I’ve been wearing/buying swim thongs for a while now, and something that always comes up is the elusive Speedo Thong from back in the '90s. I love the stuff that I’ve gotten from the niche brands, but I keep thinking about how great it would be if Speedo, Arena, or TYR would make a cheekier fit for men.
Do we want mainstream brands to get into the business?
Which brand do you think would be most likely to make a conservative mainstream swim thong?
Just my two cents, but I don’t think the demand is big enough for one of the major brands to get into that game. There’s a reason Speedo dropped it from their line, and I’m guessing it was lack of interest.
I had (and may still have) one of the Speedo thongs. It was fine, but in my personal opinion, if I want to wear a thong, I’ll buy one from one of the niche brands that makes them more for comfort, recreation, or fashion. If I want the tight racing fit of a Speedo, I’ll buy a Speedo (which I have a few for lap swimming).
All that being said, to each their own, right? I also believe there are swim thongs available that closely match the coverage, fit, and style of the Speedo thongs.
I also wanted to get a Speedo branded thong when I first started wearing them, but they had already phased it out. From what I can tell, they seem similar to the older Charlie swim thongs. Personally, other than for pricing reasons, I don’t see mainstream brands making thongs any time soon. As others have said, the market is small for male thongs. Smaller brands like Charlie, Hunk, etc., seem to get it done.
I will say, I do like the cut of some of the Arena swim briefs. Haha. If you want something cheekier, I’ve found Rufskin to be awesome as well.
At least in the United States, Speedo continued offering their men’s thong well into the 2000s. It was a bit of an anomoly; I don’t recall ever seeing a Speedo brand thong for women, and, with the exception of the Solar 1" brief, most of Speedo’s swim briefs tended to be more conservative. I’d be very interested to know the story behind their men’s thong. Was it some executive’s pet project, or was there actually enough demand to justify including it in their catalog for such a long time?
Turbo and Jolyn make women’s swim thongs, and the brands you mentioned all have cheekier cuts for women. I doubt, however, we’ll see a similar trend in their men’s swimwear styles.
The Todd Sanfield Shore Thong is the nearest equivalent I’ve found. The Charlie by MZ Swim Thong is also a good choice if you prefer a classic style. I’d love to see mainstream brands offer men’s thongs, but I’d worry that they’d hold back and make something a bit too square.
I’ve been modifying Speedo briefs into thongs myself with good results. I just bought some Arena swim briefs and will do the same to them.
I started swimming laps and found that the ones on the market are not made for lap swimming; they don’t have enough compression and will flap around and slide off in the water. By making a lap swimming brief into a thong, I get the best of both worlds.
The only downside is there’s not much ball room, and you could have some peeking testies.
@SwimThonger, it would be great if you told us the steps to transform a regular swim brief into a thong. I would like to try that, as I know how to use a sewing machine.
That’s a great idea! I feel like it would be better to show in photos or a video. I’ll record it next time I make one so you can all try it for yourselves.
I’ll never understand why Speedo doesn’t offer their men’s thong as an online exclusive. Based on the resale prices the vintage suits command on eBay, they could pretty much charge whatever they wanted and fans would pay it. They could do a super limited run in each size and only one color or print per year to avoid winding up with surplus I have no doubt they’d sell out quickly.
That being said, the Speedo thong was never my favorite for wearing. The main draws of it for me were that the conservative front looked more like a traditional bikini, the rear center Speedo logo, and the greater acceptability it seemed to garner because it was produced by a more mainstream brand. I still have my black one I bought back in the day and always wanted the red and blue models.
Speedo is synonymous with quality! Their 1” Solar bikini is my go-to suit. I buy it in every color they offer each year. It’s skimpy enough to be sexy while still being modest enough to be acceptable in most settings. It’s also perfect for wearing your favorite thong under and shedding a layer if the vibe seems right.