Next up, we've got another more unknown brand called Moral Code. Again, viewers
wanted us to review them. I've got that Brayson model which is a penny loafer
that cost $170. P: Okay, my model is called the Holden, it's in
a color they call Cognac which as you can see is sort of a tan color.
It's a Derby shoe, it's wing-tipped, it's got broguing and this one retails for
$170. R: Okay, so what do you think, first impressions when you've got the
shoe? P: Right. Well, I thought generally, I wasn't super enthused about these; If I'm
to be honest. Yeah, some of the models on the Moral Code website are a little bit
more fashion-forward, they're kind of a more modern brand so I tried to find
something that was a bit more classically inspired, I settled on this
wingtip Derby. I don't know, I'm not crazy about quite how the broguing looks on
these just whether it's the size of the holes themselves... R: yeah, they're quite big
right like, huge holes and there's no medallion. P: Right and I thought that was a
little bit odd. Definitely, it'll make the shoe unique but I think the lack of
the medallion there, it just it does seem like something is missing. R: yeah no, I
agree with you there. It's also the last is kind of funny it's round, there's quite
a bit in the toe box. I thought that the Brayson I got was a much more kind of
classically-inspired loafer. The funny thing was it was advertised as not
your Grandpa's loafer but if I look at those I mean they have round lasts, you know.
The leather looks very like, very shiny and thicker like, I think a grandpa would
wear this loafer, right? P: I think that is probably a very apt description. The
finishes of both of these, yours especially, with how shiny they are but I
think with mine too the impression I got is that however they finished the
leather, it just ended up on first sight kind of
looking a little bit cheap to me, frankly. R: and I mean this shoes, it's Goodyear
welted but it's made in India, right? So I mean, they have lots of cows and stuff
there so but the tannery is maybe not up to snuff compared to like you know
Italian, English or German or French tanneries and frankly it's kind of made
to look like almost like a shell cordovan, right, also in terms of the
color? But the leather is really stiff. It's supposed to be a calf leather but
it's just treated so heavily it looks like coated, like you can't really see
defined pores as you can see on let's say, a Meermin, for example, which is also
burgundy. It's a nice comparison so you had definitely kind of a ding on the
leather in my book. I mean, yours doesn't seem to be yes. P: No, it's not some finished
in the same way and I think it will as I least tested it preliminary, it did stand
up to creasing a bit more but it seems like you've already got a fair amount of
creasing on the top of yours here. R: Absolutely. That's the thing of you have a
very stiff leather, it's much more like and if it's coated it's much more likely
to get visible creases very quickly. Like patent leather, so it's hard to not
get creases.It's just not possible. P: mm-hmm R: yeah, and you know on the website,
they call it like premium calf skin; Looking at this, I can definitely say
it's not premium calf skin, right? P: I think that's fair, yep. R: so what about
workmanship, what do you think? P: well I didn't really see any grievous errors in
terms of the stitching, at least. Everything seemed to be fairly
consistent there. R: Same with me. It's all good like here in the back, the stitching --
it's all very neat. I mean, you're broguing there's seems all very kind of centered
in a way it's not off or anything. P: All very uniform but at the same time
you know, some of the leather that was chosen for the different parts of
the shoe there is, you know, right out of the box here, there's already some
scuffing that I'm seeing with it and some areas of slight blemishing or color
variants. So even right from out of the box there were some of those
things that I noticed as well. R: Got it. Maybe like a little quality control issue. P: mm-hmm
R: Okay, so the sizing I got I mean a ten and a half and that's plenty big. They're
roomy, the heel almost too much in the left one, but just
looking at them, looking at leather out of the box I felt like this is gonna be
an uncomfortable shoe and it turned to be more comfortable that I would have
thought it would be. We're gonna definitely feel that the leather is
stiffer but it's not a elongated last, it's round or there's some room in there, it's
not too roomy. P: mm-hmm R: So in that regard, it works. of course, we have that -- it's a
loafer, it's more difficult to fit especially for me with a slim heel. I
mean generally, it's very hard for me to find loafers that fit because my slim
heel and when I do, I usually get more of them. These ones are okay, not
fantastic. P: Right. I would say that as far as fit is concerned for me, I would have
roughly the same comments. I got the size eight and a half and they seem to fit
fairly well but again, that's because you know, you have the added benefit of
being able to lace them down as tightly or as loosely as you want to. There was
just the slightest amount of rubbing on my bone with these but not to the extent
of some of the other offerings... R: got it, so it's lower. P: After a slight break-in
period that would probably go away, more and more. R: Exactly. Yeah. I mean, they're
Goodyear welted. Goodyear welted are generally a little stiffer, these are
pretty soft for a Goodyear welted in the sole so it's a little breaking period I'd
say, the upper leather I think will never get really soft, you'll just get creases
and they'll be softer and it'll work. R: Yeah so I mean, overall I think you
know, $170 for a Goodyear welted shoe all leather, leather
lined is a pretty good price. It's a little stiff but in terms of comfort, if
it works for your foot. To me ,they're more like a three, three and a quarter
out of five stars. Maybe three and a half, even in a good day. Maybe depending on
the last. But you can see slight deficiencies and then with a broguing
size, styling, it's a little not super classic and
you can see this on the other end. I mean, it's classic as it gets in
terms of the look. You can see like the leather, you know, they have a seam here and
a seam here. That means they're they're leather usage is better. They can get
more pieces out of the hide. They're not something typically seen on
high-end shoes so yeah not a high-end shoe right but it is also just $170
for a Goodyear welt. P: and given that these were just $170. I think it was
a fairly decent value for what you're getting you know it's a it's a Goodyear
welted shoe as you said. These are unremarkable. You know, not the, maybe not
the greatest looking shoe in the world but I would say just slightly above
average. I gave them a three out of five. R: good