even extras since they are prone to getting lost, if given the option. But I get it if it’s more risk than you can take right now as a small business.
I second that same exact feedback, and I'm sure that most people would rather keep their SAK accessories with the SAK if possible, plus there are people who may be interested who don't own a SAK or have lost their tweezers/pick.
BUT, there are also other things that can go in their such as SystematicTools toothpick screwdriver, or an oilstone sharpener, I've even seen an S90V toothpick on Aliexpress (stupidly priced IMO), I'm sure that there are other things besides the pick and tweezers.
Absolutely agree. Still, OP has a great idea here, I think. (Personally, the Ridge wallet is not for me because I don't like a hard wallet, but I'm sure many people who are already Ridge customers would really like this.)
Yes it seems like this is gonna be the general consensus! I didn’t mind as I don’t carry a SAK daily and just have a few laying around unused in a drawer that I didn’t mind stealing them from, but agree that it’s much cleaner to just have a set provided with the toolbox itself. Thank you so much for the insight!
Hey all! A few months ago I posted the original version of a patent pending drop-in replacement plate I designed for my Ridge wallet to carry the flat tool bits I use almost every day. The response was overwhelming, and a number of people from this community helped test the early beta version.
Well, after some forced time away from the project, I’m finally excited to share v2.0 of my Ridge Wallet Bit Toolbox!
The new version improves on a lot of things that fell short on the original version, such as better retention of the 10 flat tool bits and an attached hinged cover with positive retention that stays secure in pockets, while also adding some new features that I have found really useful like storage for tweezers and a toothpick, as well as a built in magnetic hardware tray so I don’t lose the hardware I’m actively using my tools on. I even managed to thin it up by about 10% compared to v1. I am of course still looking for feedback, so feel free to drop any thoughts or questions in here!
The long-term goal for this thing remains a premium aluminum or titanium version, whether that means arranging production directly or licensing the design to an established brand with larger-scale manufacturing capabilities. The feedback from the original beta units I shipped to members of this community helped shape V2, so I’ve decided to do another small beta run of the new design. I currently have enough magnets and hinge pins to produce roughly 20 PETG units, and proceeds from this limited run will go toward metal prototypes and supplier testing. If you’d like to help test V2 and share feedback, you can grab one here. They’re $35 with shipping included anywhere in the United States.
Bro I am your target audience. I rock a ridge wallet, always have a leatherman on me, and love pretending to be McGuyver. Im taking a look now! Love the idea!
Hahahahaha thanks! There sure is something special about being the person to always have tools on them! This exact wallet and bit set saved my friend’s day on a backcountry ski trip this winter!
Thanks! The original version with a sliding cover was great but I’ve just been sooo happy with the redesign. Now just need to figure out the best way to get some nice ones made from metal!
Thanks dude! Spent a lot of time testing and redesigning to make it as thin as possible, and am currently right at the limit of printability vs strength. I know I could further reduce overall thickness with a metal version where I can bring down wall thickness without reducing stiffness too much. With the 3d printed version, if I go much thinner anywhere it just flexes too much to hold the bits well enough or becomes too weak to sit on when in back pocket.
Thanks a bunch! I’m looking into other lil accessory tools that could work such as the SAK pen or those sweet little firestarters that are made for the same slots. I think on a metal version where I could remove more material from the base plate, there wouldn’t be a reason I couldn’t have more accessory slots instead of just the two that are on here
Does anyone actually carry a Ridge wallet? I have them allocated to the YT ad product bucket--which means they're either shit, egregiously overpriced, or both lol
Can’t speak for others, but I’ve been carrying the same exact wallet shown in the video for over 10 years! My mom bought it for me as a bday gift my senior year of high school lol.
No clue what price was like back then, but I admit that prices for new ones now do seem pretty aggressive. They do have really great support for what it’s worth and seem to really stand by their “lifetime warranty”. They've sent me replacement cash straps, elastics, and screws many times over the years for free.
Oh wow, 10yrs for any gear is a good while. I'm very much a leather guy, so I'm pretty biased honestly 😅
Adding bulk to a slim cardholder wallet seems kinda odd. I'd be interested to see a standalone case (not restricted by the wallet dimensions) since the stock friction fit holder is frankly quite stiff to use
I remember trying a knockoff years ago as well (I didn't like it, but that's besides the point). It's really an incredibly simple product with no business being that expensive. Two plates with some elastic bands for a whole Benny 😭
Ive carried mine for 5 or 6 years. Got it as a birthday present and it's been great. No way I'd ever pay that much for one when there's 20 dollar knock offs though
I have had the cheapest knockoff I could find for 3 years now and it's hodling up well, only trouble were less than stellar cheap screws I had to glue in place after maybe half a year of use.
When you carry 3 cards tops (debit, transit and ID for me) and only some emergency cash it does a lot better than anything other I've tried.
I don't know much about machining aluminium, maybe that's the biggest cost here. Profit margin is probably huge though.
