IN DEPTH Review: Black Lucky Gi & FightPlanet.ca Service Review * PICS *

[BJJ_addiction]

UPDATE: 12/25/2008

Alright guys, if you have been following this thread, and the problems I had with the pants (material falling apart after 1st wash) and the service that OnTheMat.com provided after the Gi was purchased from an authorized dealer, then here is the POSITIVE update on the situation. :icon_chee

Scotty from OTM Shop was nice enough to send me replacement pants for the Black Lucky Gi months after purchase. I applaud him for his efforts in backing up such a great brand.

The original pants that came with the gi had some manufacturing and material defects. The pants began to fall apart after the FIRST wash, and ripped the FIRST day i rolled in them. Since then, OTM Shop (from their email) has stated they have changed their manufacturer and materials supplier.

The new pants provided feel a lot better. I will be posting a follow up review on the PANTS to see how well they hold up after a few rolls and washes.

Thanks guys.

-------------------


General Overview

A lot of people on the forums have a lot of interest about the quality and construction of one of the most expensive (if not THE most expensive) Jiu Jitsu gi's on the market: The Lucky Gi (Black). From reading past comments / reviews in other threads it seems like a lot of people are mis-informed about this gi. I hope this review can answer some of the questions people have about it.

This will be a continuous review over time to basically address how the gi holds up to wear and tear. I train 3-4 times a week and wash my gi's at least 3 times a week so I can definitely address the long term durability issues.

FightPlanet.ca: Customer Service and Product Transit Time

*Note: FightPlanet is located in Hamilton Ontario and I live in Vancouver BC Canada. Transit times into the USA will vary*

This is my 2nd purchase from FightPlanet in about 2 months. Their customer service is top notch! When I email them questions about products the general turn around time to receive a response is within 24 hours and they are patient enough to actually answer your questions by email. The guys there are great and provide awesome support on the products they sell. They seem to be quite knowledgeable about the products they carry which is a great thing.

I called up FightPlanet on Wednesday March 5th and submitted my order by phone. I paid by creditcard and opted for the Expresspost 2 Day shipping option. My order arrived right on time on Friday March 7th. WICKED that it arrived on time like they promised. A+ on that one guys.

Cost breakdown is as follows: *CAD Dollar*
Lucky Gi in Black - $259.95
2 x Sinister Tees - $49.98
Sub Total (Plus 5% Tax for Canadians): $325.43
Shipping Xpress 2 Day: $35.00
TOTAL: $360.42

So if you breakdown the shipping and divide it by the item value, the price of the Gi including tax DELIVERED was $299.44CAD. *cough* effin' expensive *cough*

Packaging and Initial Impressions

FightPlanet had the items boxed up really nice. They included a bunch of ad fliers and Sinister Stickers What surprised me most was that they included a FREE FightPlanet t-shirt! Great freebee and just made me smile. Last time I ordered some Sinister goods they threw in a free magazine.

The Lucky Gi

The Lucky Gi came very nicely packaged in it's own custom drawstring tote bag. The gi top and bottom came in resealable plastic bags

 

[BJJ_addiction]

The Inner Lining

Unlike what many people have said about this Gi, the inner lining is NOT soft. It's not made of any special material. There's not an extra layer or anything. It has the full print graphics all on the inside. I'm not sure what the exact term is for how the graphics are layed on top, but maybe silk screening? The full print graphics don't look very durable, more on that later.

Size / Fit / Shrinkage

So just some basic information I am 5 foot 8 and walk around at 155lbs. I own an Atama Mundial #7 and an A2 fit me perfectly. So I went with the same size, A2, for the Lucky Gi.

The following pictures show a before wash and after wash length.

Wash cycle: Gentle cycle, cold water, using Tide Coldwater detergent.
Dry cycle: Normal heat, 40-55 minutes.

Overall the Gi top and bottom both lost about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of length in some areas, for me this was perfect.

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

 

[BJJ_addiction]

Lucky Gi Details / Reinforcement

I guess the selling point for the Lucky Gi are the minute details. There are a lot of neat little graphics all over. Not much to explain here.

Even the reinforced areas of the gi are structured with 'style' in mind. Take a look.

