How to get new buckles for the Radian?

hapaness · Sep 18, 2007

Got 2 Radians today and installed one of them (rf'ing)...rocK solid in my Mazda MPV..I'd take pics but dont have a camera right now(heh, had to pawn it for money :-().
Anyway, I noticed that it has the buckles that may cause fraying of the harness...how to I get a set of the new ones and would I have to pay for them? (money is a big issue right now and even if they are a minimal amt, I still can't afford to spend anything..these seats were a gift from Grandma)

stayinhomewithmy6 · Sep 18, 2007

Email Russ and tell him you want the alternative buckle tongues. Russ@skjp.com. He should send them right out to you.

hapaness · Sep 18, 2007

Thank you!

clothdiapermom · Sep 18, 2007

Just wanted to say I emailed Russ about getting the new ones and he told me the ones on my seat were fine and that I didn't need the bigger ones. So don't be surprised if he won't send them to you. Just so you know I do have the ones that make the harness fold. Here is what he said,

"Thank you for your email about Radian’s harness system. The buckle tongs for our harness system are designed so that as the child enters and exits the seat, everything stays in place on the harness strap and the buckle tongs don’t always just slide down to the bottom, making re-entry to the seat and fastening a little easier…especially important when parent-child cooperation is not at its highest level. While I can absolutely appreciate any concern on your part, please know that every harness system for any child car seat – including the webbing and hardware - has to pass a mandated abrasion test standard, which Radian’s harness system more than meets. We use the same harness buckle and webbing (from the same supplier) as many other car seat companies. Based on all the testing these harness systems have undergone, please be assured that the harness system on your seat is and will continue to be very, very safe. If you ultimately see the same slight wear on the sides of Radian’s straps as you see on your vehicle’s seat belt over time, this should not be a cause for concern. Again, as with your vehicle’s seat belt system, Radian’s harness system more than passes mandatory abrasion testing which assures its long term safety."

CDNTech · Sep 18, 2007

I simply asked Russ for a pair of the wider buckle tongues... stating that I hated the narrow ones as they caused the straps to fold over and become twisty ropes.

I never mentioned the fraying harness issue because I agree with him. These buckles and harness systems undergo serious abrasion testing and I do not worry about the slight fraying I've seen in the majority of the pictures posted.

I also make sure to sign my e-mails with my CRST title... not sure if that makes a difference or not with the responses I get, but I always get a short "they are on the way" reply from him and they arrive within a week or so after that.

An Aurora · Sep 18, 2007

I got the same response that Meg got (to the letter). I never mentioned fraying harness either, just that I wanted wider buckle tongues because the ones that came with my seat made the straps fold over. I guess he got chewed out for sending out too many replacement seats, because now they are being stingy with the buckles too.

tjham · Sep 18, 2007

Wow, I just got a set of the new ones about three days ago! Guess I was lucky! (I don't know why they insist on calling them buckle "tongs". They are 'tongues"!

) Here's their email to me.

----- Original Message -----
From: Andrena Pugh
To:
Sent: Wednesday, September 05, 2007 12:53 PM
Subject: Buckle tong replacement

Hello I did receive your request and I will be more than happy to send you out replacement Buckle Tongs. I will need to get your address you would like me to send them to. Yes we are getting the R-80 Princess Covers but it won't be sometime at the end of the year.

You are welcome to visit our website and keep and eye out for them sometime around the later part of November or beginning of December.

Also once they come out you can go to our where to buy page and see what store are carrying them. I want to Thank you and I look forward to hearing from you soon. Have a wonderful day

Andrena Pugh Sunshine Kids
25612 74th Ave S
Kent, WA 98032
andrena@skjp.com
www.skjp.com tel:
fax: 253-859-5700 x128
253-859-5800

singingpond · Sep 19, 2007

Momto2BabyGirls said:
I got the same response that Meg got (to the letter). I never mentioned fraying harness either, just that I wanted wider buckle tongues because the ones that came with my seat made the straps fold over. I guess he got chewed out for sending out too many replacement seats, because now they are being stingy with the buckles too.

Hmmm, I've been meaning to ask for the wider buckle tongues, because I hate having the straps fold over. When my DS (2 3/4 y.o.) was riding in the seat, he would sometimes move one of the tongues up and down while he was being buckled in, and we had the strap flip a few times -- very aggravating. Now that my 6 m.o. DD is in the seat, we no longer have that problem, but the folding at the edge of the strap still annoys me. Maybe, when I email Russ, I should offer to pay (a modest amount) for the tongues (since I believe it is more a convenience issue than a safety issue)? I had the impression from previous posts that people were easily getting the wider ones for free, but that no longer seems to be the case...

