I’ve wanted a RedStar gi for a while now. I’ve heard nothing but good things about them. I can’t seem to get myself to part with the money though. The way I look at it, I have a few gis already, why do I need another? I did however, feel that I needed a couple of ranked rash guards. So I decided to give one of their newly produced, IBJJF legal, long sleeve, ranked rashguards a try.
Currently they’re on sale for $29.95. The regular price is $59.95. I thought the shipping was a little much at $10.95. Add in sales tax, and now the price is $46.22 USD. Still, a pretty good price.
The first thing I noticed when I took it out of the packaging, was that it is thicker than a lot of rashguards I own. The stitching looked to be very good quality. The usual RedStar logos are on it, making the colours pop. It does have “Let’s Roll” on the right arm, which I think is a little cheesy, but not nearly as bad as some things I’ve seen.
The fit is fantastic. I always order size large as I have a fairly large chest. If I get medium (which would make the length much better), they always feel too tight. Anyways, it is a little long for me, but I’m used to that. And really, length isn’t a big issue as far as rashguards go. I wore it under my gi last night. It breathed quite well. I sweat like a Mexican whore (no offence intended to any whores in Mexico. I just assume that you sweat a lot because of the heat and a constant elevated heart rate), but the garment did quite well at wicking the sweat away. My gi wasn’t as soaked as it usually is at the end of class.
All in all, I’m very happy with the shirt. It’s a good fit, quality made, and it looks damn good! I’m looking forward to wearing it in competition so I can show it off. 🙂
Mountains to Mats 