Wizard and Husky?

[em_jon98]

Can someone tell give me a brief rundown of the differences between these two seats? I'm trying to figure out which would be better for a very tall and heavy two year old...

Thanks!

[brigmaman]

We just researched this because we have a 33lb. 23 month old. Here's some info from Toddler Bargains.
Husky: Not a booster, just a harnessed seat
Wt. range- 22-80 lbs.
approx.$230
Only 5 pt. harness up to 80lbs. This seat is pretty big and heavy. My cousin has one and she (an adult) can fit in it as well!
According to TB- "this seat is perfect for children who have hit 40 lbs. but aren't ready for lap/shoulder belt and a booster, mostly kids 3 and under." Past 50 lbs. this seat must be tethered. Can't be used on a plane.

Wizard: (we just bought one) not a booster, a convertible
Wt. range- birth to 65 lbs.
approx. $250 (we got ours for $210)
Not sure where harness adjuster is on Husky. On Wizard it is on sides of seat and very convenient.
HTH

[Joolsplus2]

The Husky is great if you have a van with captain's chairs (not good if you have a car where you need to fit three people in the backseat, but fine if you only ever need to fit 2 in a back seat...it's big, but fits fine in even subcompact cars).

The Wizard/Marathon can be taken on a plane and fits even tall, heavy children to age 6 or so (it's weight and height limits are based on the 95 or 99th percentile 6 yo's).

The Wizard is easier to move from car to car. The Husky will last harnessed till age 8-11 (average age for an 80 pound child)

The WZ/MA has better sleeps support than the Husky, though the Husky is not BAD for sleeping at all.

This site has lots of pages of pictures of kids actually sitting in these seats, and what they look like in cars, to help you get an idea what you're looking at http://pages.ivillage.com/momika/carseatphotos/id2.html (traveller plus is the same as the husky)

For what it's worth, I have my almost 5 yo in a Marathon and almost 7 yo in a Husky, and they LOVE their seats, so it is not so unusual for a kiddo to be harnessed for a long time...you just do it every day and it never seems odd as they get older and older :)

Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[em_jon98]

Hmmm...well, the seat is for a friend of my dd. She is still on the light side, lol, at 26 lbs and about 34 1/2-35" and fits fine in her Marathon. But, she has a friend who is just off the charts in both length and weight (not fat at all, just a tall sturdy kiddo.) They have a Roundabout, but he is never going to make it to being ready for a BPB in it. I offered to switch seats with them, because I think Lindsey will be okay in the Roundabout for quite a while, but I wanted to be able to advise in case they want to get him another seat.

We do go out together quite a bit, probably at least once a week, and we usually just switch one of the seats into the other's car. Wierdly enough, we both have '99 Camrys. So, the seats would have to both fit in the backseat of a Camry, possibly with an infant seat in between at some point in the future (far future, at least 1 1/2-2 years...but hopefully the future) but one of both of us will probably have an SUV or van by then, so that isn't a big deal. From the photos on Monika's page (thanks for the link, I forgot all about it), it looks like the Husky is a HUGE seat. Since you own both, will the Husky and the Marathon fit, comfortably, across the backseat of a Camry? Or would the Wizard be a better choice for the space issues?

[em_jon98]

Trish,

That helps a ton. Why did you end up deciding on the Wizard?

[brigmaman]

We have an SUV that doesn't allow a child safety seat to be placed in the middle rear position, so I have to have ds in an outboard position. I wanted all the head protection I could get. Plus, Brig still sleeps in the seat sometimes and the husky didn't look as though it would be conducive to sleeping. Brig will only be 2 at the end of the month, so I figure he'll be sleeping in his seat for a while.
Good luck! (See you in Chicago!)

[Joolsplus2]

A Husky and a Marathon/any other seat, even another Husky, would easily fit in the back of a Camry, there would just be maybe 8 inches of vehicle seat between them and no more, lol.
What's funny is, yesterday, my almost 7 yo was in his Husky, and he's been sitting more often in his Bodyguard, and he was tired and wanted to rest, and he asked me if we couldn't adjust the headrest on the Husky up so he could sleep better? Of course, there is no headrest on the Husky! I tried to recline his seat a little (the captain's chair in the van), but he wasn't happy with that at all.
I guess for such a young kiddo, the Marathon or Wizard *would* be a better choice! :)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx