# How do you wear your Bean Rubber Mocs?



## hardline_42

With all the rain we've been getting in the Northeast, my Bean Rubber Mocs have been getting a lot of use. I wear them for everything from walking the dogs in the field to walking to my office from the parking lot. I like to wear them with the tongues folded down and the super-secret moc lacing. I usually don't engage in those types of things (no pennies in my loafers or eastland knots on anything) but there's something downright impish about taking a shoe that the average person probably doesn't really "get" and make them that much more wild. Naturally, every other part of my wardrobe is of a serious nature when I wear them. So, how do you wear your mocs? Tongue up? Down? Laced behind the tongue?

_Here they are covered in grass seeds_


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## Jovan

I need to get a pair at some point. They, like other "trad" oddities I didn't like at first, are slowly growing on me. Specifically what serious stuff do you usually wear with yours?


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## TweedyDon

Maine Hunting Shoes for me.... I rather live in 'em!


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## hookem12387

I like the tongue down thing, but what's the secret lacing. I feel like my post count is high enough that you can tell me


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## hardline_42

Jovan said:


> I need to get a pair at some point. They, like other "trad" oddities I didn't like at first, are slowly growing on me. Specifically what serious stuff do you usually wear with yours?


I don't mean business suits. I just mean that I wear them as if they were a GTH item. No other "statement" pieces.


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## hardline_42

hookem12387 said:


> I like the tongue down thing, but what's the secret lacing. I feel like my post count is high enough that you can tell me


It's actually not a secret. At least, that's how they lace the display mocs at my local LLB. The rawhide laces on the mocs are annoyingly long, so you tie a starting knot in front of the tongue, then you pass the ends through the forward-most section of the 360* lacing on the opposite side. Then back to the front and you tie a standard shoelace knot. I wet form the tongue and laces all at once, so they stay tied forever.


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## Taken Aback

It's interesting that the mocs' rubber laces are too long, while the gumshoe's boot laces are too _short_.

That aside, I still love the look of the gumshoe over the moc, and look for excuses to wear them (I'll pray for rain after a while). 

Do any of you own both and prefer the moc?


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## Danny

I love the rubber mocs. I have worn them with the tongue up until this point. I may change my tune. I'll have to see how I feel next time I wear them.


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## inq89

I wear mine any chance I have. I actually look forward to rainy days sometimes haha. I wear them to class in a trad manner: OCBD, chinos, bean mocs sockless (summer) or wool socks (winter).


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## eagle2250

hardline_42 said:


> It's actually not a secret. At least, that's how they lace the display mocs at my local LLB. The rawhide laces on the mocs are annoyingly long, so you tie a starting knot in front of the tongue, then you pass the ends through the forward-most section of the 360* lacing on the opposite side. Then back to the front and you tie a standard shoelace knot. I wet form the tongue and laces all at once, so they stay tied forever.


Hardline: You cannot share those (kinds of) super-secret details with Hookem. That's an unauthorizes disclosure and (LOL) he's the guy with the Espadrilles...remember! Jovan is boderline suspect as well. :crazy:


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## hardline_42

Taken Aback said:


> Do any of you own both and prefer the moc?


I have both the gumshoe and the moc. For me, they serve a similar purposes under different circumstances. I usually wear my mocs sockless, in warm weather, when it's raining or the ground is wet (like morning dew on the grass, not just wet pavement). The easy-on/off nature of the mocs means that I wear them more often when I need to step out into the yard for any reason or make a quip trip to the supermarket, etc. I wear the gumshoes in cooler weather with socks when it's raining. The higher cut keeps my socks dry and the laces makes them fit more like shoes. The gumshoe is a more deliberate choice than the moc, which is more of a functional afterthought.


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## hardline_42

eagle2250 said:


> Hardline: You cannot share those (kinds of) super-secret details with Hookem. That's an unauthorizes disclosure and (LOL) he's the guy with the Espadrilles...remember! Jovan is boderline suspect as well. :crazy:


D'oh!


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## Larsd4

I wear them tongue-up, laces rolled noose-like into tassels. This is a borderline affectation I'm disliking more as I write it.


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## hardline_42

Lars, do you have a pic? The thought of rubber "tassel mocs" is intriguing.


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## absent_prof

Never seen these in Australia, so may have to get some. Can you "barrel knot" them, like I do with my boat shoes? I like the barrel knot because it challenges my masculinity...


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## TommyDawg

absent_prof said:


> Never seen these in Australia, so may have to get some. Can you "barrel knot" them, like I do with my boat shoes? I like the barrel knot because it challenges my masculinity...


 What's a barrel knot??
Tom


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## inq89

Was caught up in Irene yesterday and wore something very similar to this outfit pic I posted a while ago.


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## hardline_42

inq89 said:


> Was caught up in Irene yesterday and wore something very similar to this outfit pic I posted a while ago.


This is the exact outfit I wore yesterday, only with a blue OCBD under an LE rain shell (same color blue, too).


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## hardline_42

TommyDawg said:


> What's a barrel knot??
> Tom


I have a feeling he's referring to an Eastland knot.


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## absent_prof

hardline_42 said:


> I have a feeling he's referring to an Eastland knot.


Yep that's the one. I didn't know any other name than "barrels" for it, cheers.


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## DixieJD

It's funny y'all are getting all the rain w/Irene. Down here in New Orleans I feel like we haven't gotten a drop of real rain in awhile. Here's a picture of my mocs. I wear gumshoes once it's cold enough. I do an eastland knot. My wife says my mocs look like they belong to a 12 year old girl. C'est la vie.
https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/851/img0366h.jpg/


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## Larsd4

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## absent_prof

DixieJD said:


> It's funny y'all are getting all the rain w/Irene. Down here in New Orleans I feel like we haven't gotten a drop of real rain in awhile. Here's a picture of my mocs. I wear gumshoes once it's cold enough. I do an eastland knot. My wife says my mocs look like they belong to a 12 year old girl. C'est la vie.
> https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/851/img0366h.jpg/


Thumbs up on that. Look's great! I must get some...


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## hardline_42

Dixie and Lars, those are both great! It's like the rainy-day version of tassel mocs. I bet if you tied the laces over the folded tongue they would look like kiltie tassels. Is it a regional thing, or did you guys just think of that yourselves?


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## hardline_42

DixieJD said:


> It's funny y'all are getting all the rain w/Irene. Down here in New Orleans I feel like we haven't gotten a drop of real rain in awhile. Here's a picture of my mocs. I wear gumshoes once it's cold enough. I do an eastland knot. My wife says my mocs look like they belong to a 12 year old girl. C'est la vie.
> https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/851/img0366h.jpg/


Shoe trees?


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## eagle2250

DixieJD said:


> It's funny y'all are getting all the rain w/Irene. Down here in New Orleans I feel like we haven't gotten a drop of real rain in awhile. Here's a picture of my mocs. I wear gumshoes once it's cold enough. I do an eastland knot. My wife says my mocs look like they belong to a 12 year old girl. C'est la vie.
> https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/851/img0366h.jpg/


Not wishing to start a cyber-slapfest, but you should listen to your wife...a wise woman she is! Otherwise, if you truly must have the barrel knots, perhaps you should follow the example provided in the post #22 pic, offered by Larsd4.


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## Jovan

I'm sure _rubber_ mocs are in no danger of losing their shape, but it may be to get rid of smells and bacteria.


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## hardline_42

Jovan said:


> I'm sure _rubber_ mocs are in no danger of losing their shape, but it may be to get rid of smells and bacteria.


True, but they're open enough that I've never had trouble air-drying them. I just thought it was funny since there's so little leather on the mocs.


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## Jovan

Maybe these would be right for something like rubber mocs:


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## hardline_42

Jovan said:


> Maybe these would be right for something like rubber mocs:


It would probably work. I just use a Peet boot dryer if they get soaked. I already have it for my waders and hunting boots and it works really well.


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## Epaminondas

I have a pair of Gum Shoes and they seem a bit wide without heavy socks. Do you order your normal width for the rubber moc? I would think ordering them in a narrow fitting might help when wearing them without socks - any experience on this?


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## unmodern

Epaminondas said:


> I have a pair of Gum Shoes and they seem a bit wide without heavy socks. Do you order your normal width for the rubber moc? I would think ordering them in a narrow fitting might help when wearing them without socks - any experience on this?


Order your normal width, but size down 1 full size (or 1.5 if you're a half size). For my tall boots I sized down from 7.5D to 7 for wear with heavy socks, and the boots are still quite roomy. For rubber mocs, and I'd do the same for gumshoes, I sized down from 7.5D to women's 8W (which translates to a men's 6D) and they fit great.


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## hardline_42

Epaminondas said:


> I have a pair of Gum Shoes and they seem a bit wide without heavy socks. Do you order your normal width for the rubber moc? I would think ordering them in a narrow fitting might help when wearing them without socks - any experience on this?


I ordered my normal width, but I had to size way down. I'm squarely between an 8.5D and 9D and I had to get a size 7M (Bean's D).


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## bd79cc

DixieJD said:


> It's funny y'all are getting all the rain w/Irene. Down here in New Orleans I feel like we haven't gotten a drop of real rain in awhile. Here's a picture of my mocs. I wear gumshoes once it's cold enough. I do an eastland knot. My wife says my mocs look like they belong to a 12 year old girl. C'est la vie.
> https://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/851/img0366h.jpg/


I bought a pair of these at the L.L. Bean store in Dedham MA last weekend, and I'm still experimenting with how to tie them and whether to wear them tongue-up or tongue-down. I must say yours, DixieJD, have a most captivating appearance!


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## teamtc

Fall feels like it's here in mid-Michigan, so I recently dug my rubber mocs out of the back of the closet. Sadly, the thought had never really occurred to me to wear them during a warm summer rain. The plain realization that I've been in the dark all these years fills me with grief.

I've always worn mine straight-up - standard lacing, tongue upright - and I now feel like something of a square.

So, how does one go about getting that tongue to lay forward and flat like that? A full morning of poking at it has me damn near distraught.

~ TC


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## hardline_42

teamtc said:


> So, how does one go about getting that tongue to lay forward and flat like that? A full morning of poking at it has me damn near distraught.
> 
> ~ TC


Just use rubber bands, zip-ties, an ace bandage or any other means of securing the tongue in the folded position, run the leather under warm water until it's nice and soaked and set it aside to dry for 24 hours. Be advised, if you use rubber bands or zip-ties, you'll end up with a slight depression along the front of the tongue (visible in the first post). A means of securing the entire width of the tongue might avoid this (like an ace bandage or other wide strap). Make sure to post pics.


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## teamtc

Thanks, mate! I'm on it!


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## eagle2250

^^
Go Irish!  ROFALOL.


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## teamtc

Hah! Your Irish are going to need some bean mocs tomorrow night just to deal with all of the tears emanating from their sideline. I'm predicting an irish wake!

But seriously, enjoy the game --- should be a fun one!


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## eagle2250

^^
:biggrin: Woe is me, woe is me! My wife, another of you fire breathing Wolverine fans, keeps telling me the same thing. Catholic or not, Gawds gonna get ya for that. LOL. Look, I'll make you a deal...you can have the Irish if JoePa can "ride the Tide" tomorrow afternoon!


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## teamtc

:icon_smile_big:


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## eagle2250

^^
LOL...ouch!


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## Jovan

Does anyone not wear them with the tongue down or is that the only accepted "trad" way? :icon_study:


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## eagle2250

^^
Count me as one who wears the Bean mocs with the tongue up and laced with just a standard knot (as pld Papa Bean originally intended)! IMHO, folding the tongue forward (like a kilte) and adorning the laces with barrel knots at the ends is just about as foolish as my grandkids breaking down the heels of their sneakers because they get too lazy to put them on properly! :teacha:


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## hardline_42

Jovan said:


> Does anyone not wear them with the tongue down or is that the only accepted "trad" way? :icon_study:


I'm not sure whether it's "trad" or not but the tongue-down look is immortalized in the pages of the OPH. This is also how I saw them being worn when I was younger.


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## Jovan

I don't think it looks as good as with the tongue up, but whatever floats your boat. The OPH is little more than a satire book to me, not really a bible...

*flees before he REALLY gets it*


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## hardline_42

Jovan said:


> I don't think it looks as good as with the tongue up, but whatever floats your boat. The OPH is little more than a satire book to me, not really a bible...
> 
> *flees before he REALLY gets it*


I don't think anyone here takes it that seriously. Honestly, I think it may have developed as a convenience thing. It's much easier to slip them on and off quickly with the tongue down.


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## Jovan

Believe me, there are a few who have. 

I suppose it is convenient, but I'm starting to think that maybe, just maybe these and boat shoes should be put on and taken off as God (in this case, the original outdoorsmen and boaters) intended, by tying and untying like any other shoe.


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## hardline_42

Jovan said:


> Believe me, there are a few who have.
> 
> I suppose it is convenient, but I'm starting to think that maybe, just maybe these and boat shoes should be put on and taken off as God (in this case, the original outdoorsmen and boaters) intended, by tying and untying like any other shoe.


I'm gonna have to disagree with you on that one, J-money. I do tie and untie boat shoes because they're bluchers and actually bring together the two halves of the shoe for a tight fit over the instep. Canoe mocs, tassel mocs and the like have 360* lacing only. Unless you tie them tight enough to pucker the collar, you're not going to get a whole lot more snugness from the lacing.

As for the intentions of the original outdoorsmen, I don't think they'd wear the rubber mocs for anything more demanding than fishing from a lawn chair on a creek bank, and not a very steep one at that. On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you've ever had to take off a pair of 16" Maine Hunting Shoes (which have zero speed hooks) caked in frozen mud and snow with freezing cold fingers, you'll appreciate the easy on-off feature of the mocs :icon_smile:.


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## bd79cc

^I hate that you can't get Bean Boots or Maine Hunting Shoes with speed lacing. It used to be an option (choice of either rings or hooked studs) on the MHS not so long ago.

I'm wearing my Rubber Mocs tongue-up nowadays. I'm using the term "wearing" very loosely, since it's bone-dry outside, and I'm wearing my Rubber Mocs indoors only to break them in.


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## Epaminondas

bd79cc said:


> ^I hate that you can't get Bean Boots or Maine Hunting Shoes with speed lacing. It used to be an option (choice of either rings or hooked studs) on the MHS not so long ago.


On the regular MHS?? I don't think I've ever seen that as an option in the 30 or so years that I've been paying attention. In any case, with my 12" MHS, I never laced them up completely anyway - I always went about ankle high and then wrapped the laces around my ankle and knotted them in front - then, I just tucked my pants in the top.


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## hardline_42

^This works fine if you're just doing some light trudging through wet or slushy ground. The gusseted tongue keeps things protected. But if you're in any deep snow or need to walk over varying terrain (a challenge in itself with those slick chain tread soles) you gotta lace them up to the top.


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## Jovan

hardline_42 said:


> I'm gonna have to disagree with you on that one, J-money. I do tie and untie boat shoes because they're bluchers and actually bring together the two halves of the shoe for a tight fit over the instep. Canoe mocs, tassel mocs and the like have 360* lacing only. Unless you tie them tight enough to pucker the collar, you're not going to get a whole lot more snugness from the lacing.
> 
> As for the intentions of the original outdoorsmen, I don't think they'd wear the rubber mocs for anything more demanding than fishing from a lawn chair on a creek bank, and not a very steep one at that. On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you've ever had to take off a pair of 16" Maine Hunting Shoes (which have zero speed hooks) caked in frozen mud and snow with freezing cold fingers, you'll appreciate the easy on-off feature of the mocs :icon_smile:.


J-money? :crazy:

You make a fair point regarding 360 lacing only.


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## Fashionguy88

Most practical pair of shoes I own. Comes in handy on London's numerous rainy days. Check out the taller LL Bean Duck Boot version as well.


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## Taken Aback

Not to go _too_ OT, but, did anyone pick up the LLBS 6" waxed cotton boots? I'm still pining for the gumshoe of years ago, but keep wondering how the 6" would look on me.


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## bd79cc

I don't quite see how waxed cotton works as an upper for the MHS. Waxed cotton is lighter weight but no cooler than leather. It doesn't take much to waterproof the regular leather uppers of the MHS. And the leather's a lot more durable and structurally stable in that application. But maybe the waxed cotton does work well. Someone who owns a pair please lay it out for me.


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## hardline_42

I don't have a pair of the waxed cotton version. However, they do have some history with LLB prior to Signature. In 1969, LLB introduced the "Light Cruising Shoe" which was, essentially, the MHS with a waxed canvas upper. IMO, the only benefit the canvas version has over the leather is less weight. Waxed canvas lacks the structure and support that a leather upper would have. Anybody who's tried to put on a pair of Vietnam jungle boots can attest to the lack of support of a floppy canvas upper. That's not to say that they don't have a use, but I have no interest in them.


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## hardline_42

Taken Aback said:


> Not to go _too_ OT, but, did anyone pick up the LLBS 6" waxed cotton boots? I'm still pining for the gumshoe of years ago, but keep wondering how the 6" would look on me.


TA, any reason you want to go with the 6" boot? IME, it's the most awkward of all the MHS shaft heights.


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## Taken Aback

I'd rather have the gumshoe, but they discontinued them (I think they still have a women's moc, though). I'd rather no go full boot in this style.


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## hardline_42

Taken Aback said:


> I'd rather have the gumshoe, but they discontinued them (I think they still have a women's moc, though). I'd rather no go full boot in this style.


I still see them right here.


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## Taken Aback

The waxed cotton gumshoe (#TA53366) was discontinued a few years ago.


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## hardline_42

Taken Aback said:


> The waxed cotton gumshoe (#TA53366) was discontinued a few years ago.


Oh wow, I've never seen those. Thanks for posting.


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## Taken Aback

Hey, if you want to call LLB and request they bring it back, I'd appreciate the assist.

Still, I haven't seen a foot in a 6" version. Maybe I'd be happy with them.

</threadjack>


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## Jovan

Does anyone else want to campaign for it? I'll do it even though I have no personal interest.


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## hardline_42

If they're all made one at a time in Maine, I don't see why a batch can't be made up. I'm going to try to get them to put lace hooks on a 10" Thinsulate pair sometime in the future.


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## Taken Aback

Thanks for the offer. Whenever I place a phone order with LLB, or have need for a webchat, I end the call by mentioning these and dropping the item number. I'll mention lace hooks the next time around as well. That _would_ quicken getting the taller boots off after a long day in inclement weather, and be a nice option.

Speaking of campaigning: I'd also like a new run on their black watch blazer and rope and wood toggles on the duffel coats, but priorities first!


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