Question Continue to Rf in Radian XTSL with Recline Issues or FF Her?

Stats: 3y 7m, 41", 38#

As my daughter is getting older and heavier, I've noticed that the XTSL is reclining more to the 45 degree angle. In addition, I've had to reinstall the XTSL for various reasons by myself and I can't seem to get it more upright as I did once before.

Question: Should I FF her or try again with the Rf install? My family has big craniums and I've noticed that on other threads the identical situation--toddlers who are tall with large heads are starting to tip the seats back in the 45 degree angle.

I guess, I'm asking if it's just as safe being RF with a 45 degree recline for a 3 1/2 year old as it is being FF tethered with the safestop? I've heard in other threads about some medical term on the body that fuses b/t 4 and 6. Therefore, I really wanted her to Rf to at least 4.

One option is to put her in the MR until she hits 40#s and switch DD2 to the Radian. What do you think? I haven't measured DD1's fit in the MR to see if she has 1" clearance though.

My original goal was to RF DD1 until 1 (out of ignorance), then it was 2 (b/c she was such a big toddler--and the seats only Rfed to about 32 or 33# at that time), now it's 4 years old or 45# (whichever comes later). I just don't want to put her in jeapardy by having her overreclined while RFing. The boot is so hard to work with though--I grunt and kneel on it and make crazy faces trying to get this seat in a more upright position. On other threads I saw that people got the "older" boot from Sunshine Kids for free and it helped get a more upright position. I was thinking of calling them today.

I'd keep it RF if it's not *exceeding* 45*, but if it's actually falling further back than that, I'd FF it (or see if it stays more upright in a different seating position?).

Thanks Jools. I'll keep her Rfing then b/c it's not reclining more than 45 degrees.

Leah always liked that comfy recline in her Radian

Can you switch the DDs' seating positions? I know someone (Pixels?) had the problem with the seat becoming incompatible due to the seat cushion compressing too much. If you switch the Radian to a different position temporarily, it might help the seat cushion in that position recover.

Otherwise, I would probably try her in the MR for a while, if she still fits.

I agree if it doesn't go more than 45 degrees I wouldn't worry about it. I can't find the thread but someone posted that in crash tests the radian didn't rotate downward very much which makes me feel better not being able to get it more upright.

Thanks everyone for your comments.

By the way, I just called Sunshine Kids and they will ship me the old boot. I hope this helps. She said that if it doesn't, then to call back and speak with a tech for installation tips. I'll keep you posted on how the old boot works.

I'm glad that the seat doesn't rotate much downward in a crash.

Thanks again for your input

That is great that they have old boots still. I get a better fit with the old boot in my van.