About time to buy a uniform

[Kmav]

Hey guys,

I've been doing Kendo for a month now and I'm going to have to buy a uniform in a month. Since it costs quite a bit of money, I'm researching it extensively. The two main web shops I'm looking at are ebogu and kendo shop. At ebogu total for a keiko gi (89.99) and a 7000 Hakama (144) comes out to be about 230. At kendo shop I can get a 10000 Hakama and Keiko Gi set for 124. I was wondering why there is such a significant price difference between the two shops. Is there a difference in quality as well? As far as I can tell I'm getting a better hakama with kendo shop but I dont know about the keiko gi. Also, I noticed ebogu uses Seikon dye and kendoshop uses indigo dye.

So I guess my major questions are:

1) Why is there such a big price difference in the different uniform sets mentioned above.
2) What is the difference between Seikon Dye and Indigo Dye; Which one is better?
3) Lastly, many people may have more experience with uniforms than me, what kind of Keiko Gi and Hakama do you suggest I buy?

- Thanks for your help!

[Will]

look at eguchi.net

my experience with E-bogu's keikogi and hakama isn't the best...they can't dye their crap worth anything. I spent 3 days trying to set the dye and it still rubbed off on me for months... but they have a deal for keikogi and hakama http://www.e-bogu.com/frekeikfor50.html

but i think that'll come to be about the same price as eguchi's set after shipping (for eguchi all orders over 50 dollars = free shipping)

[KendokaJim]

Actually, eguchi.net has a great deal for beginners. for $95, you get a keikogi, hakama, shinai, and shinai bag. All of these things are very good quality... granted, the hakama is polyester, but it's still very nice. And the best part.... no setting any dye!!!!!

[LNGUYEN]

I got the 10000 Hakama, single layer Keikogi and shipping from Bogubag for $195.00 and they are Japanese. If you live in the US, buying from Kendoshop is cheaper but after you added shipping, It will be all the same. Another thing is Japanese 10000 Hakama is better. I compared my with my friends in the dojo who ordered from Kendoshop and I see the different. Also, check to see you need an extra long himo for your hakama or not, Kendoshop won't tell you but Stroud Sensei at Bogubag will tell you.

[sminki]

I recently got new keiko-gi and hakama from bogubag.com. Very satisfied and would definitely recommend.

[Valiant]

Hey guys,

I've been doing Kendo for a month now and I'm going to have to buy a uniform in a month. Since it costs quite a bit of money, I'm researching it extensively. The two main web shops I'm looking at are ebogu and kendo shop. At ebogu total for a keiko gi (89.99) and a 7000 Hakama (144) comes out to be about 230. At kendo shop I can get a 10000 Hakama and Keiko Gi set for 124. I was wondering why there is such a significant price difference between the two shops. Is there a difference in quality as well? As far as I can tell I'm getting a better hakama with kendo shop but I dont know about the keiko gi. Also, I noticed ebogu uses Seikon dye and kendoshop uses indigo dye.

So I guess my major questions are:

1) Why is there such a big price difference in the different uniform sets mentioned above.
2) What is the difference between Seikon Dye and Indigo Dye; Which one is better?
3) Lastly, many people may have more experience with uniforms than me, what kind of Keiko Gi and Hakama do you suggest I buy?

- Thanks for your help!

I don't have enough experience to answer your questions, but the reason I'm responding to your post is because I bought the 7000-hakama and keiko gi from E-Bogu a few days ago. If you've checked Will's link they're having a sale so you can get the gi for free if you buy the hakama. However, like Will says, setting the dye is an issue. For the past two days I've washed the hakama and gi five times and once with vinegar but the dye is still rubbing off –a lot.

I have another set of cotton hakama (10,000 thread count -originally 9,000 t.c. but it was upgraded to 10,000 t.c. for the same price) and gi (single layer) from Swordstore.com, it was pricey but I didn't have any issues with their Indigo dye. They come pre-washed and pre-shrunk. I tried it on right out of package and the dye didn't rub off on me. The stitching pattern on the gi is slightly different (nicer, in my opinion) then the gi from E-Bogu. I'm not sure if it's a difference in cotton, but the Swordstore gi breath better and it holds it's shape better then the E-Bogu gi. Again, Swordstore is more expensive. Gi was $88 and hakama was $250 plus shipping. (ouch!)

If you have any specific questions about the E-Bogu 7000 hakama and gi (how they look etc.) feel free to ask me.

[miyamotomusashi]

if you go to www.ninecircles.co.uk its has excellent products and a hakama and a gi are about £80 plus posatge and package even to the untited states

[Hai_hai]

1. You don't have to spend a lot on hakama and keikogi.
2. I have keiko-gi and hakama from e-bogu. I am satisfied with the quality. Turning blue is part of kendo.
3. Keiko-gi from Koei, i.e. www.bogubag.com, is good.
4. Hakama from Tozando is good but they take a crap load of time to ship. If you are not in a rush, buy from them.