Gi Details

 

[BJJ_addiction]

Details Cont.

 

[irc]

Jesus that is a sick gi.

 

[BJJ_addiction]

Durability and Initial Impressions (Pre-rolling)

Durability

Right now my first impression of the durability of the gi is NOT very good and I'm going to tell you why. The first thing I did when I took it out of the bags was inspect the seams and how it was sown together. Being that this gi was $300.00CAD you would expect perfection. Not the case here... There were a few "loose" threads which were sown in improperly. One on the arm and one on the upper back. Basically if someone were to stick a finger between the thread, their finger would catch under the thread and rip it out or cut their finger. I decided to take scissors and cut the threads out.

Little holes and a small rip at the end of the skirt after the FIRST wash???

So this was something that I NEVER expected to happen. After putting the pants and top in the wash and dryer I took it out to exam. What I found was that on the top of the gi pants, the areas that crinkle over when you tighten the draw string, there were tiny tear holes forming. There were actually 3 different small holes developing. They were big enough to be concerned about. I mean, how does something like this happen after the FIRST wash????

This area is basically the end of the collar where the skirt is. You can see that somehow the end got frayed. Not a good first impression here... I'm very very disappointed that this could happen!! I wash my Atama gi 3-4 times a week and I see no such signs of wear at all.

Inner Lining Durability after heat cycle in dryer

As you can see compared to the pre-wash photo up top, after the 1st wash and 1st dry cycle the inner liner graphics have faded a bit. No surprise here. What I would suggest people to do after they shrink to size is:

1.) Dry in dryer only using 'air cycle' no heat
2.) Hang dry

I'm pretty sure the reason for the fade is the heat of the dryer and not the washing machine.

 

[BJJ_addiction]

Draw String Annoyances

One thing I always do when I wash my Atama gi is take the draw string out. I've had an episode where the draw string got tangled in the washer.

The Atama draw string actually has open loop ends on the string so you can basically stick a chop stick into the loop and thread your pants in literally 30 seconds.

The Lucky Gi doesn't have this feature. So in order for you to be able to thread it back through the Lucky pants, you need to pin the end with a safety pin and then feed it through. Just a stupid annoyance if anything....

Atama Draw String

Lucky draw string

 

[BJJ_addiction]

Alright well I gotta go out now but I have an update for the gi.

I know I've listed a lot of negatives but there are some positives that for sure.

I got a chance to roll in the gi today for about 2 hours. I have some VERY IMPORTANT issues to address that everyone will find surprising so look out for an update tomorrow.

Cheers

 

[BJJ_addiction]

... double post

 

[crossdx]

GREAT review. I'm not in the market for a gi, Lucky or otherwise, but I just had to say it.

 

[GFG]

that gi looks bad ass, its too bad about the imperfections i guess your gi must of been made on a monday or a friday, wait does that even apply in china productions workers don't get weekends off do they?

mike - www.gorillagear.ca

 

[Fozzy1]

too bad none of the stores that have them will ship to Aus.

~Foz

 

[beatdownvictim]

Hi will, guess your gi came in already? too bad it didnt live up to the hype mang. it looks badass though, but i'm sorta glad i didn't buy one.

 

[BJJ_addiction]

Suuup. It would be harsh to say it didn't live up to the hype because there are some good points as well. Right now I'm just giving the initial heads up of things I noticed in comparison with my Atama gi.


Update on my experience rolling in it will be posted up tomorrow :icon_chee

 

[vince89]

wow great review, shame about the inperfections thought I mean $300 is alot of money for a Gi you have a right to be upset at those things.

 

[mechanikjoe]

I wanna hear the rest of the review!! lol :waits in suspense:

 

[BJJ_addiction]

Alright here is the continuation from the other day.

Total Weight Comparison: Atama Mundial #7 vs. Lucky Gi

What I should have done was weigh the top and bottom separately, but my friend was in a hurry to borrow my digital scale.

The scale I used was one of those shipping scales that can weigh items up to 100lbs. Increments are in 0.2. I will use a better scale next time and get an exact weight of each piece.

Atama Mundial #7: Total weight of the gi top and bottoms = 3.8lb

Lucky Gi: Total weight of the gi top and bottoms = 5.0lb

As you can see, there is a huuuuuuuge weight difference, and you can totally feel the difference when you're wearing the Lucky Gi. I think a lot of the weight is coming from the PANTS!! They are extremely thick compared to the Atama rip stop pants, almost a little too thick but manageable.


How does the Gi feel while rolling?


THE GI FEELS WICKED WHILE ROLLING. I really love the cut of the gi top. It's snug fitting yet not too restrictive. The cut of the pants are AMAZING. I love how the crotch area doesn't sag very much. With a cup on the pants fit awesome! The downside I'm facing right now is that the pants do feel a bit big. I have a 30-31inch waste and I have to draw the drawstring very tight, so there is like a foot on each side of the string where you would tie it up in the front.

The bottom of the gi top (the skirt as i call it) is a tad longer than my Atama Mundial, maybe by 1 1/2 inches. I actually like the Lucky length better. It seems that I'm not adjusting my belt as much.

How did the Gi hold up?

Alright ladies... Here comes the shocker.

I received the Gi on Friday the 7th. Right away, i snapped pics and threw it in the wash and did up this review. The very next day Saturday I went to my dojo to roll in it. I trained hard for about 1 1/2 hours, with about 30 minutes (6 5 min rounds) of rolling hard.

One thing about my bottom game style is that I'm extremely flexible. I have a very tricky guard and I love to use rubber guard. Also, I'm left leg dominant, so when I throw up triangle attempts I usually go left leg up around the head.

While I was rolling, I caught a buddy in a triangle. He postured up and stood up fast while prying my leg off his head. As I was trying my hardest to pull him back down and keeping the leg over his head, I hear this **RIIIIIPPPPPPPPPP**. I thought it couldn't be me and even if it was it don't matter. Few minutes later, I hear a quiet rip. Long story short, I get home and this is what I found.

The left leg inseam where the crotch is sown together somehow ripped!? It's not ripped in the way that there's a hole in the pants, but it ripped one of the folds out. Now all the threads are frayed.

Also, the "X" thread pattern in the knee pad on the left leg, the red stitching also got ripped a little bit, about 1 1/2 cm long.

Another thing I also noticed were tiny pin holes developing over random areas of the pants. I counted 4 the last time. It really makes no sense!!!! Like little invisible bugs are eating my brand new Gi alive!

REMEMBER GUYS, this Gi was no more than 20 hours old out of the bag.

So far I've trained twice in this Gi (Saturday and today Monday).

Here are my thoughts:

1.) Beautiful gi, beautiful designs, perfect fit. I like the fit of this gi more than my Atama

2.) The gi feels like it needs a lot of upkeep to keep it looking good (ie// dry cleaning it instead of washing machine/dryer). After 1 wash, the gi lost a substantial amount of color... Me personally, I like a gi to look worn. But I don't want my black Lucky looking like a light grey Lucky in 1 month :icon_sad:

3.) Durability issues. I really don't think it's normal for ANY gi pants to tear the very first use. I don't care what anyone says, that is just rediculous. And what's up with all these tiny holes developing man!??!?

4.) Weight. The gi weighs at least 5 pounds. If you're in a tourney where you gotta weigh in WITH your gi, be prepared to shed an extra 5

5.) Cost vs. practicality. Despite all these negatives I am still happy about my purchase, I just wish that the manufacturer could backup their product somehow.

Is this gi worth $300? I think yes, ONLY because I received a fat paycheck last month. But am I going to train in it every day like my Atama? Hell no. I'll probably just rock this at tournaments and lose in style :redface: lol. I mean... WIN in style.


ON WITH THE PICTURES

 

[Fozzy1]

interesting on the rip problems. definetely would not spend money on one myself now. cheers

~Foz@work

 

[Timbaland]

Try emailing On The Mat and let them know what you experienced with the Lucky Gi. Maybe they will give you a replacement.

 

[crossdx]

That must've been quite the fat payday, because if I were in your situation, I'd be extremely pissed at having a $300 gi fall apart like that after one wash and use. Durability is a huge factor for me when selecting quality products, so this would've been completely unacceptable for me.

Thanks for the review. Very nice and detailed. Hope you review more stuff down the line.