Today, I’m reviewing the Submission FC Ranked rash guard; on their site, they note it’s made from “Recycled Polyester / Spandex blend” and is priced at $64.99.
Look:
Upon opening the package and examining the rashie, I was immediately drawn to the design. The logo is featured prominently across the chest and again, much larger, down the center of the back. On top of that, the logo is also found throughout the product in a much smaller, nearly invisible font. Overall, it’s clean and understated. If you’re into large type-face and a clean design, you might like this.
From the site, Submission FC notes a “tear-away tag” – I noticed the tag to be overly large and made from what I can assume is some sort of recycled wood-pulp material. It was extra thin and looks very unique to this product. It lay well against the skin while I was wearing it and found no need to tear it away.
Craftsmanship:
Out of the bag, I noticed some seams that weren’t lined up as well as some blue spotting along a couple of seam lines. I believe the latter may be a result of the sublimation process and found it to only affect aesthetics. However, one white thread actually came off at examination and, after only one roll – not one night of rolling, but the first roll of the evening – a long thread came loose from the seam and hung from the end of the sleeve. After one wash, it didn’t get any worse; I was able to cut the blown seam from the rash guard and continue unimpeded. That said, I was very disappointed with the overall craftsmanship of this product and hoped it would have been produced to higher standards.
Feel:
I’m 5’7”, 170 lbs without the gi and asked for a medium. Pulling it over my head, I found it to be of a comfortable cut and provided the range of motion needed for training. Compared to some of my other rash guards, Submission FC’s felt thinner and breathed better while providing a similar level of comfort. Overall, I try to avoid long-sleeve rashies because I don’t like the lack of breathability that comes with them, but this was actually a pleasure to wear. As advertised, the product is extra-long and I had no issues with ride up during training.
Care:
I tossed this rash guard in with the rest of my usual Jiu-Jitsu laundry and it was none the worse for wear. It suffered little to no shrink and, because the logos are sublimated, there was no design flake to speak of. However, the next time I wore the product, I noted a bit of scratch around the neck and wonder if this could be a sign of things to come based on the craftsmanship issues mentioned earlier.
Overall:
If it weren’t for the poor craftsmanship of this rash guard, I would have no issue with it. It wears comfortably, is cut well and doesn’t shrink in the wash; the extra-long length doesn’t ride up after intense drilling and it is of a neat and clean design.
That said, craftsmanship is one of the most important aspects of purchasing any product and I wouldn’t recommend putting 65 hard-earned dollars down just to have seam issues the first time you wear your new rash guard. If Submission FC can get past these issues, fix their seams and ensure each product shipped is of the highest caliber, I can see this becoming a regular rash guard in my rotation.