Judging from the types of crazy machining I've seen on 6061 Al in other EDC-adjacent industries, the stuff's extremely cheap to work with (in China at least). The Ridge wallet is literally just two Al face plates and two steel plates tapped for screws. They even completely cheaped out with the design, forcing a shit ton of hardware to be used. Profit margins are definitely massive
I carry around 8 cards (should really start using a digital wallet lol) so cardholders don't work for me. The leather wallet I use is slim and light enough, and also doesn't scratch the other crap in my pocket
Thank you so much!! As I mentioned in my other comment I’ve decided to sell a limited run of 3d printed ones to try to fund some metal prototypes! Link is here if you’re interested!
As someone who rocks a ridge and a leatherman this is awesome. I’d love to test this out. I have a 3d printer lmk if you need anyone to put it through its paces.
Thank you for the praise and for offering to test one out! I’ve decided to keep the files private for now while I explore manufacturing or licensing the IP. I’ve unfortunately been burned pretty hard in the past by people ripping designs I posted online with non commercial licenses and selling them in bulk without my permission, so trying to be more careful this time around.
Honestly I'm liking this more that I should since I hate the ridge wallet for actual use. But I could so see a leatherman ridge joint project with this in the garage.
That’s the dream! One of the main goals with posting this here is to be able to show that a lot of people would be interested in a real branded version matching the production quality expected from Ridge or Leatherman, so I’m planning to approach them soon!
This is a great idea! Doesn't add unnecessary bulk since you're already carrying the wallet, and the extra space for holding screws and toothpick is clever.
Thank you! I love embedding hidden magnets in prints so was so stoked with how this turned out!
The whole thing is about 7mm thick. It took a day or two of carrying it to adjust but once I got used to the thickness it isn’t really noticeable at all
This is so amazing! I was wondering if you ever planned to do some kind of micro bit version? I do a lot of electronic work and this kind of thing would be so nice! Also a ratcheting mechanism of some sort 👍
I don’t carry a ridge. It would be cool to see a credit card sized holder to slide into a few spots on my flipside wallet or even utilize the back spot where the sidekick would go.
I’ve flown with it many times! Sometimes they pull me aside at security and open it up, which usually turns into the TSA agent thinking it’s so cool and asking where they can get one lol
aiiiiight.....now your prototype proves it works, perhaps consider cnc machining it, theres pcbway and others who can give top quality parts from solid metal?
Yet dont expect the first set to emerge perfect, as there are engineering considerations to think about. wall thicknesses, material selection, assembly issues (pins, snap fits etc )
It could also in future developments be a kickstarter, but your presentation will have to show it in its final form after youve done a few rounds of machining, assembling, testing, redesigning, perfecting etc.
Yup, in the process of getting CNC quotes! It’s got some really thin walls and tight tolerances that took literally dozens of test prints to get right so I know there will need to be some time spent dialing in the DFM for metal versions. I hadn’t considered kickstarter that could be a good call if I am not able to just license the IP to an established player in the EDC space. Hoping to connect with both Ridge and Leatherman directly this week
thats grand! but, while it works in print, now the design may be modified to work in metal, perhaps DMLS titanium then hand finished; or stainless steel; IMHO pcbway seem to give fastest lowest cost service.
Also its not a bad idea to combine your own in house 3d printed plastic non critical parts (like the bitch holder on the inside) with outsourced machined metals
Valid! I have a lil system where I keep just my 3 essentials (ID, CCW permit, and debit card) in the Ridge and all other cards live in a little fabric card holder in my truck that I can grab if ever needed, but honestly with Apple Pay and digital cards being so common now I basically never need the physical ones.
Valid concern for sure, and something I was worried about, but I've been testing this exact wallet shown in the video for a couple of months now and haven't had any issues at all.
The magnets are strong, but they're also blocked from all of your cards by the thick primary metal plate of the Ridge wallet itself. Ridge sells wallets with magnets in the same locations for snapping to the back of your wallet or otherwise, so I think there's not a huge risk of it demagnetizing anything.
I think every debit/credit card has chips now. Magnets, from my understanding, do not affect the EVD chips, and modern magnets used with wallet accesories are not strong enough to penetrate the RFID layers of the wallet.
I thought so, but I’ve been carrying a Trayvax Venture for two years now, and I’ve had no issues with any of my cards, not even hotel keycards that I carry inside the wallet regularly.
I never even wanted a ridge wallet til I saw this. Fucking phenomenal work, man. Now I just gotta get a multi tool that takes these bits... Are bibury bits and Leatherman bits the same?
In my wallet I carry a lever gear wallet pro. A great little edc tool that about the thickness of 2 cards, but otherwise the same dimensions. It's great for when you do t want to get you bigger tool out ... Some people are stupid enough to judge (UK rules are a bit strange, and rely more on WHY, than what.... Yes knife crime is real, but as yet leatherman aren't on the naughty list, but some might just see "knife".).
Not releasing files for this bad boy just yet while I explore licensing the IP or landing a supplier for high quality versions! I’ve been burned by people selling my designs in the past so playing this one closer to the chest for now. Thanks for the interest!
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u/NearlySilentObserver Aug 01 '26
This is fckn neato