Century 12 vs 14 oz Gi

[Arms84]

I have recently moved and had to change dojos and styles. I am going from Ishin-ryu to Shōrin-ryū as a purple belt. I have My new sensi is allowing me to keep my rank while I catch up on Katas. However, he is requiring me to buy a black gi, as all underbelts must wear black. (My 2 others are White 12 oz)

I have recently bought 2 12 oz Heavyweight Brushed Cutton Century Gi's for under $150. I washed one, but left the other in the package. I tried on the 12oz, but still wished I have bought the 14oz Iron Man because I have always wanted a professional Gi. I can still return the unopened Gi. I bought 2 Gi's because I go 4 to 5 times a week and they are soaked by the time its over. I have to have atleast 2 gi for sanitary reasons.

My question is:

Is the Century 14oz Iron Man worth the extra $50 it will cost over the Century 12 oz?

What makes it worth it?

[chiliphil1]

My opinion is YES, the ironman is better made, better construction and better material. It's not so much the weight that matters as the quality and the iron man is the best that they offer. If you can return it for a refund I would buy a Ronin brand 12oz gi, even over the iron man. I recently purchased one of those and it is far better than the Century ones that I have, I think it came to $67.99 plus shipping, so great price as well.

[JR 137]

The Ronin 12 oz easily betters the Iron Man in every way. And it's significantly cheaper. The only factor IMO is fit. Doesn't matter how "good" a gi is; if it doesn't fit right it's just not going to work.

If you're looking for the best, Tokaido or Shureido. Double to triple the price of the Iron Man, but worth every cent.

[Arms84]

I am V Shaped from years of weight lifting. The 12oz fits me good in the shoulders, where I usually have problems.

How does the Brushed cotton weigh in vs the Ronin 12 oz? I noticed the made a 16 oz also. Is that better.

[chiliphil1]

I am V Shaped from years of weight lifting. The 12oz fits me good in the shoulders, where I usually have problems.

How does the Brushed cotton weigh in vs the Ronin 12 oz? I noticed the made a 16 oz also. Is that better.

I would say the Century 12oz is just about the same as the Ronin 12oz in terms of thickness and weight but the Ronin is well above it in quality. I would be careful going too heavy on the weight. Most students run 8-10oz gi while instructors and some advanced students wear 12. I personally have not known anyone who wears anything above 12 on a daily basis. If you're grappling then maybe you would want the 14-16, or maybe for kata competitions where you want it to really pop but for everyday training I wouldn't go above the 12 weight. It can get too hot and too cumbersome when covered in sweat. IMO

As the poster above said, if you can swing it buy yourself a Shuriedo K-10, it is the finest in the world! I have one and there is simply nothing else close, they run a little over $200 but if you're serious you cannot do better. If you are already looking into the ironman, look into the Shureido, that is a purchase you will not regret. Think of it this way, the Shuredio (and Tokaido) are made in Japan, every other brand out there is copying them! For a little more why not get the real thing? If you want professional then THIS IS IT.

You can find them at these places.

https://www.okinawadirect.com

and

https://www.discountmas.com[/url]

[JR 137]

I've never seen the 16 oz Ronin to give an opinion on its quality. As chiliphil said, 16 oz is very heavy. To be honest, I'm most like going to get the 10 oz Ronin because the 12 oz is too heavy for me at times. Then again, I'm pretty sweaty 5 minutes into class, so I'm not the norm. My 14 oz KI heavyweight that I hardly wear is very heavy. Can't imagine wearing a heavier one than that unless I was doing judo or jujitsu. But some people love the extra weight in a gi for some reason. I think they're all about getting that loud snap sound during kata and kihon. Or they're standing around looking "cool." Neither one is my thing. I like the Ronin and Shureido because they just fit me right. The Shureido feels very comfortable too. Kind of like a suit that's the perfect size.

[JR 137]

And if I remember correctly, the Ronin and Shureido are cut similar to the Century in the shoulders. They're a bit longer in the jacket length, which is a good thing IMO. Century's jackets were always too short for me, but fit right everywhere else. I'm also wider in the shoulders than most people my size, but I'm more round around the stomach, unfortunately.

