RANCOURT & Co. Shoes - Made in Maine

[MattBernier]

@wdahab I'm curious, because I have scant experience with moc toed shoes, except a pair of boat shoes that are only for dry summer weather, why do you consider them inappropriate for winter wear?

 

[dddrees]

Custom Caramel Cordovan Beefroll Penny Loafers.

The left shoe is a 1/2 size smaller and I decided to go with the Montello Tempest Sole.






The family is growing and with additions from Quoddy and OSB I think it's safe to say it's going to be a no sneaker summer.

 

[Bakes11771]

The family is growing and with additions from Quoddy and OSB I think it's safe to say it's going to be a no sneaker summer.

Since you own shoes from all 3, how do they compare?

I'm sure that they are all great (blah blah blah), but give us your highly objective opinion about quality. Who makes the best hand-sewns? Or are they all 3 exactly equal, as some folks would probably want to say.

(And don't worry, if you don't think that Rancourt wins, we can handle it and are willing to accept it.)

 

[wdahab]



@wdahab I'm curious, because I have scant experience with moc toed shoes, except a pair of boat shoes that are only for dry summer weather, why do you consider them inappropriate for winter wear?

They are totally appropriate looks wise, (well not boat shoes, those should never be worn with socks and/or in the winter) just not utilitarian. They tend to be less warm and the toe-stitches are much more difficult (if not impossible) to make watertight with LP or Sno-Seal. But, again, where I am, and with my lifestyle, I'm much more likely to encounter risks of wet feet, so I need shoes that I can be sure won't risk my feet getting wet and cold. That said, they are great for getting wet in seasons where you don't mind your feet getting wet. Hence why boat shoes are great in the summer, if they get wet they aren't ruined.

That said, I don't have experience with the moc-toed boots that Rancourt makes. I just no I wouldn't want to be wearing my ranger mocs outside on a day like today, my feet would be freezing.

 

[dddrees]

Since you own shoes from all 3, how do they compare?

I'm sure that they are all great (blah blah blah), but give us your highly objective opinion about quality. Who makes the best hand-sewns? Or are they all 3 exactly equal, as some folks would probably want to say.

(And don't worry, if you don't think that Rancourt wins, we can handle it and are willing to accept it.)

Quality wise I would say they are all equal.

Fit. All three brands work well for me although Rancourt is the only one to offer a Made to Fit program that I am aware of.

Design or style wise I'd say I don't care for the way Qouddy's look and feel as much as the other two. Something about the way their shoes are constructed. Their shoes are much looser with a lot less structure to them. I would say that there wasn't that much difference between Rancourt and OSB.

Range of options. I would say without a doubt Rancourt wins here. Although the other two maybe able to provide custom options Rancourt has set the standard. It's just so much easier to order a wider range of different options from them. With their RTW, and MTO programs they already provide more samples of products that they can make than the other two depict on their website or even possibly offer. Their Custom tool takes these initial offerings to another level.

 

[MattBernier]

@wdahab: That's interesting, that they're colder. The water makes sense, but the temperature difference is unexpected. I wonder why? I'll experience this in person soon enough, I suppose.

@dddrees: Oh, wow. I can't wait for those to develop the rolling hills look of worn cordovan. They look super snazzy.

 

[dddrees]

@wdahab: That's interesting, that they're colder. The water makes sense, but the temperature difference is unexpected. I wonder why? I'll experience this in person soon enough, I suppose.

@dddrees: Oh, wow. I can't wait for those to develop the rolling hills look of worn cordovan. They look super snazzy.

Thank you sir.

 

[cathpah]

Just picked up the dark olive CXL beefrolls that Portland Dry Goods is stocking as one of their stocked "custom" makeups. Dustin, at PDG, is forever friendly and incredibly knowledgable, and he was the one who put this design together...so hats off to him. They're probably the best looking loafer I've ever seen, and the Lactae Hevea sole is absolutely perfect for these...comfortable as hell, but the heel keeps it more formal than a standard crepe sole (wedge). For Made-in-Maine handsewns, I own Quoddys, OSBs, and now Rancourts, and they're all beautiful in their own right, but there's something special about this dark olive CXL. Just barely green--almost like a darker version of Natural CXL with that unique greenish/greyish hue--so they're incredibly versatile. I'm in love.

 

[eljlakers]

dddrees,

Those penny loafers are killer. Love the color, love the sole. Great choices. I'm envious!

 

[dddrees]

dddrees,

Those penny loafers are killer. Love the color, love the sole. Great choices. I'm envious!

Thank you.

