fit advice on new loafers
After getting advice here, I ended up ordering my first pair of loafers from Rancourt way back in July, and they arrived today. My Brannock size is about 8.7EE, and I got 8EE loafers (their size guide gave me 8E, I went wider). But I'm not that happy with the fit and I'm considering returning them:
1. The main problem is that my toes are squeezed too much together. I don't know if I'd call it pain, but particularly on one side, it's quite uncomfortable. I don't want to wear it on that foot at all much less for hours. I have large toes with my outer two not being that much smaller than the middle ones, which is hard to fit into a sizing schema. However, this discomfort might just be how conventional leather shoes are not being foot shaped, I'm not used to wearing them - nowadays, I wear boots and sneakers sized a half size or more up. Do I have to just get used to this? Or decide not to wear leather shoes.
2. The heels are quite loose, they slip halfway or more out of the shoe when I walk - while wearing American Trench socks, I'd otherwise wear no-shows I assume. Is this normal? Would I be able to do something about this with inserts on the side? Note: This is despite the heel width being D on their EE shoes. So I have narrow or at least not wide heels.
3. They unexpectedly are on the long side, there's more than my thumb's width in front of my big toe. Which I've heard of being fine for boots but idk about loafers. This doesn't cause them to move lengthwise because they are quite snug at the ball of my feet, so perhaps a non-issue. Btw this suggests sizing up is not an option.
If I decide I don't want these or any that fit similarly, this doesn't bode well for me to be able to ever get loafers (or various other leather shoes) in the future. Allen Edmonds' widest size for their current loafers, EEE, didn't fit me at all!
Don't know if pictures will help but here some are, including showing heel slippage.
19 Replies
for the 800 last, half down from brannock is usually a sockless fit.
1. you should have no pain sitting around not walking.
2. that's expected from new loafers, the sole needs to break in. if you can lift your foot straight up off the ground without the heel popping off due to gravity I find that's a good indicator that it'll be fine after break in.
3. unless it becomes dangerous to walk in, toe spacing is generally a bad indicator of fit.
Okay, I'm giving them another try this morning.
I tried going sockless briefly, no change to the toe width situation and they slip off my heel more.
There's nothing on the Rancourt site about considering socks when picking loafers, and I measured as noticeably smaller than 8 and E width on their chart. And the next larger sizes, 8.5 and even 9 will not be any wider, they'll just be longer. Which I don't think will do anything. This is true for Allen Edmonds too.
I guess the main problem is that my left toes are being angled too much towards the inside, towards my big toe. And I'm starting to think they're a little too tight at the ball of my feet as well, pushing that part of my foot up in the middle. All true while sitting down/standing. This suggests I'd need an EEE or wider pair (Rancourt don't make EEE, Alden don't anymore either).
For heels, I'm seeing contradictory advice - there's post saying they'll only get wider, not snugger. (I'm leaning towards the width being a deal breaker making this irrelevant though.)
@LeisurelyLoafing @awburkey any advice?
I'm thinking of returning these, and giving up on loafers for now or maybe for good.
Go with your gut - Rancourt loafers will stretch but the last didn’t work for me. I know it’s a big jump in price, but I found Alden’s LHS to be a great fit for my wide foot with a high instep
Grant stone also sells wides
Thanks...
I don't think there are any options at all, setting price aside:
- Alden's models that are recommended for wide feet don't go above E on their site or with what's on eBay, no EEE for any model rn
- I don't know how wide Grant Stone wide is but I'm guessing it's not extremely wide
- Again, I might I need more than EEE and wider toes
It might be time for me to do a thread to ask for a new direction to go in since a lot of styles I like are out of reach 💔
Alden does E in the LHS at least if not wider. I’m a 10E brannock and was swimming in the wide LHS. 10.5D is a perfect fit for me.
The Shoe Mart
Alden 986 Leisure Handsewn - Color 8 Shell Cordovan
Order the Alden 986 from The Shoe Mart. We carry the Alden 986 Cordovan crafted with premium materials for maximum comfort and durability. Shop the Alden 986 Color 8 Shell at The Shoe Mart.
Okay maybe I'll try those - probably EE - once I feel I can spend that much
I wonder if any square toe shoes would help with this... probably not
Hysterical how they are also a good for my for my narrow, low volume, low instep feet
In C width
And then there’s the Aberdeen last which fits no one
Haha I just got my first pair of aberdeens. Half size up from van, same width. There’s a touch of heel slip but honestly pretty damn good otherwise
I guess those Rancourt weltlines were not the 800 last but 114. They think the 800 might work. However, they don't have many loafers in the 800 right now, just odd colors. And nothing in my size even for pre-order.
I'm suddenly a lot more able to do this so I might just go for an Alden LHS - they don't have EE so if the E doesn't fit that'll be getting returned too; I'll try contacting The Alden Shop first
Do you have any idea what length should I go with for the Van last if I get it?
On the one hand
- people say to size half down on the last guide
- I'm less than a 9 so 8.5 is less than half down
On the other
- I'll be wearing (thin) socks
- you sized up, is that since they're flexible?
I contacted them, didn't get an answer on this question though I can ask again. Of course if I order I can exchange it, but I don't want to do this multiple times.
I honestly find Van kinda tough to fit well. The unlined versions you can get away with a lot
What exactly is tough about the fit?
I got true to my sneaker size (10.5D)/ half up from my brannock (10E).
It’s a somewhat forgiving last but it tends to be lower volume at the midfoot to keep a snug fit. I found that the 10 crushed the top of my foot
Okay I probably don't have that problem so I guess I can try 9
van at 0.5 down from brannock fits well for me with thin socks/no socks. Both unlined suede and lined shell. Low instep foot
Shoe Mart, Alden Shop SF, anyone else I can find don't have Alden Van last loafers in EE or up in my size (or nearby sizes, they do in cordovan for other sizes)
So it's a matter of whether E works, and between shell cordovan color 8, burgundy, and brown suede........ I think I'll go with burgundy
If I have only one pair for a few years I don't want them to be suede, burgundy isn't my first choice but I do like it
You could call up Alden dc and SF
Could also see what’s on eBay
eBay is looking bad! I've had an alert for Alden loafers for months maybe a year now (for presumably the wrong size but I'd get notified of listings in nearby sizes). There are pairs of LHS 9E in a suede color I don't want, and don't want to get nonreturnable until I know my size. There's a lot more in the other lasts.
I've already contacted Alden SF, I don't think the DC store has more but I can call tomorrow