[Youngster]

Nothing you guys don't know, but Bass Weejuns are awful. After 3 months of occasional wear they have not broken in. They have stretched out, however and now have become uncomfortably sloppy in fit. I even bought them a size small, and after all the pain, have just become near unwearable. Absolute garbage, and Bass should be absolutely ashamed!

 

[Joe Beamish]

There's a store near me that sells Weejuns, and I don't walk down there and buy a pair thanks to so many reports like yours. Though the price is tempting. I'll stick to SAS and J&M for reasonable (though not cheap) pennies.

 

[rojo]

Odd. I have a pair that I wore nearly every day, all through law school, starting 2006. I jokingly referred to them as my "walking shoes" because I always made sure to wear them on the days I did the 20 minute walk to my downtown club for lunch. They're still my most frequently worn shoes.

 

[Youngster]

I don't know why our pairs would be so different. My pair is made in El Salvador and is the shiny burgundy colored leather. I have not tried to color hack or any such thing. In fact, they are not really even at the point where they have needed polishing! I can think of no good reason why they should be such objectively bad shoes. And I note, these are not uncomfortable in comparison to my more expensive shoes- indeed they have performed much worse than offbrand shoes from places like shoe pavilion or Kohls. I say one more time, a completely unacceptable purchase.

 

[Reds & Tops]

I've got a pair that I thrifted, made in the US and brush off "cordovan" in color. I wear them constantly, and they're very comfortable. That said I wouldn't go Bronx to Battery in them, but comfortable none-the-less.

Maybe you got a bum pair? Give Bass a call.

 

[WillisGeigerFan]

"El Salvador" is why they are awful. What England is to India in shoe construction, India is to El Salvador.

 

[Youngster]

Now, I got them at an outlet, so is it possible to make a complaint about them or is that why I have such a bad pair? They were not seconds, and they were labeled as a standard pair that was simply on sale.
Regardless, does anyone have contact information for bass?

 

[Joe Beamish]

I'm assuming the USA pair are vintage. This would explain the difference in quality.

 

[Danny]

Yeah as we know they ceased making Bass shoes up in Maine around 1999 I believe. I have a couple pairs of the El Salvador ones and honestly I find them to be just fine. This might just be a case of fit issues. Sometimes shoes won't fit a certain shape foot no matter what size you get. I wear my 8.5's with no socks ALL the time and they are perfectly comfortable for me. I have had them for over 7 years and haven't even resoled them yet. They are definitely broken in. I also have some newer 9s for wear with socks.

 

[Gromson]

I got a pair just yesterday. (I'm actually wearing them now around the house to help break them in faster.) I went in a men's shop to have the sleeves on a jacket shortened and I saw them on special for $39. I thought it was a good price so I snapped them up.

I'm hopeful I'll have better luck with these than you did, but even if they suck, I'm guessing I can get $39 worth of wear from them.

 

[Ron_A]

FWIW, I've had a very, very tough time finding a pair of Weejuns that fit me well. (I've finally found a pair of Made in USA Weejuns that fit me okay -- and they're pretty darn comfortable.) While I'm not a big fan of the newer Weejuns, this may be more of a fit issue as someone suggested. When it comes to getting a proper fit, they're a very difficult shoe to figure out, in my experience.

Also, this may be a situation where you get what you pay for -- you aren't going to get an Alden LHS (or even Johnston & Murphy Ski-Moc) quality shoe for $40. I think that the modern Weejuns are an okay buy, for the price. (By the way, there are a lot of shoes made in El Salvador - including the current LL Bean mocs and bluchers -- not that that's a good thing, but they're not absolute junk.)

 

[Galt]

I have standard weejuns in burgundy, and the gilman version in brown. I wear one or the other almost everyday; size 11 seems to fit me perfect.

I know this is Blasphemy, but I would take my weejuns over the Alden LHS. This is all based on fit... the LHS was too tight in my instep. I'm hoping to re-invest in some point in a wider size in Alden to see if it remedies my problem. But for now... weejuns win.

