Gi

What is the best place to get one, other than the obvious?

I live in a mid-size city(Duluth, Minnesota).

I called practically every martial arts school/studio about where to get one and, there seems to be only one place to get one.

Are they that hard to find?

Christopher

It depends on how much you want to spend and what qualities you're looking for in a gi. I get mine online at Bu Jin Design, and they're excellent. They're a bit more expensive than some, but when you figure they last about 3 times longer than others, it all evens out.

Wow, this is a tough question. You can spend 30-400 dollars, and this does not include hand made ones. It all depends on the type of quality you want. Like anything else, you get what you pay for. If you are a beginner and don't know if this is a long commitment, I would not spend an extreme amount of money. If not, I suggest what I use. Tozando.com has excellent quality. Mizuno has a great selection. Just put a search for Mizuno gi and find the best prices. Toraki in Canada. Bu Jin, the list goes on and on. Like I said you get what you pay for and then their are lesser companies like Ki, Golden Tiger, HSU. Again all available on line on a search and get the best price.

Christopher Range wrote: What is the best place to get one, other than the obvious?

Hi Christopher,

First off, did you ask your instructor about buying a gi? He might be the one providing the uniforms for the dojo, especially if your dojo / organization has some type of embroidery or has a dress code that calls for a specific style of gi.

At my dojo, both of the above criteria apply, so we have gi available for purchase (in fact I have a bin full of them in my garage). When a student goes out on their own & buys one, they usually stick out like a sore thumb and their gi lacks the appropriate embroidery. This just creates more work for me since I'm the one who has to take this one odd-ball gi to the embroider.

If he tells you to just buy a gi anywhere you can, you can go to the various places on-line and purchase one, like Bu-Jin, and get one.

If low price is a factor, ask your instructor about opening a school / dojo account with KI International Corp. He needs to send them a letter asking for such an account to be opened. They have very good products at very low prices, and they ship them to you thru the mail. They also allow you to order as many as you like, or just one, there's no minimum order quantity. Then your dojo will have the ability to provide gi to all it's students at a reasonable price. Besides being low in price, their stuff is really good & high quality. (By the way, I'm in no way associated with KI International, or do I receive any compensation promoting their products, I'm just a very satisfied customer!)

Here's their contact info:

KI INTERNATIONAL CORP.
10938 W. Pico Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90064
(800) 982-1059
http://www.ki-international.com/

Best of luck with your training!

Brian Vickery

On the low end of the scale, you can get a decent white bleached single weave judo gi for $40 from
http://www.ambersports.com/judouniforms.html

I have a quick suggestion, take a look through your phone book for martial arts supply stores, there are a few of them around me and I found those the easyest place to pick up my gi.

Brian Vickery wrote: http://www.ki-international.com/

You could also just buy a gi straight from KI without opening a school account, but that adds about $18 to the price of the gi.

A single weave judo gi costs $48 from their website, but when I order it through my school account, it's $30.

It's worth the trouble to open the account, so you might want to pass this info on to your instructor to see if he's interested!

Regards,

Brian Vickery

My first gi was a second-hand one I picked up someplace. It lasted me 6 years before I bought a new one of my very own and gave the old one away. And that's lasted me another 13 with nothing more serious than a couple of torn seams.

Spend as much as you can on a quality keikogi. Initial outlay might be high but the chances are you won't be needing to spend more for years to come.

There are tons of gis available on EBay, and most larger martial arts supply stores have online accessibility, and carry several weights, styles, and qualities. Let your keyboard do the walking. (It's always better to get two gis, so you don't have to stay home if one is in the wash, you don't have to wear a stinky one ( that's BAD ) and you have a spare, in case there's a "blowout".

Hi

I purchase my uniforms from shireido in okinawa great fit cost a little more but you cant go past them

Train hard guys

perry

Gi doesn't mean anything.

Dogi or keikogi.