[The Pred]

I've never seen the 16 oz Ronin to give an opinion on its quality. As chiliphil said, 16 oz is very heavy. To be honest, I'm most like going to get the 10 oz Ronin because the 12 oz is too heavy for me at times. Then again, I'm pretty sweaty 5 minutes into class, so I'm not the norm. My 14 oz KI heavyweight that I hardly wear is very heavy. Can't imagine wearing a heavier one than that unless I was doing judo or jujitsu. But some people love the extra weight in a gi for some reason. I think they're all about getting that loud snap sound during kata and kihon. Or they're standing around looking "cool." Neither one is my thing. I like the Ronin and Shureido because they just fit me right. The Shureido feels very comfortable too. Kind of like a suit that's the perfect size.

What size KI is your uniform. I have a size 5 pants. I'm 5ft 7-5ft 8. But wasn't sure about the waist in the size 4. Do the gi tops run longer than century?

[chiliphil1]

I've never seen the 16 oz Ronin to give an opinion on its quality. As chiliphil said, 16 oz is very heavy. To be honest, I'm most like going to get the 10 oz Ronin because the 12 oz is too heavy for me at times. Then again, I'm pretty sweaty 5 minutes into class, so I'm not the norm. My 14 oz KI heavyweight that I hardly wear is very heavy. Can't imagine wearing a heavier one than that unless I was doing judo or jujitsu. But some people love the extra weight in a gi for some reason. I think they're all about getting that loud snap sound during kata and kihon. Or they're standing around looking "cool." Neither one is my thing. I like the Ronin and Shureido because they just fit me right. The Shureido feels very comfortable too. Kind of like a suit that's the perfect size.

This is exactly right. The Shureido feels perfect, you almost forget you have it on. It seems like it helps you stay cool and stays completely out of the way. I have been training in it for a couple of months and I threw on one of my old Century ones to train at home and I felt like I was going to DIE with that thing on, it was so hot! It didn't breath, didn't flex, felt like it was hindering my movement, and it's 20 years old so it's well broken in!

The shureido, and I'm sure Tokaido as well thought I have not had hands on one of those are of a completely different planet. The no10 duck canvas is a material MADE for martial arts, it wicks, it cools, it feels light yet it's tough.. I just cannot possibly say enough good things about the Shureido gi, and the Ronin in my opinion feels very close to the Shureido. The material is different of course but it still has that same "not in the way" feel. I don't know how it would do on the floor however as I have not trained in it except at the house (my dojo only allows white and my Ronin is black) I would still recommend it over Century any day.

[JR 137]

I've never seen the 16 oz Ronin to give an opinion on its quality. As chiliphil said, 16 oz is very heavy. To be honest, I'm most like going to get the 10 oz Ronin because the 12 oz is too heavy for me at times. Then again, I'm pretty sweaty 5 minutes into class, so I'm not the norm. My 14 oz KI heavyweight that I hardly wear is very heavy. Can't imagine wearing a heavier one than that unless I was doing judo or jujitsu. But some people love the extra weight in a gi for some reason. I think they're all about getting that loud snap sound during kata and kihon. Or they're standing around looking "cool." Neither one is my thing. I like the Ronin and Shureido because they just fit me right. The Shureido feels very comfortable too. Kind of like a suit that's the perfect size.

What size KI is your uniform. I have a size 5 pants. I'm 5ft 7-5ft 8. But wasn't sure about the waist in the size 4. Do the gi tops run longer than century?

I wear a size 5 KI and size 5 Ronin. I don't have the Century anymore, so I'm going by memory. They're all pretty similar in cut. The Century and KI are about the same jacket length. The Ronin is longer. The Century and KI's jacket are about a hand (wrist to fingers) and a half length from the belt to the bottom. That's when I'm standing straight and pull it down. Moving around, it feels like it's going to come out from under my belt sometimes, but never actually has. The Ronin goes down to almost my fingertips.

Compared to the KI, my Ronin pants are a little slimmer in the waist, but a little baggier in the legs. Not much for either one, but just enough for me. Wouldn't notice it until you tried it on and started kicking and going into stances.

The jacket on all 3 are virtually the same, minus length. A lot of people at my current dojo and more so at my former dojo wear Century 12 oz gis. Most at my current dojo wear the KI 14 oz. My Ronin 12 oz looks and fits better than anyone else's gi. I can't believe I said that last line. Makes me feel like the dojo's a fashion show lol. Definitely not the case.

If you're in the market for a 12 oz. Century, the 12 oz. Ronin is a no brainier. Better in every way, and cheaper.