I just found this earlier http://www.shorin-kempo.com/index.php/uchideshi wondered if this is the same as the Shorinji kenpo
No, no its not the same as Shorinji kempo. Why would you do intensive training in an art you don't already do?
Im just curious. I like to learn things, got sent this through a friend and wondered if it was the same as the shorinji system I've heard name-dropped before.
Like Fusen said, they're not the same. I don't know much about Shorin Kenpo, but I used to practice Shorinji Kempo years ago before I started BJJ. Shorinji Kempo seems to be a much more philosophical and Japan-centered martial art compared to the Shorin system you linked to. Also, shorinji is a Buddhist system and a registered religion in Japan, which leads to a lack of emphasis on competitive fighting. Comparing the dojo listing of the two arts, it would seem that Shorinji Kempo has many more established schools. Source: formerly graded to shodan in Shorinji Kempo (now retired)
sparring in armour seems a good idea to go full contact. How does the Nippon system differ from Shorinji, outside of the competative nature of Nippon?
It's a systemised MA designed to be sparred with, shorinji hasn't got that focus, and in the UK has recently had the majority of its membership break away after the Japanese federation tryed to sack their full-time japanese instructor for political reasons.