Per Manufacturer-

Triple layer foam padding, This gloves provides complete protection for both the fist and wrist, features a unique double strap, safety strap closing system that offers the utmost in security and support. Attached padded thumbs, soft poly/nylon lining for quick drying.

First Impression- Like many things from Ring to Cage I was really looking forward to trying these gloves out. They looked well put together, and had the usual green colors that Ring to Cage is known for.

Construction-I have looked at so many different pairs of gloves and have seen so many levels of construction. I would put these gloves at the higher end of that spectrum. While they are not the best gloves that I have seen or tested they are build very well. There is no loose threading and all of the stitching is done very well. The leather on them is pretty stiff, but these are bag gloves so that was to be expected. Something on these that you wont find on every glove is a dual closure system. In this glove it is done well, but I will get more into that in the “fit” section of this review. The lining on the inside of this glove is soft, and feels good against the hand.

Fit-The fit of these was just okay for me. If you have read some of my previous reviews you know that I have smaller hands, and these gloves were even a little tight on me. The lining on the inside of the gloves did a good job at wicking away the moisture, but at the same time made my hands feel hot. Now onto the closure system. For me I thought that it was just okay. I have tried other gloves with this same style of closure system, and sometimes it works and sometimes it does not. This was one of those times where it was just in the middle. What I mean by that is while it was comfortable I do not know if having the extra strap really made that much difference in the wrist support.

Pad/Mitts- I tried these out just like I would any other glove in the three stand up areas I normally would. First is Pads and Mitts. These gloves are really not designed for this so the be perfectly honest I gave them a little time on the mitts, and moved on. The reason is that there are other gloves that I like so much more for this and really wanted to get to what these gloves were intended on being used for. If someone were to ask me if I like these for using with mitts or pads I would simply tell them,”Ehh.”

Heavy Bag- Here is what these gloves are designed for, the heavy bag. I strapped them on and got to work. They feel pretty good during the workout although like I mentioned before my hands would get hotter then when I have used other gloves. The wrist support was good, but not the best that I have ever used, and the padding did exactly what it is suppose to do when making contact with the bag. Was there anything that I really did not like about these gloves, no they work well at what they are designed to do. They have a good weight to them(12oz) which adds to your workout, but does not make them feel bulky, and found it easy to make a fist without my hand becoming fatigued half way into my workout.

Sparring- Really all I can say is do not use them for this. Not only is the padding to dense to begin with, but with all that work on the heavy bag they are only going to get harder. Do your training partner a favor and leave these for the bag.

Pros-

*Great Construction

*Good Design

Cons-

*Tight hand compartment

*Need better ventilation

Overall-Really what it comes down to is do I recommend these gloves or not. If you are looking for a solid pair of bag gloves then I say yes. If you are looking for a more well rounded glove that you could use in many different types of drills then maybe you should look at something else however you can still look at Ring to Cage as they have many different gloves to choose from. These gloves can be purchased for right around $55.

Click here to buy Ring to Cage Safety Strap Bag Gloves

**Disclaimer** I received these at no cost for the purpose of review and received no payment from the company to do the review.

Here it is almost the end of 2010 and I know what you are thinking. I have all this extra cash left over after Christmas and I need to buy some new mma gear. Well what are you waiting for? There is tons of great gear out there and I am going to take you through what I think is some of the best of the year. Whether you are thinking shorts or gloves, mouthguard or gi, or ever just a new hoodie I got you covered. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy a look at what I think are the best of 2010, and with 2011 coming up I can not wait to see what is just around the corner.

I think the best way to do this is I am going to present this in portions… first up shorts.

SHORTS

Every one of us that is a hardcore gear addict knows this is the staple of our addiction. You can never have too many pairs of mma shorts. I know that I can’t, and just continue to get them no matter how many pairs that I have. As new stuff comes out, I must have to have it. These are just a couple examples of the shorts that I have reviewed that I think are ones that you should not live without.

