Moc Talk: Sperry Camp Mocs

Like many of you I have been scanning my closet to find any holes (and not moth holes this week!) in my warm weather wardrobe. Overall my closet is in good shape, but my shoe line up could use some help. My Sperry Topsiders are falling apart and my L.L. Bean Signature mocs don’t fit me sans socks the way that I had hoped.
Sperry Camp MocsDuring this exercise I found a pair of Sperry’s Gold Cup Authentic Original 1-Eye Boat Shoe online. While they call it a boat shoe us Trad’s would call it a camp moc. What I liked about this shoe is that I knew that Sperry shoes fit me well sock-less, it featured premium leather, and I snagged a pair for under $100. They retail for $159.95.

There are things that I don’t love about the shoe. The shape of Sperry’s camp moc is a little off. The tongue is a little wider and the toe box looks a little elongated. Basically they look like a boat shoe/camp moc hybrid, but lean more towards the moc side. They also feature more branding than I care for which is none, but from afar it is not noticeable. I can live with both of these things since the fits is so good.

I will have more to report as I wear them in over the spring and summer, but as of know I think that they were a good buy. The fit is good, they are lightweight which is perfect for going sock-less, and the quality is at least one full step above standard Sperry products. If Bean camp mocs don’t fit you well and Rancourt’s are too rich for your blood these may be worth a look.

oxford cloth button down
Jerrod Swanton is a simple man interested in simple, classic, and traditional style.

6 Comments on "Moc Talk: Sperry Camp Mocs"

  1. Grey Flannels says:

    Could you let us know what’s wrong with the fit of the L.L. Bean Signature mocs ?
    Thanks.

  2. oxford cloth button down says:

    Grey Flannels – It has less to do with L.L. Bean mocs and more to do with my own feet. I can wear them with socks comfortably. Without socks they are a little too big. Combined this with their heft and sporting them sans socks is a challenge. The kicker is that they rub against my ankle bone.

  3. .weston.pecos. says:

    As a young boy, I wore Docksiders everywhere. My father still wears them pretty much everywhere. In the 1980’s I abandoned Docksiders for LL Bean Blucher mocs which I wore, pretty much everywhere including to work until about the year 2000. I still wear Bluchers around the house, in the backyard, etc, but prefer firmly laced up shoes or sneakers for when I am away from home (I firmly believe that the ability of a man to run, quickly, and not lose one’s footwear or trip in the process is mandatory in today’s crime and terrorist-laden world). Anyway, what I wanted to say was that as someone who has lived in LL Bean-sourced footwear, I have found that whenever I get a new pair of pretty much anything from them, I need to take a small scalpel and gently scrape away the rough spots inside the shoes that are created by the stitching, the cut of the leather, etc. Once that is done, and I do mean “gently scrape” their shoes tend to be as comfortable to wear on day number one as they are at year 5 or year 10. Not “cut”, not “slice”, not even really scrape so much as “smooth over”. I do it enough that I have a special “scalpel for new LL Bean shoes” that lives in my sock drawer.

  4. Addison DeWitt says:

    After a bout with plantar fasciitis several years, which i successfully self-treated, I started wearing off-the-shelf insoles in all my shoes. I mostly wear slip-ons (bluchers, camp mocs, Alden/BB tassels, Cole-Hahn horse bits and Weejuns). The insoles help with both support and fit. I would have the same problem you have with camp mocs were it not for the insoles. And no further PF issues. BTW, I power walk every day for exercise and have more robust insoles in my New Balance shoes. For my street shoes I like PROFOOT Custom Insoles with Vita-Foam, which you can order off Amazon. The PROFOOTs are are good quality at a good price point. If they get a little smelly, you can run them through the clothes washer. Hope this helps.

  5. .weston.pecos. says:

    I use the super feet insoles for preventing plantar fasciitis. Usually I use the blue ones in most of my shoes, but for the LL Bean blutchers I use the black ones which are less deep.

  6. andrew friedman says:

    i wore and wore out boat shoes in my youth. the two eye version with the white sole. today, i opt for sperry’s gold cup asv boat shoes – easier to walk around in them. i don’t think the traction is quite as good, and the soles wear a little more quickly. they are very comfortable for me, socks or sockless, and they are durable – good leather.

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