Help with double stroller?

[elismummy]

Hi there,
I have a son who will be 21 months when my secondy baby is born in January. We are looking to get a double stroller, but it seems that no option is perfect. I was originally thinking of getting a mac twin techno, but now am leaning towards the Valco twin runabout. does anyone have any advice on one vs. the other:
-is one better for kiddos this age group
-experience with either of them that is good/bad
-does the weight difference between the two make a difference?

etc.

I think that one of the reasons we were thinking Valco is that it takes a carseat, which would make things easier for my husband who will be home caring for them both. . .

Any thoughts, info would be great!!
Thanks so much!
Kati

[elismummy]

Just spoke to a lady at letsgostrolling.com about this issue and she also suggested the baby jogger city series double. Does anyone have experience with this and/or think it is a better/worse choice than the valco?

Thanks!
Kati

[tjteems]

I considered all the 3 of these when my second was born 8 months ago. I ruled out the Mac since it isn't too great on bumpy sidewalks. Although, it has a nice high weight limit and handles well otherwise. I narrowed it down to the Valco or Baby Jogger and decided on the Baby Jogger. I couldn't be happier. It has been a dream stroller. It glides over any bump or trail and my kids are now 3 and 8mo and when steering, I can't tell who is on which side by the way it steers. Very nice! I like the individual recline and canopy features. Also, plenty of storage space. I'm sure you would be happy with the Valco too. I actually can't remember now what the finally selling point was for me. They both fit through standard doorways which is was essential to me.

[elismummy]

Thanks for your input! A friend of mine has the mac twin techno and loves it and is trying to talk me into it, but I only want to buy one stroller (she uses a BOB duallie for walks outside) and my son weighs the same as her oldest daugher even though he is a year younger. My major concerns with the Mac are that it would be harder to steer with two bigger kids in it. Mostly we are looking for an indoor stroller (malls, shopping, etc) that we can occasionally use outside/for longer trips (zoos, museums, etc). My major concerns with the BJ or Valco are that they will be too bulky and not make as much sense of for the more indoors type of use. Do you find that this is a problem at all for you?
Thanks so much for your help!
Kati

[tjteems]

I also only wanted 1 double. I haven't had any problem with the size of it. I think any double is bulky. We use it for our all purpose stroller and it has been great. The only time the bulkiness is really an issue is that it is still big when collapsed. We have an suv, so it isn't a problem space-wise. The Mac is the only double that has a great collapse size.

[mommy2_1boy]

Hi! We have both the Valco twin runabout (with the toddler seat for DS) and the Mac Twin. I can honestly say I love both of them, however if I were to choose one it would hands down be the Valco. I love how manueverable it is (it can turn on a dime) and is easier to handle than the Mac Twin. Once you figure out how to get it closed it's really easy to get it into our SUV. Of course the Mac is awesome space-wise, but it's not easy to psuh with 1 hand (which the Valco is).

[Tondi G]

I would go with the Baby Jogger or the Valco! If you really want ONE double I think it would serve you better. There is nothing worse than walking outdoors struggling over bumps in the road with a smaller wheeled stroller!

[elismummy]

Thanks so much for all the input. We are still trying to decide what to do. It seems like the BJ and the Valco are really similiar in people's experience and wouldn't really matter which of those we picked (which is what I would do in a perfect world), but I am still unsure about whether or not they would be worth 300$ more than the Mac Twin. I also found the Eddie Bauer Transit Tandem at Target the other day which is definitly cheaper feeling, but so inexpensive, that I wonder if it would be a good choice to get us through the winter until we would be using the other more expensive one more (for walks outside, zoos/museums, etc). Or if the Mac Twin would solve all of these issues. HHhhhmm, I think this is where my husband starts to say that I am obsessing. :)

[tjteems]

FYI. . .I found my BJCSD brand new on Ebay for $470 with free shipping. not bad!!

[elismummy]

GOOD to know! I will keep an eye out there. I forget about ebay!