 

[KennethB]

Sort of a tangential question: How do you size loafers? I bought some cheap Florsheim loafers that fit pretty well when I bought them. But, they've broken in so that they fit OK (just) with my thicker dress socks. But barefoot or with a thin sock (like Vicell), I slide around in them, heel flopping about.

Do you have to have two pair - one for wearing sockless? That seems silly.

 

[Kurt N]

Thinking to finally get a pair of penny loafers, I've been browsing around this site the last couple days. It seems like the cheaper makes, at least, go through three stages of fit: too tight, just right, and too loose, and you just better hope the middle stage lasts long enough to justify the purchase.

Maybe the higher-end brands have a better service life, but at this point I'm leery of penny loafers.

 

[The Louche]

I don't know why our pairs would be so different. My pair is made in El Salvador and is the shiny burgundy colored leather. I have not tried to color hack or any such thing. In fact, they are not really even at the point where they have needed polishing! I can think of no good reason why they should be such objectively bad shoes. And I note, these are not uncomfortable in comparison to my more expensive shoes- indeed they have performed much worse than offbrand shoes from places like shoe pavilion or Kohls. I say one more time, a completely unacceptable purchase.

Now, I got them at an outlet, so is it possible to make a complaint about them or is that why I have such a bad pair? They were not seconds, and they were labeled as a standard pair that was simply on sale.
Regardless, does anyone have contact information for bass?

There are a few different "grades" of shoe that Bass sells with Weejun branding. The ones that seem to be found at outlets do seem pretty bad. But don't write Weejuns off completely - there are a few recent models (the Gilman is one, there are others) that are decent shoes for the money. Models like the Gilman retail for about $130 at full price, but can easily be found for $75 or even less online; at that price they are a bargain for a "beater" penny. Bass also has a new, made in Maine, line of Weejun's that are the equal of AE/Alden quality. Prices on those, of course, are comparable to AE/Alden as well.

But yes, the outlet Weejuns seem like total rubbish and I wouldn't wear them. A great example of why the internet is so useful in finding bargains on clothes.

 

[AdamsSutherland]

Weejuns are an inexpensive shoe. I, as some others do and should, hold them to an entirely different standard than the LHS.

Youngster, while I understand your frustration, I'm just curious as to what you expected from a (to put safely) sub-$60 shoe. If they weren't a great fit from the start, I think it a little overly optimistic to think that Bass' junky corrected grain leather is going to stretch or retain shape according to your expectations. Additionally, many people have trouble getting a good fit with penny's.

Among the many things I've learned from this site, perhaps one of the most important is that high-quality shoes come at a high price.

On a slightly related note- my new non-CG pair of Leavitts are breaking in nicely after a few wearings.

 

[Joe Beamish]

^ And yet, interestingly, several people in this thread have reported a good experience with Weejuns. So I suppose the shoe is worth a try at $40

 

[ds23pallas]

There was a thread several months ago that discussed Weejuns, and variations in quality from shoe to shoe. Former blogger "The Weejun" chimed in with his own thoughts on the subject. I have a pair of the El Salvadore "Leavitt" model on today that I have had for about a year and a half. I got rid of the overly glossy shine with some oven cleaner and the colour is now a little bit red-ish, even brown-ish in natural light. They are very comfortable with or without socks. The soles and heels have lasted very well, I'd say better than my Alden Cape Cod loafers. I suppose I just got a good pair, somehow.

 

[AdamsSutherland]

Perhaps I should have added that I enjoy both pairs of my weejuns and my CG pair are still going fine after 2 years.

I think good experiences are the result of appropriate expectations and foot shape.

 

[Patrick06790]

Sort of a tangential question: How do you size loafers? I bought some cheap Florsheim loafers that fit pretty well when I bought them. But, they've broken in so that they fit OK (just) with my thicker dress socks. But barefoot or with a thin sock (like Vicell), I slide around in them, heel flopping about.

Do you have to have two pair - one for wearing sockless? That seems silly.

I don't do sockless very often, but I have several pairs of penny loafers - some I wear with thick socks, some thin.

In general I go down half a size to reduce slippage.