I guess the tight-neck thick t-shirt topic is a popular one, because after I wrote an article covering Pro 5 T-Shirts, and where to buy them, I started getting emails from folks.
The site I originally pointed people to was pro5shirts.com.
I did that because, well, when I scoured the internet looking for where to purchase them from, that site and other links to pages within the site kept popping up on google.
Also, the domain name is “pro5shirts”.
One would assume that the individual running the site had ownership of the name. Or at least permission to use a trademarked name like Pro5.
The sad truth is that’s not the case.
This all started because people who found pro5shirts.com through my site started ordering from them.
Many sent emails to the company, but never heard back from anyone.
They asked me, so I emailed the folks at the website, and never heard back from them as well.
After some investigative work, and a lead from another reader, we found Pro 5 T-Shirts selling on eBay too.
But it seemed that the folks selling them on eBay had no relation to the folks selling them on pro5shirts.com.
Curious and confused, I did some digging into the Pro5 Trademark. Eventually, I found my way to the company that actually manufactures the tee shirts: Pro 5 Apparel.
The Official Pro 5 Apparel Website (www.pro5usa.com)
Courtesy of the very helpful t-shirtforums.com website, I found a representative of Pro 5 Apparel chatting in one of the forum threads and after a bit more searching, I found a few more email addresses and sent them an inquiry.
This is the initial response I got:
The website you had just visited is not connected with our company although they are selling our merchandise but to be on the safe side please visit our official website at www.pro5usa.com if you want to purchase genuine products from Pro 5 Apparel.
If you have any questions or concerns please email kate at [email protected]Update >> If you have any questions, please contact Charles at [email protected]
I was still curious about how a company without any relation to the official Pro5 name could be using it in a domain name. So I sent back another inquiry asking about how they felt about a reseller using their trademark.
The rep emailed me back with the following:
Hi Tug,
Thank you for your concern and I appreciate your time and effort to write about our Pro 5 products.
Going back to this company that is posing as our official website, we did not authorize them to use our company logo to use on their website.
They should identify themselves as a reseller of Pro 5 products but not as the manufacturing company.
We are not responsible for any misrepresentation to be made or will make by this company and advise the followers of your blog to visit our official website which is the www.pro5usa.com if they want to purchase genuine products from Pro 5 Apparel.
So, if you’re looking to purchase Pro 5 T-Shirts from the manufacturer directly, please visit Pro5USA.com.
I’m still a bit perplexed on why the company allows the reseller to use its trademark in the domain name.
My guess is they’re selling a lot of t-shirts for them – but I could be wrong.
Can someone explain the big difference is pro 5 and pro club collar and the pros/cons
i can’t provide pro/cons, but i’ve heard the pro club t-shirts have a tighter collar than pro5, and use slightly better quality materials.
that said, it may not be accurate. both t-shirts are pretty inexpensive, so you may want to buy one from each of the brands (directly from their website) and compare them.
if you do that, be sure to come back here and let us know what you found out!
Tug,
My order came in already from http://www.pro5usa.com! Shipped my 2 shirts to me within 48 hours! Anyhow I have them in the wash right now…
ok, sounds great james! keep me posted (:
The 2 Pro5 shirts from pro5usa.com were washed in cold/cold water & dried on low heat.
Just minor shrinkage is all I experienced.
The 3XL fits me well! I’m 5′ 11″ tall and weigh 235 pounds. Neck tightest is just right for my neck.
Now these are the heavier Pro5 tee shirts.
I think these will be great for fall & winter but probably will be to heavy for hot summers. We had a 81 degree day recently & I roasted…lol
So I’m going to check into there lighter Athletic type shirt.
thanks for the update james!
Tug,
I emailed Pro5USA.com and asked if the lighter Athletic type shirt they sell had a tight neck. They replied NO it does not! SO! Need to find a lighter T shirt with a high, tighter collar. lol
On the Pro5USA.com website it does show the Athletic shirt collar to be tight in the pictures. (They use the same pics they use for there heavy tight neck shirts. The company needs to change those pics with the proper pics. Misleading in my opinion.
Hi undershirt guy,
Just found this website:
I just recently ordered two Pro5 tight neck tee shirts from pro5shirts.com. They arrived 3 days after I ordered them.
I washed them in washing machine in cold/cold water then dried in dryer on low heat setting.
Minor shrinkage so all is good! Shirts fit me well! I’m 5’11” tall and weigh 237 pounds. I ordered regular 3XXL.
I have ordered more pro5 tight neck tee shirts but this time I ordered from Pro5USA.com as you suggested.
They were $3.50 cheaper than the above site. Let you know when I receive them.
Jim
heya jim, thanks for stopping by and letting me know!
keep me posted on your experience with ordering from pro5usa.com (:
Been wearing a Pro5 black, small for a year. Would not order it again.
Unless, you like heavy, scratchy, wide sleeve, never shrink. Neck holds up in front, not so in the back. it’s really heavy weight and not soft feeling. 5.11’s are junk. So I’m still looking. Anvil used to make the best Small t shirts, but not for about 4 years. Neck too low, and sleeves too wide.
