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drew
2nd June 2000, 20:44
Does anyone know if there are good uniforms available in the United States ? It seems like a major pain to uniforms from Ozaki and I don't even know where to get a Maekawa !

Gary Dolce
3rd June 2000, 02:20
Hi Drew,

Didn't we just see other a few days ago?

Interesting question about uniforms. We have ordered from Ozaki several times in the past and on my last trip to Japan, I shipped back a supply of Maekawa uniforms. Ordering isn't so hard if you have someone who can communicate in Japanese. But the exchange rate, shipping costs, and duty can make the cost outrageous. I would also be interested in a source of high quality Shorinji Kempo style dogi's that weren't so expensive. Anyone out there have other sources?

By the way Drew, I still have a few Maekawa dogi's if you want to pick one up next time you pass by this way.

drew
3rd June 2000, 23:07
Gary,

On Monday I was in a state of delirium due to exhaustion so I'm not really sure who I might have seen ! :-) just kidding !

Seriously, I would be interested in a Maekawa gi if you have a size 5 in stock. Could I pay you for the gi plus shipping & handling since I won't be in A2 for a few months ?

I talked to Michael about using Tokaido gi's http://www.doshinmartialarts.com/ what do you think ? I think they look right but they are pretty expensive. I post any new information that I find.

Anders Pettersson
4th June 2000, 16:09
Hi,
Can't really answer your question but have some other info that might be of interest to some kenshi out there.

I don't know where to find good dogi in the USA, but for kenshi here in Sweden I usually recommend to by some ordinary Karate-gi when they start. That is far cheaper. When they have practiced for a while most kenshi want to have a proper Shorinji Kempo Dogi, so we try to order from Japan or if somebody is over there for training camp etc., they buy and bring some dogi back home. But as Gary mentioned it can be quite expensive with the import tax etc.

Besides Ozaki, there is as mentioned above also Maekawa but there is also another brand called Isami. (Isami is sold by the Darumado shop in Tadotsu and Zentsuji, but I think it is also possible to order direct from Isami, but I don't have their address.)

Maekawa is by far the cheapest dogi of the three, they usually gives you a discount when buying direct in Tadotsu. Maekawa also cut the dogi for free if you want. Ozaki might charge extra for that, I'm not sure. Isami takes 1000 yen extra to cut the length of trousers.

In my opinion the Isami dogi "SK90" is the best quality, but also most expensive. It can be alright if you by it "on location" but if ordering it, at least from Sweden, can be very expensive with the import tax etc.
The addresses of the companies are as follows (I also added the address in Japanese for those of you that have Japanese fonts installed on your computer):

Ozaki Co., Ltd.
7-4 Higashihama, Tadotsu-cho, Nakatado-gun, Kagawa, 764-0016 Japan
Tel: 0877-33 3567, Fax: 0120-30 5860
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Maekawa shoten
9-17 Naka no machi, Tadotsu-cho, Nakatado-gun, Kagawa-ken, 764-0004 Japan
‘O?ì?¤“X
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Darumado (Isami)
2-18-12 Ikanohon machi, Zentsuji-shi, Kagawa-ken, 765-0014 Japan
Tel: 0877-62 0727, Fax: 0877-63 3456
‚¾‚é‚Ü“°
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I never found any dogi besides these three that I like. Anybody knows any brand in Europe that sells god Dogi?

Anders
Karlstad Shibu, Sweden
www.shorinji-kempo.org (http://www.shorinji-kempo.org)

Joseph Svinth
7th June 2000, 04:38
The Japanese uniforms run about $200-285. My personal suspicion is that the Japanese have them made in Pakistan, where they retail for about $25, and then send them to Japan for quality control, new labels, and a ten-fold increase in price. (That's what the Dutch do with those genuine Dutch bulbs -- many begin life in the Skagit Valley of Washington State -- so why not the Japanese with judogi?)

Anyway, see, for example, http://www.agateimpex.com.pk

NOTE: I have not done business with these people so have no opinion about the quality of the goods or the service. Still, at the price, I'd say these people, or others like them, are worth checking out.

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Joe
http://ejmas.com

Gary Dolce
7th June 2000, 22:13
Joe,

I guess I should re-evaluate my thoughts about what is an outrageous price to pay for a gi! http://216.10.1.92/ubb/smile.gif

Actually, I need to clarify - Shorinji Kempo gi are not the same as judogi. Shorinji Kempo gi are much lighter in weight than judogi but heavier than the karate gi that I have commonly seen in stores here. There are also some style differences - for example, Shorinji Kempo gi tend to have slightly shorter sleeves to expose the wrists for grabs. In general karate gi would be OK except for the sleeve length (we also don't use the inside ties commonly found in karate gi). But the quality of karate gi's that I have seen here in the US is much lower than the Shorinji Kempo gi's we purchase from Japan.

Anyway, I typically order 20-25 at a time for members of my Branch. After shipping costs, duty, and exchange rate adjustments, cost is typically $80-$95 (US) per gi, which is a lot to many of my students. Of course students have the option of buying a cheaper karate gi.

Thanks for the web site info - I will check it out.



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Gary Dolce
Ann Arbor Branch
World Shorinji Kempo Organization