This is the second shoe I've ordered with the Montello Tempest Sole. I like the bit of leather look it adds while getting the benefit of the rubber sole. I was either going to get the Natural Cxl or Caramel Cordovan. However I figured if I went for the Cxl I would always lust for Caramel Cordovan.

 

[eljlakers]

I'm working my way up to their shell offerings. Immersing myself in the joy of CXL first!

 

[dddrees]

I'm working my way up to their shell offerings. Immersing myself in the joy of CXL first!

Whether it be Shell or CXL they're great shoes.

 

[MoneyWellSpent]

The issue of Rancourt's insole materials seems to come up a lot in various online forums, and I wanted to chip in on that discussion with a perhaps different perspective. As many of you are probably aware, Rancourt's insoles are texon, a compressed cotton fiber board used in sneakers, hiking boots, and work boots. They wrap it in leather and add some padding. The insoles are replaced during each recrafting, since the insoles have to be stitched through to resole the shoes. The two complaints I hear leveled against using texon are longevity, which the recrafting process makes moot, and durability. It's on this last point that I feel like materials snobs really go off the deep end with fantasies about what they're going to do to their shoes.

As I mentioned, Texon insoles are used, in non-replacable form, in backpacking boots and work boots. Chippewa uses them for damn near everything, Red Wing uses them in many models, (and Poron in many more), and on and on. Now, I've worn boots made with either, and I do prefer leather. Leather conforms to the foot differently. But these guys are buying LOAFERS, not work boots. And they don't bat an eye at cork filled leather insoles on shoes like Aldens, despite cork not being even remotely durable, and also needing replacing. Within two years, my feet compacted through the cork of my perfect fitting Aldens so badly that they needed inserts. (I was walking in them a bit too much.) With the Rancourts, you get the feel of leather on your foot, a cheaper price, and no sacrifice in the longevity of the shoe.

Is leather better? Hell yeah. And I'd love to see them offer it, just as a luxury option. But if you get your shoes resoled, you know what they're gonna do with those nice leather insoles? Throw them in the trash, because they replace them. I'm really glad that they go all out with their stitching (waxed horse hair), leather, cordovan, and soles, and yet keep the cost pretty accessible to people by omitting a luxury unnecessary to the shoe's actually lasting longer.

I mostly just feel like...Okay, you know the kind of guy who carries a $200 tactical pen for self defense, but can't walk a flight of stairs without being winded? People do that with shoes a lot. If you are jumping out of planes to fight fires, yes, you need White's boots with Kevlar stitching and yadda yadda. If you fancy going for strolls? WITH PUDDLES, even? Ranger moccs will probably cover it.

Good perspective there, I agree.

Besides, most of us rotate shoes and wear them for style.

tactical pen? What's that? Wait. I don't want to know...

Agree here too. Once you get to a certain level of construction and quality I think you've met or exceeded the average wearer's daily needs. Of course we all like to be able to talk about what we could do with our gear. Mostly though we don't do those things.

I completely agree with the basic points of this, and knowing that they replace the insoles at each wear certainly levels the playing field for all practical intents and purposes on shoes and boots such as these. I would still feel differently if they didn't have a policy of replacing the insoles, however. The fact that they do is what levels the playing field, and most don't. That's one of the things that makes Rancourt shoes worth their price, in my opinion. The reason I feel this way is because I enjoy having shoes that last decades. It is true that other boots/shoes designed to take heavy abuse use Texon insoles, but the fact that they are designed to take such abuse makes them predisposed to more frequent replacement by most people (certainly not all of course). I don't expect shoes that are made for and subjected to true abuse to last long enough for the insoles to be a deciding factor in their lifespan.

The abuse that hiking/hunting/work boots receive (if they are truly used) destroys them from multiple fronts. My hunting boots get submerged in water and thick mud up to my shins every time I wear them. They get scraped against tree trunks when climbing with a climbing tree stand. They get ripped at by green briar thorns. They don't end up in the trash bin because their insoles were made of Texon instead of leather. During certain seasons, it isn't practical for me to completely clean and condition them after each wear. If you are camping or hunting for a week straight, you probably aren't going to sit by the campfire every night and clean/condition your boots following the day's events. You also probably aren't rotating them. If you are a construction worker, you probably don't have the time to clean off the stuff they are exposed to day in and day out (wet concrete, saw dust, dry wall and grout powders, etc. The leathers take a beating such that the insole isn't the highest of worries.

