britax harness sticking

[laudymama]

Are there any known issues currently with Britax harnesses? DD chaperone has been fine (granted the chest clip has always been nearly impossible to slide easily) until this past week or so. Out of nowhere I went to tighten it and it didn't want to pull all the way tight, like it was stuck. I took her out and got it out of the car and didn't see anything wrong visibly. I tightened it without her in it and it did stick at one point then with a good hard yank it gave and went the rest of the way tight. A few more times of adjusting the harness and it went back to smooth but as soon as I put her in it it started sticking again. I'm a little worried considering that is a vital part of the seat! Without going out to the car, i believe DOM was Jan 2013 if it matters.

 

[happiness-and-balance]

No known issues or recalls that I am aware of. I have a Chaperone and can see how crumbs and other paraphernalia may get stuck in the harness adjuster lock (also called a cam-lock). The fact that after a hard tug it would move freely makes me think that there may be something caught in it, or juice/milk spilt on it (even from another child sitting in an adjacent seat) may make the mechanism sticky or the harness adjuster strap material sticky. After baby is in bed, would you be able to bring it into a well-lit room and flip it over and have a good look at it?

Britax has fabulous customer service. Give them a call and report the issue if you can't see anything stuck in the mechanism. You are correct in that this is a vital piece of the car seat, but I wouldn't be too worried until you speak with Britax and establish what may be wrong with the seat, so long as you can get the harness properly secured around baby properly (cannot gather any harness material between two fingers when pitched near child's shoulder) and the harness isn't coming out of the adjuster the other way (as in loosening without the adjuster button being depressed as usual).

 

[laudymama]

No known issues or recalls that I am aware of. I have a Chaperone and can see how crumbs and other paraphernalia may get stuck in the harness adjuster lock (also called a cam-lock). The fact that after a hard tug it would move freely makes me think that there may be something caught in it, or juice/milk spilt on it (even from another child sitting in an adjacent seat) may make the mechanism sticky or the harness adjuster strap material sticky. After baby is in bed, would you be able to bring it into a well-lit room and flip it over and have a good look at it?

Britax has fabulous customer service. Give them a call and report the issue if you can't see anything stuck in the mechanism. You are correct in that this is a vital piece of the car seat, but I wouldn't be too worried until you speak with Britax and establish what may be wrong with the seat, so long as you can get the harness properly secured around baby properly (cannot gather any harness material between two fingers when pitched near child's shoulder) and the harness isn't coming out of the adjuster the other way (as in loosening without the adjuster button being depressed as usual).

Thanks! I will get it out of the car later and thoroughly check it out. Thankfully we don't have anywhere to go today and I have other seats I can put in the car for dd if I need to.
I know there shouldn't be any food, etc. Stuck in there because she is only 10 months and barely started eating puffs DS can't reach over to get anything dropped in her seat either. You are right though... it does feel and act as though something is stuck in there. I only worry because I am having trouble making it secure with her in it. For whatever reason, once she's in the seat you can't "force" it past its sticking point. I'm OCD about everything being in place and always on my family about it!
It just occurred to me I recently raised the harness up a notch....maybe that has something to do with it. I will post back with anything i find after I look it over.

 

[happiness-and-balance]

Thanks! I will get it out of the car later and thoroughly check it out. Thankfully we don't have anywhere to go today and I have other seats I can put in the car for dd if I need to. I know there shouldn't be any food, etc. Stuck in there because she is only 10 months and barely started eating puffs DS can't reach over to get anything dropped in her seat either. You are right though... it does feel and act as though something is stuck in there. I only worry because I am having trouble making it secure with her in it. For whatever reason, once she's in the seat you can't "force" it past its sticking point. I'm OCD about everything being in place and always on my family about it! It just occurred to me I recently raised the harness up a notch....maybe that has something to do with it. I will post back with anything i find after I look it over.

Hmm yes, double check that the harness is not twisted (I can see this causing harness tension issues) and is properly reattached to the splitter plate (metal plate that harness loops on to on the back of the seat, incase anyone reading is unsure ) if you took it off at any point.

In the mean time, if you cannot get a secure fit of the harness around your daughter, I would discontinue use of the seat until the issue is resolved and the harness fits her properly again. Do you have a back-up seat to use, in case of an emergency?

Please let me know if you figure this out! You can take pictures of the back of the seat and the harness adjuster lock here and we can tell you if anything looks unusual if you want. For the record, I have a Chaperone too and love it.