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Gorilla Fight Gear: Slim Cut Apeman, Crystal Weave, A4S

Intro:
Gorilla fight gear is starting to make a name for themselves by offering a high quality, competition ready gis in so many different sizes that everyone will find something to fit them. I’m reviewing the Slim Cut Apeman crystal weave in A4S.  They also have offerings for more traditional sizes and for stockier athletes.

The gi top is made out of a 550gr crystal weave jacket (similar to pearl weave but a little softer and heavier), triple stitching throughout, includes a mouth guard pocket and a thick rubber core lapel. The 12oz twill pants feature 5 loops, a crystal weave gusset and knee reinforcements that go all the way to the cuff.

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A little bit about Gorilla Fight Gear:

Gorilla Fight Gear is different than most fight gear companies because we have taken charge in the design process of our own gear and equipment. We did this to ensure that we produce products at the highest standard and are unique the market. We source only the best materials for our manufacturers, and implement strict 3rd party quality controls and inspections to ensure and maintain superior standards.

 Since July of 2006, Gorilla Fight Gear has been providing customers with nothing but the best in quality Brazilian jiu jitsu, Muay Thai Kickboxing and MMA equipment. 

We have spent countless hours researching the latest products and innovations of our competitors to try to continually stay at the cutting edge of innovation. The hours we ourselves have spent with our team of manufacturers in research and development of new products are countless but the effort is well worth it as it keeps you, our customer, with some of the best equipment on the market. Through our website you become as informed as possible about the products you are purchasing.

Over the last two years we have grown tremendously thanks to the word-of-mouth efforts of our customer’s referring their friends and coaches to the Gorilla Fight Gear brand. We believe this growth is mainly due to our focus on always pleasing our customers, and treating them like they are our friends and family. And in the future as we become one of the leading MMA brands in Canada we will continue to aim for this 110% customer satisfaction formula with every order. We feel if we take care of you everything else will just fall into place.

First Impression:

• Wow, that’s really blue J
• Seams, stitching and embroidery look good and no loose threads
• Noticeably slimmer cut even without putting it on
• It comes with an honest to goodness BJJ belt
• Interior seams are covered for additional comfort
• Reinforced stress points

Fit:

Right out of the box this gi fit very well.  I also have an A3L Redstar Stamp and the cut is similar with the Apeman being tighter in both the chest and cuffs.  I was surprised to see that the arms were a little long (before washing). Finally, the pants fit very well.  I was initially a little concerned about the overall tightness and if I would notice it while rolling.

My first roll was in it right out of the bag and then I rolled in it twice more after washing and drying the gi.  I washed it in cold with vinegar (to set the color) and then dried the top on medium heat until it was just a little damp. The pants were hung dry.  The measurements below show a little shrinkage.  After the initial wash and dry the sleeves fit much better and the top was even more fitted.

Test Run:
My initial concerns about the overall tightness of the gi were proved groundless. Technique, drilling and rolling felt good.  The overall weight of the gi was comparable to my pearl weave gis (Redstar, Let Love Fight and Ezekiel). The crystal weave is a little softer than pearl weave and I didn’t notice any stretching.
While rolling I definitely benefited from the tighter fit, especially in the sleeve cuffs.  The collar is larger and stiffer than the others that I typically wear.  Again, the difference was noticeable while rolling particularly as I was defending a few collar chokes. The pants fit well and weren’t too heavy.  One of our fighters commented that I looked like a blue ninja, so apparently the fit was visibly tighter to others as well 😉

Final Thoughts:
If you’re a tall and thin athlete, there really isn’t any good reason to not get a gi that is specifically cut for you. The Slim cut Apeman is longer in the arms, tighter in the chest and the sleeves.  It’s also nice to have pants that don’t look like capris.  The gi has a lot of high end features: mouthguard pocket, crystal weave, triple stitching, foam core collar and reinforced stress areas. 

While other gis have the tall part covered, Gorilla has done a great job with the slim portion. The A4S fit me very well (I’m a shade over 6’4” and 195lb) and they even have sizes that would fit George Roop or Cole Miller. For those that compete this is a huge.  While the material is a little heavier than pearl weave you have less actual fabric (making the weight of the fabric a non-issue) and your opponent will definitely notice the difference while grip fighting.

The quality of construction appears to be on par with my other high-end gis and I’m confident that it will hold up well to drilling, rolling and future competitions. Don’t forget to check out Gorilla Fight Gear at their website and also on Facebook.

Base price is $179 (fairly common price for a high-end slim fit gi).  The gi is currently on sale for $149 with the included belt.

Pros:

• Best fitting gi I’ve ever worn
• Very comfortable
• High quality embroidery and plenty of room for your own patches

Cons:

• Not sure how I feel about that big star…
• Only available in blue right now

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