Sooo after long thought and checking out ho kuk mu sul a little more. I decided to go with Gracie jiu jitsu. My question is..what size gi do I need? When I took karate I wore a sz 8 gi top and sz 6 pants. I'm 6'8" and weigh 285 lbs. I'm a big guy but not fat big, just have a belly. I wear a 2xltall shirt and 40/32 pants in street clothes. The bjj gi sizing confuses me. In some brands it looks like I'd be an A6 and in others an A5. Can you please help. I don't want the top to fit and the pants be huge and vice versa.
When you say Gracie Jiu Jitsu... do you mean Gracie Jiu Jitsu or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu? The reason I ask is that at the Gracie Academy or Gracie Barra, they require you to wear their standard uniforms, and so you should be working through them. At most other schools, there is some latitude, but every organization is a little different. Before you spend the dough on a new uniform, I'd strongly recommend that you talk to your coach and see what the conventions are in your school. It could be that they want (or require) you to wear white gis, or prohibit gis that aren't white or blue. It can vary wildly. Other schools only care that the gi is clean and in good repair, and don't care if it's purple, pink or orange. Really depends.
All that said, it's going to be a lot of trial and error for you, because when you get to big sizes like this, everyone is built differently. Some big guys are built like Hulk Hogan, while others are going to be really big, but have a barrel chest. The belly is part of it, and some guys have long arms or big thighs. And you're really tall, too. I know guys who are built like you, but not as tall, and I know guys who are as tall as you, but aren't quite as big. And that's pretty typical when you're a giant!
Gorrilla Fight Gear is a canadian company that specializes in gis for big guys. Their silverback is one that a few of my buddies wear.
http://www.gorillagear.ca/
Looking at their size chart, you don't fit neatly into any of their size categories, but I'd recommend giving them a call. Maybe they have a tall cut 3xl for you.
Ultimately, for most standard gi companies, like Koral, ShoYoRoll, Atama or whatever, you're going to want the biggest gi they have, and hope it's big enough. For many, the biggest size they offer is A5.