Buckle comparisons

[eduller]

In case anyone is interested, this weekend I went to BBB, lined up the seats I was interested in, and strapped a big fluffy bear into all of them to see which buckle and harness is easiest to secure for a person with mildly arthritic hands. I am fairly sure my 2 year old would not have been quite as cooperative as Fluffy Bear.

-Chicco Nextfit - The harness was easy to adjust and clip, and the buckle is easy to click in and to release. However, the chest clip was very stiff and not large enough to grasp very easily. I think someone who doesn't have full use of their hands or low hand strength would have a hard time.

-Peg Convertible - It was a little tricky to figure out how to loosen the harness, but once I did it was easy to loosen and tighten. It was easy to buckle the chest clip, but I had to push down pretty hard to buckle the crotch buckle. I also had to push pretty hard to release it. The chest clip was easier to release than the Chicco.

-Graco Size4Me - Not much good to say. Buckles are sticky, chest clip is impossible to release with one hand.

-Diono Radian - Everything was pretty easy. It loosens easily, tightens smoothly. The crotch buckle slides in smoothly and releases easily. The chest clip was my favorite of all. It's nice and chunky so it's easy to release.

Foonf - Easy again. Smooth buckling, easy release. The chest clip isn't as chunky but very simple and an easy push and easy release.

I ended up going with the Foonf - ordered it on Amazon with the 15% off rather than paying the $500 BBB was asking! I ultimately settled on the Foonf because the crotch buckle required slightly more pressure than the Radian, and my daughter is already able to unbuckle herself from her primary seat with a little work - though she has never done so while we are driving thank goodness. The Foonf also feels more substantial than the Radian despite the Radian's steel frame. I know it won't last as long in the end, but it only needs to keep my daughter RF for another 6 months or so, and it can be passed down after that.

--I'm not flipping her forward in 6 months, by the way. She just won't need to ride in this vehicle anymore because she'll be going to preschool a couple days per week.

 

[joolsplus3]

Good comparison, thanks!
Talked to a mom yesterday who had SUCH a hard time with her Graco buckle she called Graco, and they told her it was just 'the standard to keep kids from unbuckling' and offered her nothing like a new buckle or washing tips.

 

[cso1997]

The only thing that I really don't like about the Foonf is the really short buckle strap. I think it is probably the shortest I have ever encountered. It makes buckling my toddler quite an adventure.

 

[eduller]

I didn't have any trouble with Fluffy Bear, but he was fairly docile. I'll have to double check that before I install it - thanks for the heads up.

 

[henrietta]

Good comparison, thanks!
Talked to a mom yesterday who had SUCH a hard time with her Graco buckle she called Graco, and they told her it was just 'the standard to keep kids from unbuckling' and offered her nothing like a new buckle or washing tips.

Well, I'm not sure what good that's going to do for those of us with arthritis. It's all I can do to buckle and unbuckle my son's Evenflo Secure Kid...so much so that either I'll be switching seats for him if it gets worse, even if that means into a booster seat. For many grandparents, they'll just give up and only partially buckle (or not buckle at all). This is getting ridiculous. I think it's time to send letters to Graco and Evenflo about their stupid buckles.

 

[AK Dad]

The only thing that I really don't like about the Foonf is the really short buckle strap. I think it is probably the shortest I have ever encountered. It makes buckling my toddler quite an adventure.

I completely concur and am very surprised they don't have some method to lengthen it. My daughter is tall and lanky and only 50lbs, and that crotch strap makes the seat nearly unusable for her. I bought the seat for my 8mo, so hopefully by the time he's bigger Clek will offer an optional longer buckle stalk to correct that.

 

[HappyHoo]

Good comparison, thanks!
Talked to a mom yesterday who had SUCH a hard time with her Graco buckle she called Graco, and they told her it was just 'the standard to keep kids from unbuckling' and offered her nothing like a new buckle or washing tips.

I don't have much trouble with our new Graco buckle - and it's easier than the Radian for me to unbuckle once I found the "dot" for where to press it in. Before that I was sometimes pressing it in the middle or bottom not at the top where the dot is and it was hard to unbuckle then.

 

[Minnesota]

I have found that the Radian harness adjustment is smooth and easy when there is not a child in it, and quite challenging when there is. It's definitely one of my tougher seats to tighten, lots of tug-tug-tug and hand strength required. I have Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and have significant difficulty with it on my bad days.