Booster recommendations

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misty073

New member

• Sep 13, 2010

• #1

My son is 5 and a half 53lbs (could even be more I havent weighed him for a bit) He rides in a apex 65 fully harnessed in my van and a booster seat in hubbys truck. Currently he is in a graco turbo booster in the truck and I hate it. I am wanting to get him a booster that is more stable, the turbo booster seems flimsy and uncomfy.

Any recommendations on a new booster...looking to stay under $100. I will try to post his height in a bit...he is still sleeping

Thanks

 

MomToEliEm

Moderator

• Sep 14, 2010

• #2

My suggestion is to find a store that carries a good number of booster seats and try them out. Call around to different stores to see what seats they carry. At my Babies R Us store, they don't carry any boosters other than the turbo, but at some of the smaller baby specialty stores nearby, they carry more variety.

If you are not liking how the Turbo feels, maybe you would like a seat with latch as that will hold the booster in the vehicle. I think there are only two high back boosters that allow latch right now (Sunshine Kids Monterey and Clik Oobr). Those might be a little higher than your price range though.

Hopefully some others on the board might have some booster suggestions for you to look at.

 

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misty073

New member

• Sep 14, 2010

• #3

I have been looking at the compass at Zellers it seems a bit wider and more sturdy than the graco. We dont have alot of options here to buy seats but if needed I could drive to the next city. Any pros or cons on this seat? The lady I do daycare for has one (her son is way too young to be in it though ) she loves it...It did look to not go over his lap well but I think that may be because of the angle in her car....we are looking to put it in the back of our extended cab truck.

We went on a long drive yesterday...which we never do with him in the booster but it was spur of the moment and we didnt have time to put his carseat in the truck...it just reinforced how much I dont like the graco for him, he is a big boy and its seems narrow and not very comfy for him...I like how he fits in his apex and its so comfy for him to sleep.

 

MomToEliEm

Moderator

• Sep 14, 2010

• #4

Is there any way you could swap boosters for a day with your friend? Give her your turbo for a day to use and you could try out the compass. If you can do that, it might save you some money if you find it doesn't work out well for your son.

I looked over the list of Canadian boosters and see that there aren't a lot of choices. Probably if the compass doesn't work out for you, the monterey might be the next seat to look at, even though it is over your price limit.

 

amyd

New member

• Sep 14, 2010

• #5

snugglebugz.ca still has some of last year's Montereys on for $99. They are excellent for kids that are a bit on the wider side. The Graco TB is a great seat for a smaller booster rider but not as great for larger kids.

 

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misty073

New member

• Sep 14, 2010

• #6

We dont have latch in our vehicles one is a 97 and the other is a 95.

I did put him in the compass in their car and strapped him in and he fits better in there than their son does...one day in the next few days I will try it out in our truck and see how it works

 

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misty073

New member

• Sep 14, 2010

• #7

I am going to talk to hubby about the monterey on that site...I like the look of it, it looks comfy and I like the side wings. I am leary about buying online how do you know if you are losing expiry date time??

 

MomToEliEm

Moderator

• Sep 14, 2010

• #8

I have a monterey in my car which doesn't have latch. Even without it latched in, it really seems sturdy and not flimsy at all. If you are carrying it around by just the top, the seat portion does have a tendency to separate from the top, though I have learned to hold the top and bottom when carrying it. I really like how sturdy it is and how tall it extends. My 8 year old says it is comfy.

I am not sure how to tell the manufacture date when buying online (you could call them though they probably won't know since the item is in a warehouse). For such a reduced price, it might be a year or so old. Loosing a year of life might still be worth it for that price.

 

amyd

New member

• Sep 14, 2010

• #9

I believe the $99 Montereys are 2009 models which may mean they are actually made in 2008. I would be happy with that date for the price, though. You can definitely try giving them a call. Ben, the owner, is a tech and a member here and he's very helpful to deal with from what I've heard.

 

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misty073

New member

• Sep 14, 2010

• #10

Yes I guess the expiry doesnt really matter as he will only be in a booster for Max 4 years if that and my daughter (one year younger) is a slender smaller child who will probably be harnessed alot longer than him and in a different booster when the time comes. She is 4 and 37.5lbs her carseat goes to 47 (or 48 I dont remember) but she will be too tall before she hits weight for sure, unlike him who outgrew that weight limit at 4 LOL

 

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misty073

New member

• Sep 16, 2010

• #11

Well the Monterey is a go I talked to hubby and it seems like it will be a good seat for him as he is a big boy, and the price is within what I am wanting to spend (reason being I have to buy a RF for my nephew in the next few weeks, hopfully sooner, and I am wanting another seat for my DD who is 4 for in our truck as well as hers is not comfy for longer rides)

I called them today and talked about expiry dates and how many they have and all is good...I cant order it until monday because I used my credit card alot in the last month and am waiting for the payment to go through LOL

 

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misty073

New member

• Sep 20, 2010

• #12

I just ordered my seat...now I cant wait LOL. And when I called the lady told me the manufacture date is april 2010 so they are not old stock she said they just came out with a newer model...works for me


One seat down two to go LOL next I am looking for a rf ff seat for my nephew. He will be riding in my van a few times a week (more if I have my way lol) he is 10 months now and probably about 23lbs. I am thinking of buying one of those cheaper ones from walmart scenera? I think thats what they are called. I am not too worried about the ff weight but more the height...I have 3 seats now with heigher ff weight limits one going to 65lbs which I doubt my daughter will ever use.

So any recommendations again price is an issue...hubby wont let me spend too much on a spare seat...plus we already bought him a graco my ride as a gift...so I doubt I can convince hubby we need one for our van.