November 1, 2021
This week’s blog article focusses on thin condoms and why they differ from ‘regular condoms’. Over the past 10 years condom manufacturing technology has moved on drastically. Gone are the days where the thinnest condom you could get resembled a hollowed out car tyre!
Many popular brands have invested in R&D to develop their technology and have created their own thin condom type including Durex (Thin Feel), Mates (Ultra Thin), Trojan (Ultra Thin) and EXS (Air Thin).
So… what is all the fuss about….
Most ‘Regular’ condoms have a thickness of roughly 0.063mm – which in the grand scheme is still very thin – however some thin condoms can be up to 28% thinner by measuring in at around 0.045mm!
By wearing a thinner condom type, users can generally expect to retain more ‘feeling’ and experience a greater sensitivity in the desired region!
Ok, so now that we’ve examined the difference between regular and thin condoms as well as exploring the benefits it’s now important to understand how thin condoms are manufactured.
As you can imagine, a lot of this intel is kept as ‘trade secrets’, with all brands competing to have the thinnest condom. However, there are well known industry techniques that help produce thin condoms.
The most important ingredient is the latex itself. Specially compounding the latex can help develop a formulation suitable for the production of thin condoms. The most common condom types are produced from ‘natural latex’ however the formulation can be tweaked to manufacture different types of condom.
The next factor is the quality of the machinery. The more modern the technology the more up to date that it is and the better suited it may be for producing a thin condom type.
The final element is the speed in which the glass moulds are circulated through the dipping line. This is a key technique for either increasing or decreasing the thickness of the condoms. The slower the moulds go through the latex formulation – the thicker the condom type and vice versa.
However, no matter how thin the condom is, the most important thing is to always ensure the condom proudly displays the CE mark at minimum as this certifies the quality of the product and that it is fit for use.