Melonhead in the Marathon. A saga.

kidzndogz

New member
Dean is 2.5 and has a ridiculously long torso with a matching massive melonhead. This kid outgrew my Roundabout rear facing by height at 6 months old.

Anyway, he's been RFing in a Marathon. Last he was weighed in July at his 2 year appt he was 31lbs. The MA has a 35lb limit so I figured we were good. Well he's getting close to getting too tall anyway, so I decided to weigh him the other day out of curiosity. He's freaking 38.5lbs! Uh yeah, no more MA for you kid. Methinks the pediatrician's scale was a bit off. I know my digital is right on because I tared it with a 5lb weight.

I only have him and his sister once a week, and I just cannot buy another seat right now. Before being pg I'd probably blow money on a MR but I need to save money right now.

His sister Ava is 5.5, 50lbs and in a pretty Flora RN I just bought her. I freaking HATE HATE HATE that seat RFing in my car. I can get it, but I hate it and all it's stupid quirks and it's horrendous recline that I quite honestly don't think is that safe.

I've got a Vivo and Ava has ridden in it a few times and does decently. She loves her Flora though, and I like her harnessed.

So here's the deal. I have two options. I can FF Dean in the Como (I won't use the MA FFing for personal reasons with him) and Ava can stay in her RN. Or....I can make Ava hate me (not that I really care :p) and put Dean RFing in her RN and stick her in the Vivo.

I'd rather just use the Como since it's only once a week. But I *really* wanted to make it to 3 years old with him. :(
 
ADS

Pixels

New member
A melonheaded 2yo? I'd RF if it's possible.

Why don't you think the Radian is safe rear facing?
 

scoutingbear

New member
Just to let you know kids with "freakishly long torsos" outgrow the MR quickly; esp in FF. (See my other thread with comparison pictures).

If it is only once a week, I would use the Vivo and put him in the RF RN. Flowers and all. :p But, as pp said, he is close to 3, you have done what you can with him so if it is really a struggle, then FF him and pat yourself on the back for going to the limits of your seat.
 

kidzndogz

New member
Yeah he's a melonhead. His head is as big as mine. That's pretty much what's giving me a guilt trip for FFing him. Otherwise I'd be okay with it since he's 2.5 and it's only once a week.

He FFs in a Regent in his mom's car.

Here he is, the pics don't do his head justice. I just never get to share pics of the kids anymore. The one of him and Ava is from Halloween...he's had a massive growth spurt since then. The firetruck one was on my cell phone from yesterday. :love:

Oh and I do think the Radian is perfectly safe for RFing. It just sucks for RFing in my car. I have a CR-V with flat seats and it gets horribly over reclined (to me....I think it's within an acceptable range but I just don't feel okay with having a tall older child RF in such a reclined seat).
12169_1293734665246_1286699003_3087.jpg

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abigaylebelle

Active member
So he'll be three in July then? I too have a melonhead 2.5 year old, though he's a few months older than Dean. I would probably rf him in the radian as I don't feel comfortable yet with my ds ff (though he's a solid 10lbs lighter!). Can his sister ff in the como?
 

kidzndogz

New member
Yep, he'll be three in July!


Can his sister ff in the como?

Wow. Thanks for throwing that out there. See? Proof that my pregnant brain is melting and I need you guys. She had room in it not too long ago...not much but some. I'll have to try her in it again!

Funny how I can spend hours as a CPST helping parents make good seat decisions for their kids but I always have the hardest time when it comes to my own car. Why is that?

And I still hate the Radian RFing in my car. ::grumble:: Where are cheap plane tickets for Judi when you need them?
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
I'd RF him if possible.

FWIW I have a lot of the same concerns about the Como FF as the MA. But I keep them to myself because they're just personal squicks.
 

kidzndogz

New member
I'd RF him if possible.

FWIW I have a lot of the same concerns about the Como FF as the MA. But I keep them to myself because they're just personal squicks.

Care to share? I'm just leery of the MA after those tests...I'd use it if I didn't have the Como and don't tell parents to not use it. It's just if I have another option I'd rather use it due to "personal squicks" like you said. I'll be honest and say I don't know much about the Recaros. I was disappointed they weren't on the Canada tests.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
They're not sold in Canada so that's why they weren't included, I guess (although that doesn't necessarily hold since other things were tested... Anyway, I digress from my main point.)

