Ranking Gis from Best to Worst

**dethklok** · Posted On: 3/30/2010 6:20pm

I have a Fuji and I really love it. It will be even nicer in about a year when it is broken in real nice. Still a bit stiff but is very comfortable.

**AAAhmed46** · Posted On: 3/31/2010 4:08am

What is the most least expensive one out of all of these?

**Jim_Jude** · Posted On: 3/31/2010 4:24am

Originally Posted by WhiteShark

I bought a Padilla & Sons based largely on this chart. I have to say I like my Vulkan a LOT better. Though I bought my Vulkan before they got over $150.

I agree, for the money it's hard to beat P&S and HCK but admittedly some gis out there have better fit & finish. Does it justify the price? Not for me as a lowly white belt, but then again, I haven't been around long enough to justify paying $150-$200 for a gi

**Jim_Jude** · Posted On: 3/31/2010 4:27am

Originally Posted by AAAhmed46

What is the most least expensive one out of all of these?

$$$ to Quality? probably the Unbleached Basic HCK (I own, it's good for the money)

***WhiteShark*** · Posted On: 3/31/2010 12:57pm

Originally Posted by Whacker

Elaborate please? What specifically do or don't you like? I hear the Vulkans are very, very light, which tends to scare me. I've already blown through my first gi top in less than 6 months of regular use, and I never bleached it. It's a "medium" build, based on what I see others wearing at the gym.

Well in defense of the Padilla & Sons my Vulkan is my favorite Gi and was before I bought the P&S. Let em elaborate for you: First about me - I'm 5'6" and wear a 40 short suit jacket with 32wx30l pants I weigh 155-158 walking around and typically cut to 149 for Grappling tournaments. In addition I refuse to treat my Gi like some sort of special garment when it comes to laundry. I Wash and Dry my Gis in machines. I DO always use cold water and tend to only dry them "most" of the way. I also like Black Gis and both of these are Black or at least started out Black.

The Gis:
Weight: The Vulkan is way lighter but that is expected by description. I personally like a light Gi. I train in Georgia and in the Summer it is retarded hot in the gym.
Fit: The Vulkan fits me better. The skirt is a good bit shorter and the sleeves are tapered. These are two things that I didn't think were a big deal until I got a gi without them. The Padilla feels more like it is descended from a Judo Gi long skirt and stiff cuffs big arm seams stuff like that.
Initial Quality: This is one category where I thought they were very close out of the bag but after one wash I felt the Vulkan was MUCH nicer. No missing stitches no seams that twist.
Durability: Despite the light weight of my Vulkan it has held up very well for over a year. I think in large part to my washing habits it has faded a lot it is pretty much gray at this point. The Padilla & sons seems very durable I just haven't had as much time in it.
Washing: Like I said I'm rough on my laundry. Despite this the Vulkan was pre-shrunk and has never changed size despite hot and cold washing and extended drying. I noticed right before I washed it that the P&S was NOT pre-shrunkc so I have only ever washed it in cold water and dryed it only partially. It shrank a LOT and not uniformly enough in my opinion. The rope draw string also got chewed up by the dryer.

I gotta bail more later.

**pauli** · Posted On: 3/31/2010 1:00pm

when did you get the padilla and sons? it's my understanding that the cut has changed at some point in the past couple years.

***WhiteShark*** · Posted On: 3/31/2010 5:20pm

January 19th

To sum things up If the Padilla was preshrunk the same way the Vulkan was I could see it coming down to cut/weight preference only. As things stand now my next Gi will probably be another Vulkan.

Forgot to mention this but I WAS really excited about the draw string in the Padilla and Sons being a rope. Then after one wash and dry the rope got all torn up and unraveled I was bummed out .

**Whacker** · Posted On: 4/01/2010 1:23pm

Thanks for the comments. I don't think I'm prepared to spend $160-180 on a gi just yet. Padilla and Sons is gonna be my next purchase, given Aesopian's poll results.

**Jim_Jude** · Posted On: 4/01/2010 1:52pm

Originally Posted by Whacker

Thanks for the comments. I don't think I'm prepared to spend $160-180 on a gi just yet. Padilla and Sons is gonna be my next purchase, given Aesopian's poll results.

Yeah, a little draw string issue (which I've never experienced with my two P&S gis) is just too easy to fix with some 550 cord or something to complain about...