OUS!
why buy a satin black belt over a cotton belt? i would assume that a satin belt looks better and thats about it but i could be wrong.

also i have been to the kamikazi and tokaido web sights and man are they expensive. when i originally earned my belt back in the 80s it was given to me and it was embroidered. can any one point me to a distributer that i do not have to chop of my arm to buy a good belt pls.

mike

Karatedepot.com has gotten good reviews from several members here. May want to check them out. -------->

Had a Shureido BB. It was hell to keep tied and wore through rather quickly. In about two years time it looked like my cotton Shureido belt did after ten years use, more white than black.

I've had good luck with both Shureido and Mejin in cotton.

i looked at the shureido web site earlier but did not see and price list, i will call them. i subscribe to the magazine that sells meijin. you stated you have had good luck with meijin, i might go that route to. i also looked at the karatedepot.com and i love there prices. i just do not want to get a belt that wears out to fast and like you said i want it to stay tied. i was really curious about the satin belts as my last belt was cotton. i have seen some of my instructors wear them and they did look nice. i just never asked them about the difference between satin or cotton.

mike

I have the satin shureido black belt, and agree that they do show wear, but not too quickly I think.

I had my sho-dan for five years and the only wear was at the knot, and on either hip where my elbows rub when I punch. I have seen the more white than black look youre talking about though.

When I was presented with my nii-dan I anticipated it coming untied 5 seconds after knotting it so I gave it an extra tug and right away saw some of the white underneath start showing through. That was on the first day of wearing it.

So I think they start wearing quickly but if you take care of them then they will only wear at the knot. I kind of like the worn look anyway. After five years I had all my wear patches memorized on my sho-dan so it was a bit weird to get a totally black belt again.

so what i am getting out of this is satin wears more then cotton. satin is probably better for instructing while cotton is better for training. thanks for the input i just ordered a cotton obi from meijin.

mike

$7.00 BB cotton, worn it for years. I have Meijin and Tokaido, prefer $7.00 cotton BB.

I might be too late but I'll throw in my 2 cents.

1. a satin belt is more for ego because it's all shiney.
2. because it doesn't wear well, it gets white faster & gives the impression that the wearer has had his BB for a long time...again, ego
3. a satin belt is slipperier & therefore doesn't stay tied
4. a good cotton belt is my choice - I currently have a Shureido (not the really wide one). Tokkaido & Shureido both have good embroidery but they're a bit pricey but hey, how long will you be wearing it?
5. I discourage the Kamikaze (& other similar knock-offs) because their embroidery is cheap quality - they embroider through the belt then cover the embroidery on the back side w/ black thread. Shuriedo & Tokkaido start w/ an unfinnished belt, embroider the characters & then close the back of the belt thus hiding the backwards characters. The lengthwise stiching that goes through the characters is authentic. I don't know what Meijin does.
6. Finally, get the advice if a native Japanese-speaker who knows Kanji well before you choose the characters. If all you need is the Katakana script (for foreign - non-Japanese names/words), it's not that critical. You don't want to accidentally imply that you "sell donkey fingers" or something because you used the wrong Kanji.

BTW: My Tokkaido (1994 - 2Dan) started unraveling in one edge faster than my fellow student's who received his @ the same time but has managed to stay together really well. I'm now wearing the Shureido which feels sturdier than the Tokkaido ever did. My choice is Shuriedo.

I disagree about satin belts being egotistical. My belt was given to me and had I declined to wear it because of its "shine" I would have looked ridiculously ungrateful. Nothing ego driven about that choice.

i want thank you all for input on the manner of belts. i canceled my order with meijin and went to a local martial art store today and bought an adidas bb. i did tear off the tag but the belt will do and it seems to be well stitched and well made for a cotten belt.

i went to class last night wearing my white belt again and one of the dans was like why are you still wearing a white belt. i explained its customary to wear a white obi when entering a new school and i would only wear a bb if the instructor asks. i also stated a belt is a belt, the belt does not make me a better mm only i can do that. the instructor agreed and asked me to wear a bb next class.

i was also told i would be testing for nidan next not having to test for my shodan again. this made a difference in my thinking as i will get a belt through my assn. and have it emroidered from them.


thanks again, this made for an interesting and informative post for me.

mike

Just talking about buying one for yourself...of course you couldn't refuse. Long story short...Satin is harder to keep tied.