Sprawl Fusion-S Shorts  

These are really some of the best shorts out on the market. With almost every key feature combined into one short this is surely not a pair that you will want to pass up.
Click here to go to my review of Sprawl Fusion S Shorts

Clinch Gear Elite Shorts

I am sure that you have seen these around. They are some of the best shorts out there. With top notch quality and customer service to match these shorts should not be passed up on.
Click here to go to my review of Clinch Gear Elite Shorts

Jaco Resurgence MMA Fight Shorts

One of the most innovative shorts out there. These will be sure to get you through those long workouts, and hey they are Jaco so you really cant go wrong. Speaking of Jaco be sure and check out there vale tudo shorts.
Click here to go to my review of Jaco Resurgence MMA Fight Shorts

Hayabusa Competition White Shiai Fight Shorts

I just finished my review of these and they are a last minute addition just due to how good these shorts are. Really a fantastic pair of shorts that should not be overlooked.
Click here to go to my review of Hayabusa Competition White Shiai Fight Shorts

Now for the underdog pair of shorts….

PrimeTime Ltd Edition Fight Shorts

You know these are really a very quality pair of shorts. With really nothing wrong with them, they are extremely hard to pass us. Be sure if you are looking to get some new shorts you take a look at these.
Click here to go to my review of PrimeTime Ltd Edition Fight Shorts

Feel like there is something that I should add? Maybe you think your shorts should be here. Well do not feel bad. These are just the ones that I really feel like were ahead of the others. Plenty of other sections to go so don’t get your jockstrap in a bind just yet.

Per Manufacturer-

-Shin instep protection designed for the grappler.

-Neoprene support secures the guard to the feet and shins.

-With 2 hook-and-loop straps hug your leg for a secure fit

-Leather striking areas.

-Medium fits up to 140 lbs. Large fits 140 to 185 lbs. XL for 185 lbs. plus.

First Impression- These look great. The construction looks top notch and the padding felt thick. Could not wait to get in the gym and try these out.

Construction- The construction of these shin pads is great. There were no loose threads, and the padding is thick. The logo on the front of the shin pad is stitched on, while the logos on the side are screen printed on. The leather feels thick and is not stretched to tight across the shin pads and the leather piping that goes around the shin pad is well done. The closure system is an elastic strap that goes around your foot and two straps that Velcro together behind the back of your leg. These are manufactured in Pakistan.

Fit- I was a little concerned with how these were going to fit as I usually prefer the type of shin pads that have a full backing as opposed to the two hook and loop straps, at least for mma. Well just in overall fit they are great. These come precurved which is nice, and the material on the inside of them feels very comfortable. There is plenty of adjustability with the straps so that you can get it tight around your leg. These shin guards come up to right under your knee and do a good job at covering up and protecting your foot.

Training- Here is where the real bread and butter of this review is. First I will go into stand up. I really liked these for strand up. They stayed tight to my leg, and they shifted very little. Worked great through out my entire workout. Provided plenty of protection to my shin and instep. Now as far as the grappling part goes these did not quite work as well for me. I have smaller legs so someone with bigger calf’s these might work better. Sometimes while on the ground they would shift some, but never to the point of flipping around. There were also a couple of times in a scramble the Velcro straps came undone. Just some things to keep in mind depending on why you might be getting these.

Pros-

*Great Construction

*Good Fit

*Excellent for striking

Cons-

*Not the best for smaller legs

*Descent performance on ground

Overall- While these are called grappling shin pads I just feel that they are considerably better for stand up than grappling. However, they are a good pair of overall shin pads and something that I can recommend. If you are in the market for a new pair of shin pads, be sure and take a look at these before you make your final decision. They can be purchased for right around $55.

(Recommended)

Click here to buy Ring to Cage Hook&Loop Grappling Shin instep

**Disclaimer** I received these at no cost for the purpose of review and received no payment from the company to do the review.

Per Manufacturer-

Per Manufacturer-

Per Manufacturer-

Classic Thai style, evenly distributed padding protects your entire hand, tight and compact design.
Shock-absorbing, high density foam core, Thumb attached for added safety

First Impression- These gloves look very nice and I really like the color combination that is used. The leather feels nice and they look well constructed. Lets see how they hold up.

