I’m usually not overly effusive about things in general, but I will say that I love my pair of Lems Primal 1’s. They are my modern moccasins, my hiking house slippers, and by far the best skateboarding shoe I’ve ever used. The bottom line is that Lems Primal 1’s are my go-to shoe for daily outings.

I only share this so that you know what Lems’ Primal 2, the latest generation of Lems’ original minimalist shoe, is up against. A pair of brown Primal 2’s have been provided by Lems Shoes for review and it will have to really bring the awesome to put the original out to pasture.

Thankfully, I have the perfect opportunity to run the Primal 2 through its paces. I’ll get to that in a minute, but first let’s take a look at what’s new about the Lems Primal 2 and how it compares to the original.

Look & Feel

From the very beginning, I was a fan of the handmade look of the Primal 1. They looked cobbled, like something an elf made for me in the middle of the night. The Primal 1 wrapped around your foot like a thick cozy sock. I think it’s because of this that I would often get comments from others who said that the Primal 1 looked like a really comfortable shoe.

By contrast, the Primal 2 is more at home amongst “normal” mass-produced shoes.

That’s not to say that the Primal 2 doesn’t look nice. What it lacks in unique touches of a handmade shoe, the Primal 2 makes up for with an abundance of clean lines and refinement.

Gone as well are the Primal 1’s screen printed branches on the outside heel of the shoe. I was not a fan of this graphic because it was far too chaotic for an otherwise casual shoe. Instead the Primal 2 simply has the Lems’ logo on the rear of the shoe, right behind the ankle. The graphic’s placement is important because while the logo is a bit large, it doesn’t mess with the lines of the shoe when viewed in profile.

Flexibility

The Primal 2’s outsole feels just as flexible as the Primal 1’s outsole. In fact, it’s hard to discern any difference at all between them. At the very least, the Primal 2’s outsole doesn’t seem any less flexible than its predecessor. In fact, aside from nearly 2 years of wear on my pair of Primal 1’s, the Primal 2’s outsole looks exactly the same as the Primal 1’s. This is a good thing, which I’ll explain further when I discuss ground feel a bit later.

Removable Insole

Lems’ Primal 1 had a permanent insole, which was great because it meant that there was nothing to shift around while wearing them. As a bonus, the insole had a nice texture and did not add unnecessary cushioning underfoot.

The Primal 2 has switched things up and comes with a removable insole. I’m not quite sure why this is and I’m also not quite sure I like it.

The removable insole gives the wearer more control by allowing them to add or remove a few millimeters of cushioning. The insole is also covered with little raised nubs that evoke memories of the Chinese acupuncture slippers that my grandpa used to wear.

I gave the insoles a shot and found that they add unnecessary thickness and definitely reduced ground feel. I took the insoles out after a couple days of testing and the ground feel was much improved. Unfortunately, the Primal 2’s threads are fully exposed without the insole. Hopefully using the Primal 2 without the insole won’t cause undue wear on these threads.

Build Quality

Like I mentioned, the Primal 2 is all about clean lines and refined construction. None of the manufacturing issues I noted on the Primal 1 are present on the Primal 2.

There are no obvious points of failure in the Primal 2’s construction, so I’ll report my findings in a future post if I encounter any issues with build quality.

As it stands, the Primal 2’s build quality is definitely a step up from the Primal 1 and looks to be very good overall.

Performance

Comfort

My pair of Primal 1’s are so comfortable in part because they have been worn in by 2 years of daily use, so it would be unfair to compare them to a pair of shoes that I have only been wearing for a few days.

That said, the Primal 2 has all the makings of a comfortable shoe.

Spacious Toe Box

The toe box is nice and wide. Once again, Lems have designed a shoe that has a spacious toe box that allows for decent toe splay, yet somehow does not look like a clown shoe. I might even venture to say that the Primal 2’s toe box feels more spacious than the Primal 1’s toe box. No complaints here.

Light and Airy

Just like the toe box, the rest of the Primal 2 feels spacious. This might owe to the updated construction of the Primal 2 as the shoe holds its shape much more than the Primal 1 (which generally collapses without a foot in it).

In terms of weight, the Primal 2 feels very similar to the Primal 1. If one is heavier than the other, it’s not noticeable enough to make a difference on my feet. In any case, the Primal 2 is a pretty light shoe; you’re definitely not going to be weighed down by it.

Good Ground Feel

As I mentioned earlier, the Primal 2’s outsole looks just like the Primal 1’s outsole. I wouldn’t be surprised if they share the same outsole, because the Primal 2 also has the same ground feel as the Primal 1.

The Primal 2’s ground feel is good. You can easily feel the contours of the ground underfoot from things like gravel, cracks in the sidewalk, etc. I wouldn’t go so far as to say the ground feel of the Primal 2 is as transparent as the Vibram KSO or actually being barefoot, but rather more of a “rounded off” feel of the ground. So while you’re not going to be discerning individual blades of grass while wearing the Primal 2, most of the objects you step on will feel like a nice massage.

The Gauntlet

Earlier, I mentioned that I have the perfect way to test the Primal 2, and I wasn’t kidding. Mere days from now, I depart for Asia, where I’ll be on the road for the next 2 months with only Lems’ Primal 2 to cover my feet.

That’s right, I’m not even bringing a pair of socks.

From the urban streets of big cities to unpaved roads through tiny villages (and maybe a few hikes thrown in for good measure), the Primal 2 will be subjected to a multitude of terrains as I walk hundreds of miles throughout Asia.

Along the way, I’ll post field reports on how well (or not) the Primal 2’s handle the rigors of travel in Asia, so make sure to check back in (or just follow me on Twitter) to find out if Lems’ next generation of minimal shoes can rise to the challenge.