This is my first review, so bare with me here.
General Overview
My friend and I both needed a Gi so we did a bit of research and decided to go with Koral based on the general good feedback/reviews it has received. Now I can't speak for my friend but in terms of myself, I decided to go with a Koral as my first Gi as I liked the way it looked(Yes, I am a BJJ noob). It had positive reviews and I read that they generally last 2-3yrs. I chose to get a black gi instead of the traditional white or blue because well....I liked the way the black looked. Plus I figured it wouldn't get as dirty as the white would. Yeah, yeah, I'm gonna see some flame posts for this most likely but hey, in my eyes, a nice looking gi + good reviews + quality = win in my book.
FYI...my BJJ Academy is loose in terms of what gis we wear. They don't really care about things like that. We have people wearing colors from white, blue, black, brown, etc. People wearing brands from Reevo, Submit, Koral, Atama, Lucky, etc. No one seems to care about what other people are wearing.
Now on to the reviews...
Jiu Jitsu ProGear
Like I said above, me and my friend were in the market for our first Gis. Having decided on Koral, the best place to buy them was Jiu Jitsu ProGear, based on reviews we've read as well as recommendations from friends. We were quite excited and placed an order for the following...
Koral MKM Competition Black Gi - Size A1 (Mine)
Koral Light Blue Gi - A2 (For my friend)
Koral White Belt - A1 (Mine)
Koral White Belt - A2 (For my friend)
We placed the order on Saturday June 20, 2009. During checkout, we were quite surprised that the total weight for the package was at 14.7lbs. Seems a bit heavy for just 2x Gis and 2x Belts. Especially considering the Koral Light Blue Gi is advertised as weighing only 3.6lbs. Due to the weight, our cost for shipping came up to be $112.56 for FedEx International Priority (2-3Day) Service alone. My god that is expensive. We bit the dust and took the bullet, and chose it anyway as we were in a hurry for our Gis. We figured since we ordered it on a Saturday and chose 2-3 day service, we should be receiving our package by Wednesday or Thursday the latest. We ended up receiving our package on Monday June 29, 2009. This was all due to the fact that they had implemented a new "Policy" for International Orders. They required me to fill out a Payment Authorization Form and photocopy my Driver's License and to e-mail them both back to them. Needless to say, I was very surprised by this but did it the minute I received the form. What I don't understand is why it took so long for them to do all of this. This is the log they made in my account for that order...
06/20/2009 Order Received
06/22/2009 Processing
06/23/2009 Processing PAF requested.
06/24/2009 Processing PAF received.
06/25/2009 Shipped
And the package wasn't received til 06/29/09. This is not the service I was expecting from Jiu Jitsu ProGear. As if the major delay in receiving my package wasn't bad enough, I noticed a discrepancy between the weight we were billed for by Jiu Jitsu ProGear, 14.7lbs, and what FedEx stated the actual weight was, 9.1lbs. That is a HUGE difference in terms of shipping rates. With both of these issues bugging me, I e-mailed Jiu Jitsu Pro Gear about it and the official response I got from them was...
"The website will automatically determine the shipping costs of the package by calculating the weight of the item/s and the location of destination. Please consider that this calculation will include the weight of the box/bag that is used to ship the items in."
Now I know this is not the best method of comparing, but when I did a "mock" checkout with Budovideos.com and placed 2x Gis, 3x Fight Shorts, 3x Rash Guards, Protective Cup and Mouth Guard, the shipping was $51.40 for FedEx International Priority. Like I said, this may not be the best method of comparison but....damn...thats a huge difference. I am just puzzled at how Jiu Jitsu ProGear was just so damn expensive.
Needless to say, the major delay in shipping and the highly overpriced shipping costs has soured my personal experience with Jiu Jitsu ProGear. I won't be ordering from them again, especially if this is what I can expect. It's a shame as I read a lot of good things about them too hence why I decided to place my first order with them.
And now, on to the Gi Review...
Koral MKM Competition Black - A1 - Review
Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures or measurements pre-wash so all I have are post-wash measurements and photos.
When I first received my Gi, the fit was a bit small to begin with. It didn't feel right, but then again, this is my first Gi and I am new to BJJ. So I took it to my academy and showed my instructor the fit and he said it was good, so I kept it. I'm 5'9 and approx. 140lbs by the way. I probably should have went with an A2 and actually I wish I did. Post-wash the Gi seemed to shrink even though it's advertised as "100% Preshrunk". It also seemed to lose some of it's color in the very first wash which was surprising yet somewhat expected at the same time. I've heard that you are supposed to soak colored gis in water with white vinegar to lock in the dye but I didn't do that so.....my mistake. I washed the Gi in cold water and hung dry it the first time and that's how I've been washing my Gi since. Wash in Cold Water with Cold Water Detergent and Rinse in Cold Water, then Air Dry.
And for the pictures...
Pants
Drawstring Loops
Drawstring
Leg Cuff
Crotch Stitching/Reinforcement