Construction- When I first saw these gloves I was immediately impressed by the construction. They have little to no loose threads and they are double stitched at all the stress points. The leather is thick but not is not stretched to tight over the padding. I got the 16oz version of these gloves and the weight of them feels about on par with most 16oz gloves. They have holes in the palm for ventilation, and the interior lining has a satin feel to it. These gloves are manufactured in Pakistan. The padding in these gloves is thick and is soft which is perfect in s sparring style glove like these. The cuff of these gloves is short more like classic thai glove rather than the longer cuff of a western style glove. The logo on the back of the hand compartment is screen printed on while the one on the closure strap is sewn on. Speaking of closure these gloves have a standard hook and loop style closure system.

Fit- Like I mentioned I got the 16oz version of this glove and while most 16oz gloves are semi-tight to loose on me these gloves are very tight. These are the only glove I have had that I could not fit on my hands with wraps. There are both positives and negatives to this. The tight fit is nice, but maybe not give the support that you need. It is also harder to make a fist in this glove. The gloves are more open handed like a thai glove which works great for clinch work, but makes closing this fist more difficult than I feel like it should be. The ventilation in these gloves is okay. I feel like once again due to the hand compartment being so tight you just cant get the air to your hands, although the vents in the palm do help. The wrist support is good due to the hook and loop closure being so tight around wrist. The lining on the inside of the gloves feels good and does an okay job and wicking the moisture away from your hand. Now this just may be my pair of gloves, but in the finger are on the indie of the glove the fabric was wadded up like there may have been too much and made it a little uncomfortable on my fingers, but like I mentioned that may have just been my pair so no knock down for that.

Pad/Mitt- These gloves did an okay job at mitt and pad work. The shock absorption was descent. Through some of the workouts I found my hands to become a little fatigued just because it is a little difficult to make a fist. I also noticed that with these gloves my hands would be come very hot. I just think that is because they are so tight. Normally I like my gloves nice and tight but these were to the point of almost being uncomfortable. I do not even want to imagine how hot my hands would become if these did not have any holes for ventilation. One of the good things about these gloves is the wrist support.

Heavy Bag- I did not really like these on the heavy bag. I could feel the a lot of the impact through the gloves. After some of my workouts my hands were sore. Now I did try the bag both with and without wraps which is something that I do not normally like to do, but because of how tight these gloves where I wanted to see if it made a huge difference. Well, it did make a difference. When wearing wraps these gloves were just not comfortable and making fist became very hard. When not wearing wraps it made it better than with wraps, but like I mentioned my hands would hurt after long workouts. The padding in these gloves is not meant for use on a heavy bag, but the name does say sparring gloves.

Sparring- This is where I think that these gloves did the best. Still felt about the same as they did in the other categories, but because the padding is softer I feel like these gloves work better for sparring. I did not receive any complaints from sparring partners, and for the most part felt good. still difficult to make a fist, but a positive of that was keeping the hand open for the clinch was pretty easy. However I felt like the wrists were too tight sometimes when I would have people in the clinch as I could not get as much movement as I like sometimes. I could cover up pretty well with these, and they did a good job at absorbing the shock from partners punches. This is definitely where I think these gloves work the best.

Pros-

*Good Construction

*Good Wrist Support

Cons-

*Very Tight

* Soft Padding

Overall- I continue to have mixed feelings about these gloves. They work well at sparring, but that is really all I wanted to use them for once I tried them in other areas. I do not think that it is a defect in the glove I just think that they have a very specific purpose and that makes them hard to recommend. If you are looking for a pure sparring glove and have small hands then give these a look, otherwise I would say you might find better somewhere else. Which is unfortunate as everything else I have used from Ring to Cage has been top notch. These can be purchased for right around $70.

Click here to buy Ring to Cage Thai-Style Sparring Gloves

**Disclaimer** I received these at no cost for the purpose of review and received no payment from the company to do the review.

