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Kheinold
01-04-2001, 10:37 PM
I have a 9 mo old who quickly outgrew her infant seat. She is over 30in long and 21.5 pounds. She still needs to be rear facing but the century cheap seat we got does not stay tight and stable in different cars if we make it rear facing. We have had a tough time getting it in tight even when using towels and the locking clip. It is better when forward facing but not the greatest. It takes 2 of us to get it in tight. Any recommendations? Would a seat with a flatter base be better? Are there any rear facing seats to 30 pounds with detatchable bases?

We travel a lot and take the seat on planes and in and out of vehicles a lot. We all have different seats and seatbelts. It is very lightweight which is a big plus when I am by myself on the plane. It actually is in the tightest on Southwest Airlines seat either rear or fwd facing.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

laclark
01-05-2001, 11:12 AM
Check out the carseat board at parentsplace.com. There are many people there who are trained car seat technicicans and they are very knowledgable about car seats. There is also a compatability database where you can punch in what type of car you have and you can see what type of car seat fits well in it.

Most of the car seat techs at this board do not like the century seats because the are hard install tightly in most cars. Some of their favorite seats are the Britax RA ($200), Fisher Price Safe Embrace ($100), Century Accel ($60?) and the Cosco Touriva ($45-but on sale at Kmart frequently). I've heard the Briax fits well on most planes and the Cosco Touriva has a narrow base so it probably would too. Both the Touriva and Accel don't have as many features as the Britax and FP seat, but they are five point seats and usually fit well in most cars. However the Britax and FP seats also have built in locking clips, EPS Foam (Britax has more), non-twisty straps and up front harness adjustors. Except for the EPS foam most of these features are mostly things that make the seat easier to use. They aren't necessarily safer seats, just easier to use correctly which makes them safer. The Accel and Touriva are also very safe but take more work on your part to be as safe. Does that make sense?

Anyway check out the car seat board and I'm sure you will find a seat you like. Hope to see you there!

Oh I forgot the Britax seat can also be tethered rear facing. One of few (if any) car seats that can. Also I don't believe there are any convertible seats with detachable bases. It sure isn't fun to give up the convenience of the infant seat is it!

Laurie-Mom to Lia Grace (4/26/00)