Katrin

BABYGIRLLYNDSEY · Sep 19, 2007

I have had great service from Russ. We have three Radians and he sent me three sets of buckle tongues/tongs. I told him that I didn't have fraying but I didn't want any to even start so I wanted the larger buckles. Also, when I ordered my first Radian he sent me their prototype Princess cover (all floral) that they didn't end up going with. He never charged me for any of it. I guess I got lucky. I'm pleased with them so far. I do however, wish that the harness could come off for cleaning. Oh well.

hapaness · Sep 19, 2007

clothdiapermom said:
Just wanted to say I emailed Russ about getting the new ones and he told me the ones on my seat were fine and that I didn't need the bigger ones. So don't be surprised if he won't send them to you. Just so you know I do have the ones that make the harness fold. Here is what he said,

"Thank you for your email about Radian’s harness system. The buckle tongs for our harness system are designed so that as the child enters and exits the seat, everything stays in place on the harness strap and the buckle tongs don’t always just slide down to the bottom, making re-entry to the seat and fastening a little easier…especially important when parent-child cooperation is not at its highest level. While I can absolutely appreciate any concern on your part, please know that every harness system for any child car seat – including the webbing and hardware - has to pass a mandated abrasion test standard, which Radian’s harness system more than meets. We use the same harness buckle and webbing (from the same supplier) as many other car seat companies. Based on all the testing these harness systems have undergone, please be assured that the harness system on your seat is and will continue to be very, very safe. If you ultimately see the same slight wear on the sides of Radian’s straps as you see on your vehicle’s seat belt over time, this should not be a cause for concern. Again, as with your vehicle’s seat belt system, Radian’s harness system more than passes mandatory abrasion testing which assures its long term safety."

I just got the EXACT same email. Word for word.

LuvMyGirls · Sep 19, 2007

I'm happy with the original buckle tongues on my Radian80. They do not cause the strap to fold at all. I've heard this so much here and seen the pics of frayed straps that I watch very closely but mine are fine.

hapaness · Sep 19, 2007

I thought they were ok until I installed the second one and noticed the folding in the harness....grrr, I just have to be careful I guess.

snowbird25ca · Sep 19, 2007

You know, now that I have the wider buckle tongues, I honestly have to agree with him.

I wasn't worried about fraying, but was more worried about the straps getting twisty and folded over (as in folded in half or twisted in the buckle folded over, the slight fold at the edge of the buckle isn't worrisome to me,) so I went ahead and asked for them.

The new tongues do slide freely and no worry of twisting - they do also slide to the bottom of the straps and so you have to get them out from under the bum sometimes.

Honestly, if I thought there was a chance of getting the smaller ones back on, I'd probably put them back on and wait longer to see if twisting became a major issue with my seat. I have been regretting swapping out the buckle tongues every time I have to pull them out from under ds's bum. :twocents:

hapaness · Sep 19, 2007

Oooh. you know, thats something i didnt really think about. But I remember that happening with our Ultra Cargo, I was aways having to fish out the buckle tongues....

elle7715 · Sep 21, 2007

I just emailed Russ about this and specifically asked if I could order them if they weren't being given out anymore. He gave me the same response everyone else got but with this tagged on the end.

While it is not necessary to replace the buckle tongs on your harness system, we do offer for sale certain replacement accessory parts for Radian, including wider buckle tongs. Please visit the Radian page of our website: http://www.skjp.com/products/skjp_radian_80.php#tabs

So unless it's a safety issue it looks like they aren't giving things out free anymore. I'm about to order some for $2.95 plus $5 shipping. I wish I could have gotten them for free but since they're driving DH and I bonkers I'll order some.

I also asked him about testing for a higher rear facing limit.

Based on the amazing RF crash test performance, I am sure that Radian could easily handle a higher RF limit. But, we just need to do the testing to confirm this.

I wonder when that will happen though.

How to get new buckles for the Radian?

hapaness

New member

stayinhomewithmy6

Senior Community Member

hapaness

New member

clothdiapermom

Senior Community Member

CDNTech

Senior Community Member

An Aurora

Senior Community Member

tjham

New member

singingpond

New member

BABYGIRLLYNDSEY

Well-known member

hapaness

New member

LuvMyGirls

New member

hapaness

New member

snowbird25ca

Moderator - CPST Instructor

hapaness

New member

elle7715

Member

Car-Seat.Org Facebook Group

Sponsors

Forum statistics