Per Manufacturer-

*Loose fit grappling short made from of polyester fabric.
*Super stretch inseam and side panels for ultimate flexibility.
*Great for training and competition.
*Shorts also include bi-directional adjustable waistband system with internal drawstring.
*Full cut to accommodate protective cup, with 6″ split outseams.
*Adjustable waistband design, and internal drawstring that provides secure fit, reducing shifting during ground fighting.

First Impression- I pulled these out the box and I really liked the way they looked. They felt nice and I could not wait to work out in them.

Construction- The construction of these shorts is good. They have very few loose threads, and are double and triple stitched at all of the stress points. The closure system on this particular pair of shorts is a standard hook and loop style system, but they do have an elastic waistband for plenty of adjustability. They have stretch panels on both the inseam and the outside of the legs to provide extra range of motion. All of the logos are embroidered and they are kept to a minimum leaving the shorts with a nice clean look. The colors of these shorts are done well, while the shorts themselves are made of 100% polyester. There is a drawstring which should provide a tight fit, and they have a split seam on the outside of each leg. They are made in Pakistan.

Fit- With shorts that have an elastic waistband I am not too worried about the waist is going to fit because there is plenty of room for adjustment so I got these in a size 30- they fit perfectly. Now these shorts are on the shorter side of most shorts falling just around mid thigh level. These shorts feel very light weight, and the waistband closes up with a nice and tight fit. One thing I noticed about the closure system of the shorts is that the ruff side of the Velcro faces toward you so sometimes I found that it would irritate my stomach area. I could easily wear a cup with these(which should be a must anyway)and the lining of these shorts on the inside is very soft.

Stand Up- While doing stand up these shorts felt excellent. They almost had the feeling of muay thai type shorts. I have no problem with any sort of technique. The waistband stays very snug and there was no shifting or riding up. The split seams provided a huge range of motion in combination with the fact that the legs are a little shorter than most shorts. These shorts also stayed dry during training and did not soak up much sweat which kept them feeling light in weight. Like I mentioned before the only real problem I had with these is the Velcro did scratch up my stomach, so either a revision where the ruff Velcro faces outward or they had a fold over the top style closure system would correct this problem.

Ground- When doing ground work such as submission wrestling I am just, “okay” with these shorts. When doing stand up the shortness of these shorts was a benefit, well on the ground I did not find the same result. The legs would ride up a lot, of course if I was in a top position it was not that bad. However if I was on my back, such as having someone in my guard these shorts would ride up to the point where it looked like all I was wear was the compression shorts that I had on underneath them. On a positive note the waistband is great. It stays very tight and these was no shifting from side to side. The range of motion in these is great, had no problems with any technique such as rubber guard or any sort of sweeps.

Pros-

*Construction

*Waistband

*Muay thai feel for stand up

Cons-

*Ruff side of Velcro faces toward you

*Short length of legs causes them to ride up

Overall- These are a pretty good pair of shorts. Their construction is great and the waistband is a prime example of what a waistband should be like. However there are enough small problems to keep them out of the elite category. If these things got fixed they could move to the highly recommended tier, but for not all I can do is just recommend them. If you are looking for a middle of the road pair of shorts that still offer plenty of features then take a look at these. They can be purchased for right around $50.

(Recommended)

Click here to buy Ring to Cage Deluxe Board Shorts

**Disclaimer** I received these at no cost for the purpose of review and received no payment from the company to do the review.

Per Manufacturer-

The most popular MMA training glove.
Ideal for both training and competition
Open palms.
Weighs 6oz.
Thumb and palm made of neoprene for extra comfort.
Extra wide velcro wrist strap for extra support.
Lightweight, but with thicker padding than other hybrid training gloves.
Made of genuine leather

First Impression- I got these gloves and when I first pulled them out of the box I thought that they seemed to be a little bulky. The fit was good, but still felt bulky. I guess we will see in training how they are.

Construction- One thing that I did notice is how well these gloves are constructed. There were no loose threads and all the leather piping is done well. They do have a screen printed logo across the knuckles which I think over time will come off, but they also have a stitched on logo down on the wrist strap. The padding on these is nice and thick. The lining inside these gloves is very soft. These gloves have a very long wrist strap, which is nice because it feels like it provides better wrist protection. The leather is thick and seems like it will be quite durable. These gloves weigh in at 6oz and are manufactured in Pakistan.