[takashijarosu]

well you got a good range of shops on line i looking for all white and am going to get it from bogubag it looks like good stuff.
try these places
kendoshop.com
bogubag.com
e-bogu
honestly good kendo gi will be semi expensive
but i found some as cheap as 35-60 total. not bad and not top grade stuff.

[Cheese_Man]

If your in the market for a uniform, and your a beginner I would suggest starting with a polyester (tetron) hakama they are much easier to care for and alot cheaper...there is a couple minor differences between kendoshop.com, and e-bogu.com... kendo shop is based out of korea and thier colors tend to be slighty off with the uniforms, while e-bogu is mostly japanese made product thats why there is such an extreme difference in cost ... my personal suggestion would be to shop through either www.e-bogu.com or www.bogubag.com

[minjih]

So I guess my major questions are:

1) Why is there such a big price difference in the different uniform sets mentioned above.
2) What is the difference between Seikon Dye and Indigo Dye; Which one is better?
3) Lastly, many people may have more experience with uniforms than me, what kind of Keiko Gi and Hakama do you suggest I buy?

First off, congratulations on making it the stage where you are ready to get your gi and hakama! To answer your questions:

1. Different companies carry different lines/brands of clothing and as such there will be different price schemes. For people like you and me who buy off the Internet, having to choose from companies in different countries does not help in terms of finding simple, standardised pricing structures.

2. Seikon Dye and Indigo Dye basically refer to the same thing. "Seikon" is a specific Japanese term for this dye, but to us outsiders, "indigo" tends to give a better description. What you should concern yourself with is whether what you are buying is of a synthetic or natural dye. The items that you have mentioned above, being of Seikon and Indigo dye, lead me to believe that they are simply referring to the fact that the hakama and gi use natural dye.

3. Suggestions and advice on what to buy... Contrary to what may have been said by some people, it does make sense to get yourself a good quality hakama and gi. If you were to spend the absolute minimum amount possible and get the cheapest ones you can buy, in about a year's time you will find yourself dressed in material that is on the verge of tearing, with a gi that is closer to light lilac in colour than blue/indigo, and a hakama that is so thin and has lost so much of its form that you might as well be wearing a light sheer skirt. If monetary considerations mean that you cannot avoid this, then fine, do what you have to do. But, if you can afford to and are willing to do some research on the best cost-quality-performance options, you will find that the effort is well worth it in the long run.

The same argument applies to bogu and other equipment, when your time comes.

Now, the advice given to the people in our dojo who are in your situation:

First consideration goes to the cost - determine the amount you want to spend (given your post above, I will assume that you are willing to forgo the cheap and nasty option).

Next, consider the material you prefer. Synthetic materials are good in terms of maintenance. They will require less looking after and retain the pleats better with less care. Cotton, on the other hand is much harder to look after. There is lots of information available on the proper care of these items, and if you were to follow them properly, you will find that you can retain the creases just as well over the years to come. 7000 and 10000 refers to the thread count. The higher the number, the thicker the material. I generally reccommend that beginners go for the 7000 model since it's lighter and slightly cheaper (you can commit to a more expensive set later if you so wish, after you've had more experience in kendo). Also for training, you'll probably be going at it pretty hard so a lighter fabric may help.

Finally, we get down to the issue of the dye being used. Synthetic dye will not bleed quite like natural dye. Again, there's plenty of information out there on how to help the natural dye set prior to use in training. In my experience, natural dye looks best even after the bleeding/fading process that will occur after a few years.

So there we have it. For the very first set of hakama and gi that the beginners in our club get, we reccommend a 7000 hakama (for training), whether it's indigo dye or synthetic dye is fully up to them. For the gi, it's flexible depending on what they wish to get. Most favour the single-layer models (again for training).

...Min

[Kmav]

Thank you to all that have replied to my inquiries.

Minjih, thanks a lot for taking the time to write a detailed response and answering all my questions.

I suppose I will get details about uniforms and such from my own dojo within a month when I actually make the purchase, but this forum has really helped.

- Kmav

[Olddog_newstick]

[QUOTE=Will]look at eguchi.net

my experience with E-bogu's keikogi and hakama isn't the best...they can't dye their crap worth anything. I spent 3 days trying to set the dye and it still rubbed off on me for months... but they have a deal for keikogi and hakama http://www.e-bogu.com/frekeikfor50.html


My experience with them was just the opposite. Good, dark dye on the 7000 hakama and single layer keikogi. Set the dye the first time. I left them sit in the half-filled washing machine (along with 2 gallons of vinegar) overnight. Then washed them with a little detergent and hung to dry. Dye hasn't rubbed off since.

Olddog