Received some shirts from Pro5USA (large, athletic fit short sleeve t-shirts) in black and white. I ordered these specifically because they were to be tight neck t-shirts. The t-shirts I received had a neck opening of 6″. All my previous t-shirts by Top Ace, Noiz and Shaka have had around a 3″ opening (high and tight on the neck). Will be returning these to PRO5USA and will post how the return process goes.
As Top Ace and Noiz are no longer sold and Shaka too expensive, I will be looking into ProClub t-shirts.
Here are some images to show the difference…
http://imgur.com/MpHvxZx
http://imgur.com/gzq3oJl
hey john q., thanks for the info and for the comparison photos! sorry to hear the pro5 t-shirts did not have a tight enough collar for you :(
keep me posted on the proclub t-shirts. feel free to come back here and post a photo like you just did. (i may grab those photos from imgur and host them here so we know they will always be available)
No problem. I will keep you/this thread updated. Thanks.
I received a full refund (I paid return shipping) from PRO5USA. I’am still waiting to hear from Proclub to make sure they are similar to the Top Ace I posted above before I order.
thanks for the update john! keep me posted (:
No response from Proclub to verify the tightness/measurement of their neck opening but just realized their shipping is $18 (yes, $18) for 6 t-shirts and no free shipping offers. So Proclub is a no go. I just ordered a dozen Shakas from Ebay came out to $6 each shipped, when they arrive I will post on the quality.
thanks john o! really appreciate it (: can’t wait to hear more about shaka crew neck t-shirts.
The Shakas came in and the neck seems to be slightly larger than the Top Ace. Though maybe they might tighten up after some washes. Just hope the neck does not become loose/flailing after washes like on the 2XL shakas I used to have (might of been because they were larger in size, hopefully) Those black Top Ace shirts are washed every week (6 of them) for the past 3+ years (used as undershirts for work) and aside from some minor fading, the structure of the neck/arm/bottom hemming is still intact and tight.
Here is an image of the Shaka (image is sideways, not sure why)
http://imgur.com/ZDW9Axi
heya john! thanks for keeping me posted on this!
the shaka wear crew neck hole does look pretty small, so hopefully it’ll be tight enough for you and hold up after many wears and washings.
keep me posted and let me know if you try anything else.
really appreciate you sharing your findings with us here (:
The two shirts are totally different. Look how the top ace shirt is folded at the widest point. Pro 5 shirt’s top seam falls behind your collar bone. The other shirt’s seam will likely fall in front. Pro 5 neck is designed to fit snug around your neck. We get a lot of complaints from customers for being too tight. Too loose is a first. I recommend you try the kids size.
I have purchased these Pro5 shirts from the pro5shirts.com and pro5usa.com websites. Recently I ordered another set of white XL’s and I could not get them on they were so tight. So naturally I thought their sizes changed and ordered XXL’s. When they arrived they were more than 2″ larger through the chest. I have contacted pro5usa and they assure me the sizes didn’t change. pro5shirts will not return calls, not sure if anyone else is having this problem but I am pretty bummed. These were the best fitting shirts I have ever worn. TUG any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Chris
heya chris, sorry to hear about your issue with the pro5 shirts you ordered.
not sure what to tell you really and don’t think i can be of any help. the people at pro5shirts.com never, ever respond to inquiries. i’ve tried a bunch of times to reach them.
i’m speculating here, but maybe pro5shirts.com (reseller) purchases irregulars from pro5usa.com (manufacturer) from time to time, and the xl pro5 shirts you ordered were from an irregular/defective batch??
i don’t know which shirts you bought from which website, but if you bought the xxl from pro5usa (manufacturer) than i would expect that their sizing would be correct, and as such, that’s why the xxl you bought were too big and the xl were too small (assuming you bought them from pro5shirts.com (reseller).
if that’s not the case, and you got an ill-fitting item from the manufacturer, i would fully expect them to replace/exchange the items free of charge.
i was in regular contact with the manufacturer, but they all the sudden went mia on my at the end of last year.
dunno what the dealio is btw the reseller and the manufacturer, but seems weird that the manufacturer continues to allow the reseller to represent their brand that unprofessionally.
Whats up with the sizing? i found a chart that says 2xl’s are 34 inches long from the back collar down. but i have a fruit of the loon shirt that measures 27 and is an xl.. should i go with a medium or something? is their any way i can get a sample i’m looking to get 10 shirts and i don’t want to get the wrong size.
heres a link to the chart – http://www.newschoolers.com/ns/mobile/forumread/id/700953/
heya trickyriky – if you’re looking for pro5 t-shirts, please visit pro5’s website.
I have a shirt like that and it fits perfect. I want to buy one but they not selling here in the Philippines, is their site is for world wide selling? or just for US?
Hi Brian,
My name is Brian also. Even if they don’t ship worldwide, there are international mail forwarding companies such as http://en.360zebra.com/ that will forward packages from the US to the Philippines, Europe, etc.