Fit- I got these gloves in a medium which is the smallest size that they make and the fit I would classify as pretty good. They are snug in the fingers, but the wrist is a little loose and to get it tight I really had to make the strap bunch up. It also feels like the gloves themselves are too long for my hand as there is some movement when I actually hit something like a thai pad. However it is easy to make a fist in these and palm of them feel comfortable. It is also easy to grab, which makes grappling very easy. With these gloves, like many other mma gloves they have that small pocket that forms on the outside of your hand when making a fist. I have never had a problem with this, but I have many people tell me that they have hand other people get their fingers stuck in that pocket.

Stand Up- These gloves worked well at stand up. I tried them on the heavy bag just for the sake of seeing how they would perform, and while they did better than 4oz gloves this is not what I would recommend them for. I also tried them with thai pads. On thai pads they moved a little too much on impact. Once I hit the pads a couple times though this seemed to lessen, like they were just shifting into the right position. When using these on mitts they worked well, this was probably my favorite place using them. They provided plenty of shock absorption, and good wrist protection. However I did have to really pull the wrist strap tight to get it to feel right. During sparring I still felt like I could not go full strength with these, even though the padding is good and there is plenty of it, it still feels quite hard. Had no issues with any sort of technique as far as being in a clinch or being to stop a take down. For the most part these gloves felt good for stand up, lets see how they are on the ground.

Ground- I actually think I liked these gloves better for ground work. Felt very comfortable and could easily grab and hold. I was a little worried that I would have some trouble sinking in some submissions, but the only one that gave me any kind of problem was a rear naked choke. The other thing that you have to watch out with these gloves is your opponent grabbing them as they are bigger than a 4oz glove. Ground and pound felt good in these, but still felt as if I should not go full strength. The padding on these is kind of stiff, but it does do a good job at protecting your hands. It was easy to open you hand all the way and place it flat on the mat. I have had gloves in the past that are difficult to do this with due to them being a pre curved glove.

Pros-

*Good Construction

*Lots of Padding

*Work well as a hybrid glove

Cons-

*Padding is a bit stiff

*Could fit better

*Not for heavy bag

Overall- These a good pair of gloves. They do a lot of things right. If you are looking for a pair gloves that you can use for almost any type of training then these might be a pair you want to take a look at. While the fit could be a little better and the padding is stiff, they do more right than wrong. With good construction from a company that is constantly coming out with quality products I can give these gloves a  recommendation. They can be picked up for right around$65.

(Recommended)

Click here to buy Ring to Cage Hybrid Training Gloves

**Disclaimer** I received these at no cost for the purpose of review and received no payment from the company to do the review.

Per Manufacturer-

*High quality, genuine leather shell with dense foam core.
*Gloves double-stitched on back.
*Slightly curved to fit the natural contour of the palm.
*Slip-on style hand compartment securely and comfortably anchors the mitts to your hands.
*Extra protection for wrists, forearms, hands and fingers.
*Measures 10″ x 8″ x 2.0″

First Impression- When I first pulled these out of the box I was very pleased to see them. They looked very well constructed and I loved the colors. The initial fit was good. Lets see how they perform.

Construction- The construction on these mitts is great. They leather on them is top notch and they have an excellent feel to them. I do not have the exact break down on the material used, but everything on them is of high quality. All the stitching is is done well and in all the right places including double stitching in places where there would be added stress. They are manufactured in Pakistan. They have a screen printed logo on the hitting surface and I feel like over time that it will fade. They also have 2 more logos on the reverse side. Both of these logos are stitched on so I do not feel like they will be going anywhere.

Fit- The fit of these mitts for me is great. The hand compartment is very comfy and has a fairly tight fit. I would imagine that if you have large hands that these might have a tight fit. They do a good job at keeping your hand cool and not to moist. The inside of the hand compartment is form fitting and has separate spaces for each of your fingers. Something I noticed is the angle they keep your hand and wrist. They also have plenty of padding at the wrist area to absorb some of the shock from being hit. I did not become fatigued while wearing them.  

