KPDarb
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Another day at the office, salt mines, or whatever you want to call it but I am working on breaking-in and stretching my new Pinch Penny loafers. The reason I think I might need a wider size is that one can already see the sides bulging out in the toe box of both shoes. And that is exactly where my foot "flares" and why Ronnie from Moulded Shoe (aka Alden dealer with the most in-stock shoes on the Mofified last) said I am a perfect candidate for the Modified last. Too bad I visited him after I purchased these shoes.
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The imprint from my toes is over the stitching and up onto the sidewall of the shoes
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I wouldnt over scrutinize the imprints of your feet. I'm willing to bet that if you inspected all the members shoes, regardless of fit (good or bad), will have these markings. Your unlined CXL will stretch more than you expect especially a handsewn. Unless they're brutally uncomfortable after some wear and you're in pain, they're probably going to be fine. As a person with wht i refer too as flipper feet, unlined handsewn shoes rarely give me problems.
All in all, i'd say unless theyre painful to wear, keep wearing them and let the CXL settle. You might be surprised
Rancourt Clymer 2.0 from last week.
A bit torn on whether I’ll keep these or not. They look lovely, of course, but in my efforts to downsize Rancourt ranger mocs are now the only footwear I have more than 1 pair of. Sure the Clymer and Baxter Essex have plenty of different details, but the pattern and last are the same.
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Love these. Really struggling with whether to get some cool shell rangers or another pair of beefroll....
There are a number of things to consider, but I'm curious how long it may have been since you previously owned/wore a pair of genuine handsewn loafers, and were they an unlined leather with similar characteristics to Chromexcel (stuffed full of oils, waxes, greases)? I ask because I know you've worn a lot of welted shoes and it's possible you might be bringing welted calfskin fit comparisons/expectations to a handsewn cowhide conversation, where (respectfully) they don't necessarily apply...
Welted shoes are very structured and with a few exceptions the best fit is the initial fit because welted shoes don't do much stretching. Yes, they soften and form to the foot slowly over time, but there's not significant stretching. Some of that is the structure and foundation created from the construction. And likely most of your welted shoes are fully lined calfskin. Calfskin is a tighter grain structure, and when combined with a full lining it doesn't stretch much, so again you want those to fit almost perfect straight out of the box. Your unlined handsewn CXL loafer is not that animal (literally and figuratively). And the soles on your welted shoes are likely more rigid with less bounce than the sole on your Rancourt loafer.
Now consider handsewn construction - handsewns literally wrap around your foot, and by design you want them too. Consider the most simple moccasin you can imagine - it should fit you like a glove initially. It should fit the sides of your foot more closely than a welted shoe should, and your toes should come closer to the end of the shoe, especially if you want to avoid the potential slip of a loafer. You essentially purchased this simple shoe, but with a soft rubber sole attached to the bottom. And this shoe does not have welted structure, it has almost no structure comparatively, so your foot is going to slide and move wear it wants to. With the shape and lean of your particular foot, you'll slide over the edge, and that's normal.
Now, consider if you had a larger size. Your foot would be held in place even less, and so it would still slide to that outer edge - maybe more so. It'd change almost nothing except some less restrictive fit initially. But that would ultimately lead to more excessive stretching down the road, and less stability, which potentially causes more issues.
Lastly, you and I have basically the same foot. These are my Rancourt camp mocs (albeit in Buckaroo leather) that I've had about 10 years now (still the original sole!). I got them TTS and wore them comfortably for a little while until they stretched so much I had to add an insole. And they continued to stretch so much I had to add a thicker insole. And they continued to stretch so much further that I finally added a cushioned insole so thick (it was gifted to me) that I'd never been able to use it in any of my shoes previously. They now fit great with socks on... and are still sloppy barefoot. I've been considering a replacement pair at some point because these are getting damn worn now, but no way am I going TTS again. That being said, I don't think the CXL will stretch quite as much as the Buckaroo, but they will still stretch a fair amount.
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They just keep stretching...
Final thought - if your shoes are so damn tight that you couldn't dream of continuing to wear them, yes it's possible Rancourt made a mistake and used a smaller last but stamped them as the size you bought, but that happens almost never. As mentioned previously, you could have them stretched, you could also have Rancourt ease them out a little bit by placing a larger last (whatever size you think would be the improvement) into your shoes and letting them sit awhile, or live with them as your feet are going to stretch those shoes eventually to the size they need to be.
Good luck!
Such a great write up, Brett. Thanks for this!