Meermin Mallorca Shoes

[Blastwice]

Hello, I'm looking for a new pair of boots for autumn and was thinking about the Meermin heritage shell cordovan boot: https://meermin.com/products/116210-burgundy-heritage-shell-cordovan-e

But I have some questions before I take the plunge. How come they are so cheap? From my experience, I've never seen a pair of shell boots under 500 dollars. What's the downside? Is the shell cordovan any good? Also, how is the Rod last? I have a pair of paraboot avignon, carmina in the detroit last, both in uk 8.5. Should I go for 8.5 in these as well?

If anyone has got any experience with these I would love some input! Thank you

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They are cheap because it's shell by an undisclosed tannery (not necessarily bad, but certainly not Horween Shell Cordovan) and because they are Meermin (meaning they will be solidly-made, but sometimes have imperfections that will bother people who are not used to/expecting them).

With Meermin you are typically getting less elegant lasts/patterns, stiffer construction details, and (at least in the case of shell) cheaper leather. Build quality is generally good keeping in mind they are Goodyear welted.

 

[Thin White Duke]

New to this thread and first post here.
Maiden Voyage for these Dark Cognac (in other words, Brown or as Grant Stone calls Maduro) Horween Shell Cordovan in UK13. They are a bit long but fit great at the ball of the feet so have to live with the length. Wouldn't want to go.down to UK 12.5.
Got Vibram rubber topy on the leather sole to prevent sliding on the carpet and also a necessity for tropical weather of Singapore.
Another pleasant surprise to find these in stock in the last Meermin Sale !!
(Sorry for the pics overload but you can guess that I am excited about these !!)
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The boots look so much better IMO with the straight bar lacing in the publicity pics than in that criss cross style you have in the pics taken when on your feet. You might also find that straight lacing will mitigate that mis-match you have in the alignment of the two sides of the eye-stays. YMMV.

 

[Davakint]

If someone is in need of a gorgeous set of chelsea boots in UK11.5, hit me up!

 

[shahtirthak]

The boots look so much better IMO with the straight bar lacing in the publicity pics than in that criss cross style you have in the pics taken when on your feet. You might also find that straight lacing will mitigate that mis-match you have in the alignment of the two sides of the eye-stays. YMMV.

Here you go! The facings are a bit too long and hence meet each other and try to overlap. I have not had a boot so far which closes like this.

 

[KarlHungus]

Green waxy commander in its element

 

[Zan-san]

Does anyone have experience on the new Negon last? I've few in HOK, rod (and eve as they say Rod is the same hok, it isnt) and in rois. The current MTO has made me itching for a bit more flashier shell boots as others that I've are more utilitarian.

 

[GuyLab]

Does anyone have experience on the new Negon last? I've few in HOK, rod (and eve as they say Rod is the same hok, it isnt) and in rois. The current MTO has made me itching for a bit more flashier shell boots as others that I've are more utilitarian.

Yeah as I own both hok and rod, the shape is the same, rod is just more snug.
Based on negon measurements, it is similar in length to hok, but it is wider

 

[iva80]

@GuyLab I have Hok in 7.5. The fit is good overall, but my wide-ish toes make it uncomfortable for my pinky toe. It gets squeezed/pinched just a little.

Meermin advertise Negon as wider and flatter is in the toe are. This sounds exactly what I would need considering my Hok experience.

Do you actually have shoes Negon last?
Can you share the measurements for both?

Thank you

 

[GuyLab]

@GuyLab I have Hok in 7.5. The fit is good overall, but my wide-ish toes make it uncomfortable for my pinky toe. It gets squeezed/pinched just a little.

Meermin advertise Negon as wider and flatter is in the toe are. This sounds exactly what I would need considering my Hok experience.

Do you actually have shoes Negon last?
Can you share the measurements for both?

Thank you

I do not own any Negon boots yet, but I plan to try them on soon.
I can share with you what I have for size 11, but they are metric measurements.
HOK:
Insole length:317.3 mm
Insole width: 103 mm
Ball girth: 266 mm

NEGON:
Insole length:317.3 mm
Insole width: 105 mm
Ball girth: 268 mm

You can find hok measurements directly on meermin's site when you go to the product description and check the last, however Negon's measurements are not yet available but they were given to me by Meermin. I really like the style of Negon boots but I'm on the opposite, with long narrow feet and I kinda struggle with lasts being on average a bit too wide for me, I then resort to 3/4 inserts to fill the boots a bit more.

 

[Zan-san]

Hi,

Got this reply from Meermin, their support is good as usual. Or that has been my experience.

It's a bit annoying to ask for these details for some lasts. Most are present in their page, but not all.

 

[MJDNL]

Hi guys, I just ordered my first pair of Meermins, also being my first pair of loafers. Although my feet are both sized almost exactly the same, the left loafer is much looser than the right.
I took a photo from the top showing the left shoe “entrance” to be much wider than the right. On the left side I experience slipping of my heel, whilst the right shoe fits like a glove.

Is this something common, or might this be a defect for which the loafers should be returned?

Thanks for any tips.

 

[manowar]

Hi guys, I just ordered my first pair of Meermins, also being my first pair of loafers. Although my feet are both sized almost exactly the same, the left loafer is much looser than the right.
I took a photo from the top showing the left shoe “entrance” to be much wider than the right. On the left side I experience slipping of my heel, whilst the right shoe fits like a glove.

Is this something common, or might this be a defect for which the loafers should be returned?

Thanks for any tips.

Looks like they're different sizes or they were stretched at some point. To double check your sizing you could try measuring the girth of each foot at the arch and see if there's a significant difference in width/volume between feet. A little bit of variation is normal. But again, I suspect the shoes are problematic.

 

[KarlHungus]

Factory seconds sale going on right now:

Meermin Shoes

Quality Goodyear Welted Footwear—Factory Seconds dedicated site.

seconds.meermin.com

 

[shahtirthak]

Factory seconds sale going on right now:

Meermin Shoes

Quality Goodyear Welted Footwear—Factory Seconds dedicated site.

seconds.meermin.com

Yes indeed it is. I ordered a Black Calf Chelsea in UK12.5 on Hiro last as my UK13 Hok last shell NST feels a bit too long and being a Chelsea I think it is a calculated risk to go half size smaller. Toes crossed that they fit ok.

 

[KarlHungus]

It took all my willpower not to buy anything 😂

Yes indeed it is. I ordered a Black Calf Chelsea in UK12.5 on Hiro last as my UK13 Hok last shell NST feels a bit too long and being a Chelsea I think it is a calculated risk to go half size smaller. Toes crossed that they fit ok.