How is quality on these shirts do they fade easily? and do they fit well? I couldn’t find any online reviews of them.
Our T-shirts are fade-resistant. But being cotton, they do fade over time.
thanks for dropping by edward!
question, for my own education — is there a specific way to make a cotton shirt fade resistant? like, is there something you do with the dyes to make them that way?
It’s just the dyeing process and the dye used. Nothing super special. Some garments are made to fade like blue jeans and they will bleed color. Our T-shirts will not bleed color. Let me know if there’s anything I can answer. I will try my best to answer them.
Hey Tug,
My name is Charles Ahn, Marketing manager with Pro5 Apparel, please give me an email, I would like to discuss a few things with you.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Best Regards,
Charles Ahn
pro5usa.com
I can’t find any international shipping option in checkout. I only see “free shipping”. How am I supposed to pay for the shipping to europe?
hey dude, check back with pro5usa.com on monday. i’m sure there’s contact information on their website.
good luck!
So whitch one is the real site to purchase pro 5 shirts & Whitch site NOT to purshase from?? Thanks
pro5shirts.com
freshtalltees.com
pro5usa.com
hey frankie, well my friend, if you scroll up a bit to the middle of the article, you’ll see this:
that’s the real site.
Okay iknow now that pro5usa.com is the official site, but what about the other two site are they scams or what ?
hi frankie, i really couldn’t tell you. i have received past complaints from people who have purchased from pro5shirts.com who said they never received their items and no one from the company would return their calls/email inquiries.
i tried to send a note to the people at pro5shirts.com, and never heard back from anyone.
that said, i would think that if no one ever got their orders from pro5shirts.com, there would be a lot more complaints.
freshtalltees.com just looks like another website from pro5shirts.com (look at the links at the bottom of the freshtalltees.com site and you’ll see it links back to pro5shirts.com).
i freakin’ hate it when websites create full other websites that link to each other, and sell basically the exact same shit. they do that for seo purposes only — not to provide any value to the consumer. i mean, i could see maybe a landing page that directs people over to the main site, but those crazies over at pro5shirts.com have created 3 or 4 websites where they’re selling the same shirts. all of their websites link back to their other websites. i wouldn’t be surprised if all of those websites are hosted on the exact same physical server (but with different ip addresses of course).
just a pet peeve of mine — ok, now i’ll get off my soapbox.
my recommendation would be to play it safe and purchase from pro5usa.com.
Thanks undershirtguy, now i know to stay away from those sites and stick with the official pro 5 site pro5usa.com
Im trying to buy a couple tee’s on pro5usa.com, but im having trouble confirming my order. When i get to the checkout page, it asks me to select the shipping method, but with no options. ??
any advice woould be great
Try tomorrow on a business day.
hey moe, were you able to complete your order yet? looks like joe made a pretty good suggestion of trying today. i’ll email the contacts i have on the pro5 side just in case.
it’s still early today here on the west coast, so you may have to wait a few hours until the company’s regular business hours.
quick update: i went to the pro5usa.com website just now, added items to my shopping cart and got to the checkout/shipping page.
the page shows 4 different shipping options. one in usps, three via ups. if you get to that page and still don’t show any shipping options, you either have possibly input your shipping address incorrectly (incorrect city, state, zip) or maybe there is something funky in your browser (or the site doesn’t support your browser).
good luck. happy t-shirt shopping!
Thanks guys. I called pro 5 today and they were extremely helpful and processed my order over the phone.
Good info, I have bought a few of these t-shirts and I didn’t know this. This is a better deal being the shipping is free at $40 and the other site is free at $140. A no brainer.
happy to help mlo (:
Well i bought this shirt from apparently this reseller & really he never emails back & i haven’t received my shirts & i’m worried & don’t know what to do or how to get money back or get my shirts because they accepted my visa & it was already processed & is processing in order & i need some advice in how to get a refund or my shirts please somebody write back i really need help in this.
dunno what to tell you carlos.
if you never get your stuff, you can either dispute the charge with your credit card or through paypal depending on what payment method you used.
good luck!
These are very nice, high neck, heavy, high quality t-shirts….and the label reads, “U.S. components, assembled in Mexico”!! I agree with Leon, if you’re a big guy, they run a tad tight…..but I got these for wearing under long sleeve shirts anyway. I found at least 3 or 4 websites that seem to be selling the same product. I took your advice and bought from pro5usa.com which proved to be cheaper anyway with free shipping on a $40 purchase!!
awesome! thanks for the feedback joe. glad to hear these pro5 t-shirts are working out for you.
You’re welcome, always appreciate people helping me out when I’m not sure of an online purchase. I forgot to mention that if you’re a big guy like me, 6’2″ 265#, I would recommend going one size larger than what you normally get. I usually go with 2XL, but 3XL would have been better I believe.
If your a big guy like me, I found pro 5’s 7x to be tight. Im 6’4 375. Super Heavy Tee