Training- I used these with both 4oz mma gloves and boxing gloves. They worked well for both. When using the mma glove these mitts are a little stiff, but they do work. I did not find that my hands hurt after using the mma gloves on them. While wearing boxing gloves these are excellent mitts. They are stiff enough to hit but not even close to hurting your hand. They provide a fairly big target to hit. While wearing them they are quite comfortable. They have plenty of padding and it is hard enough that it absorbs most of the shock. They also have plenty of wrist support. What I mean by that is there is a nice bit of padding down by the wrist that not only hold your hand and wrist at the right angle but also is very soft and absorbs most of the shock to the wrist. My hands while wearing them did not get to hot or sweaty because there  is plenty of ventilation through the back of the hand compartment. They are also light weight. I could move with them very easy and still throw jabs or other punches to have my partner avoid and counter.

Pros-

*Quality

*Fit for smaller to medium hands

*Shock absorbing

Cons-

*Could be tight on some

*Screen printed logo on palm area

Overall- I can say that I would recommend these. They are high quality and really work great at what they are designed to do. If you are in the market for mitts for either your home gym or taking to the gym with you make sure and give these a look. If you have larger hands you might want to try something else, but other than that these are a great pair of mitts. They go for around $90.

Click here to buy Ring to Cage Curved Punch Mitts

**Disclaimer** I received this at no cost for the purpose of review

Per Manufacturer- 

*High-quality, shock-absorbing, extra thick foam padding.
*All made of leather with leather lining with soft padding at top.
*Large, padded earpieces. Additional face protection with cheek and even more chin padding for front and underside for the jaw.
*This is also being used for MMA/combat sports training..

First Impression- I have used many different types of headgear before ranging from ones that protect your whole face and chin to ones which are much smaller and are more like your competition style. When I first pulled this out I was extremely please as it looked like excellent quality and I loved the colors.

Construction- The construction of this headgear is top notch. All of the stitching is very well done and the leather is nice and thick. The color of the leather is nicely done and does not appear as if it is going to fade anytime soon. The padding is put in all the right places and as you can see this model is designed to protect both you cheeks and your chin. The padding around the chin is very stiff while most of the other padding through out this head gear is on the softer side. There are two logos. One on the front which is sewn on, and one on the back which is screen printed on. The headgear is manufactured in Pakistan. The headgear itself is fairly light weight.

Fit- I have never really found a way to define what size headgear will fit and what will not as it seems to be different from manufacture to manufacture. This ones happens to be a large, and on me it fits quite well. Everything is nice and tight around my face so if I am hit it does not move. The way you put this on is fairly similar to most that do not have laces in which there is just Velcro in the back that all sticks together. Once on it is as comfortable as headgear can be. One this I did notice is on the inside over time can become a little bit irritating. Like I said though for headgear it is comfortable. I did not have any vision problems like I have had with other head gear, but I tend to keep my head a little lower than some and look more out towards the tops of my eyes instead of straight on.

Sparring- This is what I was looking forward to. How was it going to preform once I got hit. Well the answer is… Great. It has cushioning in all the right places to keep you protected. I really like how well the chin could absorb the shock of a punch. I used this in both muay thai and mma sparring and for both is worked out great. As always you have to watch out for fingers to the eyes, but should be doing that wearing headgear or not. It was not to heavy but I did find it to be a little bit bulky. However I did not find it to get in the way and only a few times did I have to readjust it. Like I mentioned before though after some time of wearing it the inside did irritate my forehead. Other then that one minor problem this is an excellent piece of equipment.

Pros-

*Craftsmanship

*Fit

*Shock Absorbing

Cons-

 *A Little Bulky

*Sometimes would irritate my forehead

Overall- If you are in the market for new headgear and are looking for full face protection then think about picking up this one. With its excellent craftsmanship and good looks I think this is one of the better headgears out there. It retails for right around $85. This is something that I can definitely recommend.

Click here to buy Ring to Cage Headgear

**Disclaimer** I received this at no cost for the purpose of review