The shape of the seat, with the really angled recline plus high-up base, is great for rear-facing (except no leg room!) but makes me just think "how much extra force is being put on the seat because of the high center of gravity and all that recline? Is that why the straps ripped out? And is the high base more likely to make it "pivot" more, causing more head excursion? Is that why the numbers are so high?" All this new evidence just kind of solidified design doubts that were in my mind long before this. I'm just way more comfortable with FFers in lower-profile seats, personally. If parents have an option of something else to put their kids in I talk to them about the Marathon a bit, in a "some concerns have come up, here's where to go to learn more" kind of way. IF they have no other options I don't bring it up because, well, I don't want them to put their 3 year olds in boosters because they can't afford another FF seat or something and feel the MA is unsafe...
 

kidzndogz

New member
Hmm. Makes total sense given the low head excursion numbers for the low profile Radian.

Do you happen to remember off the top of your head what it was about the Regent that made it barely pass? Was it chest g's or head excursion? I don't think it was head excursion but if it was, that will just throw a curveball because it's pretty low profile as well.

So yeah, all of what you said is in my mind....I just didn't want to give the impression that a seat was "less safe" since we have non-regulars reading here. But that was definitely something in my mind with playing musical seats with these kids. It kind of seems like I have to do something I'm slightly uncomfortable with no matter what...RF Dean in a Radian that I would rather see more upright, or FF him in a high profile seat that may or may not have the same issues as the MA. I also want to keep Ava harnessed and the idea of putting her in the Como makes me cringe slightly although I think she still fits. She does okay in a booster, I just prefer harnessed.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
It's too bad you're not closer to me. I'd let you borrow one of my Radians or my CA, but 8-10 hours is a bit long to drive to borrow a seat. ;) (If I'm ever out visiting my family there I'll let you know though.)

I wanted to add for the non-regulars reading, I don't think a FF MA or Como is unsafe, not the way a child in a booster too young or a child FF too early is. I think there are just probably options out there that do the job a lot better. Hence the squick.

I don't remember what it was on the Regent either.
 

Pixels

New member
Do you happen to remember off the top of your head what it was about the Regent that made it barely pass? Was it chest g's or head excursion? I don't think it was head excursion but if it was, that will just throw a curveball because it's pretty low profile as well.

It was chest Gs, and it wasn't barely passing, it flat out failed. This was in 2006, and the Regent has been tweaked since then and no longer fails.

The Como's testing results are not spectacular in either direction. They are pretty much in the middle of the field.
 

abigaylebelle

Active member
Um the head excursion for the como with a 3 year old tt and seatbelt was 577, the radian 80 for the same set up was 523. I wouldn't say those are vastly different results. The nautilus was 605 for head excursion for the 3 year old tt with seatbelt. I can't imagine why someone would worry about the head excursion for the como when it passed testing just fine.
 

Pixels

New member
Every seat on the market has passed testing. If you aren't going to worry about a seat's numbers because it passed testing, then don't bother even looking at the numbers. ;)

The Como had higher head excursion numbers with other dummies/other installation configurations. Overall, in my opinion, they are neither very high nor very low, compared to other seats.
 

scoutingbear

New member
It's too bad you're not closer to me. I'd let you borrow one of my Radians or my CA, but 8-10 hours is a bit long to drive to borrow a seat. ;) (If I'm ever out visiting my family there I'll let you know though.)

I just wanted to add that KQ is QUEEN of the Radians. :thumbsup:
 

abigaylebelle

Active member
Every seat on the market has passed testing. If you aren't going to worry about a seat's numbers because it passed testing, then don't bother even looking at the numbers. ;)

The Como had higher head excursion numbers with other dummies/other installation configurations. Overall, in my opinion, they are neither very high nor very low, compared to other seats.

That's my point, the numbers were VERY SIMILAR to the radian. So if I were deciding whether I could put a child ff in one seat or the other I might care which did better in head excursion. I used the 3 year old tt just for the sake of comparison. Another comparison would be that the como was 663 for the 6 year old dummy with seatbelt/no tt and it was 681 for the radian 80. So maybe I'm just incredibly stupid, or smaller numbers mean less head excursion.
 

ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
Right, but head excursion isn't the whole story to me. Because the Como is so much more reclined, part of my squick is also about the amount of extra force needed to restrain the child. I've owned a Como. I've held it. I am not as squicky about it as the Marathon but it just... niggles at me. Something about the design. I don't know why, it just bugs me. Hey, we're all entitled to personal weirdness now and then. ;)
 

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