Hello all, I started Aikido after years off of martial arts do to health issue's, at 50. I have been looking for Gi's and am leaning toward either Pirahna or Inverted Gear (gotta love the panda). They appear to be quality Gi. My question is, are they too much for Aikido, or should I get a "cheaper" model (suggestions)?
Start with cheap, and spend more only as you stay with it. The instructors and senior students at your dojo can advise you on local sources for entry gis. Some aikido schools even stock entry-level gis for the new students to buy. I'm not familiar with Pirahna but it looks fine; Inverted is too pricey (I think) for a beginner. As an alternative, judogis (that's plural) .com single weave are fine for aikido and cost even less. E-bogu is another source at the same price range.
Inverted and piranha are bjj / grappling gis, and as such unsuitible for aikido and also against school rules. You'd be best off asking the dojo what they suggest for sikido and going from there.
What do you mean "against school rules"? I've never been at an aikido school where the instructors said, "No judo gis! No BJJ gis!" That said, double-weave grappling gis are not a good choice for aikido.
Most aikido schools are conservative, and general want a white, unadorned aikido keikogi. So a colourful, patched BJJ kimono may not be welcome.
I used to regularly wear my blue BJJ gi to Aikido and no one cared, I did wear my Aikido gi to BJJ when I started which wasn't such a good idea, it ripped