However, when shoes/boots are worn regularly (more than just a pair that is part of a dozens of shoes in a collection) for many many years, they undergo a "slow-burn" which eventually rots them from the inside out, provided they are properly cared for on the outside. That is a different type of wear altogether than the type I just mentioned above, and the quality of the materials that the shoe is made from will play a major and very different role in that shoe's lifespan. Higher quality materials resist "slow-burn" wear and tear much better. The simple fact remains that Texon is lower quality than leather for a reason, and thus, likely won't last as long. While I think it is an interesting question to contemplate whether they would need to have their insoles replaced at each resoling if they were using leather instead of Texon (because shoe construction/materials is a hobby of mine), I realize that for most it is a somewhat futile and fruitless thought process. But, I assure you, Rancourt replaces them at each resoling for a reason.

The point remains. The fact that they automatically replace the insoles at each resoling means that they can last as long as a pair made from the best leather insoles, all else being equal.

 

[FrankCowperwood]



Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

I completely agree with the basic points of this, and knowing that they replace the insoles at each wear certainly levels the playing field for all practical intents and purposes on shoes and boots such as these.  I would still feel differently if they didn't have a policy of replacing the insoles, however.  The fact that they do is what levels the playing field, and most don't.  That's one of the things that makes Rancourt shoes worth their price, in my opinion.  The reason I feel this way is because I enjoy having shoes that last decades.  It is true that other boots/shoes designed to take heavy abuse use Texon insoles, but the fact that they are designed to take such abuse makes them predisposed to more frequent replacement by most people (certainly not all of course).  I don't expect shoes that are made for and subjected to true abuse to last long enough for the insoles to be a deciding factor in their lifespan. 

The abuse that hiking/hunting/work boots receive (if they are truly used) destroys them from multiple fronts. My hunting boots get submerged in water and thick mud up to my shins every time I wear them.  They get scraped against tree trunks when climbing with a climbing tree stand.  They get ripped at by green briar thorns.  They don't end up in the trash bin because their insoles were made of Texon instead of leather.  During certain seasons, it isn't practical for me to completely clean and condition them after each wear.  If you are camping or hunting for a week straight, you probably aren't going to sit by the campfire every night and clean/condition your boots following the day's events.  You also probably aren't rotating them.  If you are a construction worker, you probably don't have the time to clean off the stuff they are exposed to day in and day out (wet concrete, saw dust, dry wall and grout powders, etc.  The leathers take a beating such that the insole isn't the highest of worries. 

However, when shoes/boots are worn regularly (more than just a pair that is part of a dozens of shoes in a collection) for many many years, they undergo a "slow-burn" which eventually rots them from the inside out, provided they are properly cared for on the outside.  That is a different type of wear altogether than the type I just mentioned above, and the quality of the materials that the shoe is made from will play a major and very different role in that shoe's lifespan.  Higher quality materials resist "slow-burn" wear and tear much better.  The simple fact remains that Texon is lower quality than leather for a reason, and thus, likely won't last as long.  While I think it is an interesting question to contemplate whether they would need to have their insoles replaced at each resoling if they were using leather instead of Texon (because shoe construction/materials is a hobby of mine), I realize that for most it is a somewhat futile and fruitless thought process.  But, I assure you, Rancourt replaces them at each resoling for a reason.

The point remains.  The fact that they automatically replace the insoles at each resoling means that they can last as long as a pair made from the best leather insoles, all else being equal.   

Good points all.

I haven't read back through this recent discussion, but I recall that the construction of Rancourt's shoes requires that they replace the insole when resoling (because it's stitched to the outsole?) I may not remember this point correctly. But if that's the case, then perhaps it makes more sense to work with a material that's less costly for something that's far from a permanent part of the shoe.

Looking forward to getting my handsewn Rancourts on again soon!

 

[GooseG]



Just picked up the dark olive CXL beefrolls that Portland Dry Goods is stocking as one of their stocked "custom" makeups. Dustin, at PDG, is forever friendly and incredibly knowledgable, and he was the one who put this design together...so hats off to him. They're probably the best looking loafer I've ever seen, and the Lactae Hevea sole is absolutely perfect for these...comfortable as hell, but the heel keeps it more formal than a standard crepe sole (wedge). For Made-in-Maine handsewns, I own Quoddys, OSBs, and now Rancourts, and they're all beautiful in their own right, but there's something special about this dark olive CXL. Just barely green--almost like a darker version of Natural CXL with that unique greenish/greyish hue--so they're incredibly versatile. I'm in love.

Those are gorgeous. I might do a summer makeup like that, just on a Ranger Moc. Would you say sizing's about the same between those models?