Fushida CompRS - Review

Fushida is a Canadian company, they started out making making Judo kimonos and have been making BJJ kimonos for a few years now, the CompRS aims to take over as their flagship line from the highly regarded and praised CompGS. I already own a CompGS and personally rated it as the finest kimono available on the market, especially in terms of fitting and build quality. With the only drawback being the cotton drill pant weight of 12oz being too much and the lining being scratchy after long periods of training, nonetheless the CompGS was in my opinion the best BJJ gi available on the market. Can the CompRS replace it? I have no ties to Fushida...

Order

The CompRS is available in white, blue or black. You can select your size from Fushida's online size chart and by discussion with their management. Essentially they offer sizes for all body shapes. If you order a CompRS it will be posted from Canada to you, so you can expect a fairly hefty postage fee and possibly import tax depending on our country. The kimono costs approximately £100 pounds, exclusive of shipping and import tax. In total the kimono cost me about £170, so it's not cheap. You can save some money by ordering the slightly cheaper white kimono, as opposed to blue or black. 

I ordered a white a2x kimono and received it after 3 weeks. The kimono came with a fabric bag to store the kimono in.

Fitting

As soon as the kimono arrived I tried it on after tearing the parcel apart, Christmas comes early. The main strength, and it's a considerable strength, is the fitting of the kimono. Aside from the CompGS I have never come across a kimono that fits so well, I believe that both kimonos use the exact same size charts, aside from the CompRS having a slightly longer skirt. The excellent fit from the CompRS, like the CompGS, comes from rounded armpits unlike the usual straight connection. This allows the fabric to come much closer around the shoulder and arm, essentially there is less free fabric around the shoulders and the jacket fits like a glove. Compared to popular brands the CompRS fits like a tailored suit vs a super-market suit. The trousers too fit well, they taper towards the ankle and allow free comfortable movement in all positions. Literally everything is perfect with the fit, every dimension and every factor. 

Reinforcement

Triple reinforcement at all the usual joints, strong and clean stitching. Heavy reinforcement patching at all stress points. Especially durable at cuffs, ankles and at the bottom of the skirt. The collar is also amongst the thickest I have ever seen, a plus in my book, and the inner jacket seam is covered by a non-scratch lining strip. The jacket is made from pearl weave and the pants from 10oz drill cotton, this is a strong yet light weight combination. The pants are secured by a thick rope drawstring, which in turn is secured to the pants by 4 thick loop holes. The pants ain't coming undone and nor will there be any rips. The pants are made entirely from drill cotton, the CompGS used a pearl weave gusset which has been replaced with normal cotton. The shins and knees have extra reinforcement and an extra layer of cotton to protect against abrasion. Solid and durable design, and even under close scrutiny for any flaws I could find none. Top standard.

Design

The CompRS follows on from the CompGS with design, very little has changed aside from the pant weight and the gusset material. Aesthetically the colours of the Fushida logo on the sleeves have changed, but that's it really. The simple design of the CompGS has been used in the CompRS, perhaps it'd have been nice to change the design, but I still find it attractive. The gi uses exclusively embroidery, aside from labels, embroidery is found on the shoulders, shin and top of the back. I prefer embroidery to patchwork so this is an added bonus. Although this means you cannot remove the designs, which you may wish to do. My only complaint really is that the CompRS doesn't come in navy blue, my favourite colour for gis. The CompRS satisfies the international competition standards of the IBJJF.

Performance 

Upon reviewing this kimono I'd been rolling in it for 3 weeks. Literally have nothing but praise for it. The reinforcements have held together, the snug fit hasn't restricted me at all, the gi remains comfortable, it's easy to wash and colours don't run, it doesn't shrink. Perfect! It's now my first choice from the pile of clean gis and will be replacing my CompGS as my competition gi.

Conclusion

A new king has arrived. The CompRS has got to be the best kimono on the market, nothing I have ever seen or worn can rival this for fitting and it rivals anything for build quality. With the CompGS now in second place it's hard to see how to improve upon the new number 1. Whatever comes next though at least needs to match this, and all other companies should take note of what can be done, this is the relatively unknown Rolls Royce of BJJ Kimonos. If Fushida can make this more accessible to customers in Europe, S. America and Asia then they will make themselves a lot of happy customers. Literally the first kimono I've ever seen that's flawless, maybe it will weaken over time, but it doesn't appear to be slowing! If you can justify the price you will not be disappointed.

Overall Score: 9/10 (surely it can't actually be perfect?! I scored a 9 hear because of the unoriginal design and difficulty in obtaining one if you are in the North Americas)

Build Quality and design: 8/10 (very well made and well reinforced, however the copied design from CompGS subtracts points for lack of originality, but I'm just being very picky)

Fit: 10/10 (the best available, given the size chart and service from Fushida)

Performance: 9/10 (cannot be faulted, personally I preferred the shorter skirt of the CompGS, otherwise it'd be a 10/10)

The inside jacket label, the moto 'in spiritu et vertiate' is also found on the back

Shoulder embroidery, same on both sides

Inside the gi, this red stripe is for aesthetic reasons and runs down the collar

The super heavy reinforcement found at the hips of the jacket, triple reinforcing

The cuff reinforcement, very robust

Ankle reinforcement, like the cuff reinforcement.

Drawstring and drawstring loops, secure and tight fitting