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@Mrs. Bee: just to complicate matters...we replaced another seat with the Britax Frontier, which is a great seat! It's a harness to booster seat, and to me, it's the best bang for your buck, if you're forward facing!
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We have the Britax Marathon, as well, and he seems to like it. I didn't find it easy to install, especially with the strap, but it's not like I'm removing it every day. I guess I need to read about the height for rear facing, since I didn't realize there was a cut off point. He's pretty short, though, so I'm sure we're not even close.
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We have FOUR Diono Radian 120s. That should speak for itself
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@runsyellowlites: @Adira: We have the Mysize 70. The extended RF height limit was a big factor in us deciding on this seat. Plus, I'd be lying if I didn't say that spending $300 total rather than $300 apiece wasn't appealing. We have this print, and I actually really like the simplicity. http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=13069715&prodFindSrc=prodCrossSell
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@kiddosc: Oh yay! Since you have it - can you tell me how easy/hard it is to install? Am I going to need noodles??
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We have a Britax Chaperone infant seat and LURVED it so we decided to go with the Boulevard for our convertible. Again, love love love Britax. We got an Alpha Omega for DH's car to do drop off/pickup at daycare and didn't want to spend the money on another Britax for 2minute drives. I will say that while they are both equally safe, the Britax is more comfortable and way easier to adjust.
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@Adira: We didn't need noodles to install in my Mazda 3, or the captains chair of my husband's Tahoe. Install with the in right Latch system was super easy and we haven't had trouble getting a good install. This video helped
Our only complaint is that the belt you pull to tighten the straps is positioned a little inconveniently for rf, but once we got used to it, it hasn't been an issue.
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@Adira: so tell me more about this seat, I am really intrigued...the Graco site is terrible, I can't find a product specs sheet.
What's the RF height limit exactly?
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@kiddosc: Thank you!!
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@looch: So I believe it will totally depend on your LO. It's my understanding that it doesn't have a set height limit and just has the 1" from top of shell limit and the head rest can go up, making the shell 28", which is a couple inches taller than other car seats. If your LO just has long legs (or is short), then other car seats will probably suit your needs just as well. But if you have a tall skinny LO (like I do), then the Graco MySize/Size4Me/Headwise will allow you to RF the longest!
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@Adira: that's interesting...i thought that the headreast doesn't "count" for the top of shell limit...which is what we have on our Boulevard.
eta: I am kind of freaking out that we've gone to front facing, if you can't tell.
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@looch: I'm doing a little research for you! The Graco MySize Manual has different information than what I got from the Car Seats for the Littles group, so I'm trying to figure out what is what!
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@looch: Okay, so the height rule for the Graco MySize/Headwise/Size4Me is the following:
"Harness height must be at or just below child's shoulders."
I think because of this change in limit and the size of the shell, you end up being able to rear-face longer (height-wise) than other seats.
ETA: That's the only height limit I can find in their manual anyway... I've definitely heard the 1" rule, but I can't find where that's from.
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@looch: @Adira: Graco originally listed RF height limit as 40", but has since modified that to be that the child's head must be 1" below the red actuator at the top of the head support and the head support may be in ANY of the 8 positions. http://carseatblog.com/18365/tallest-extended-rear-facing-carseat-try-the-graco-size4me-70/
In a previous post, this was measured as nearly 28" from the seat to 1" below the actuator. http://carseatblog.com/18372/graco-size4me-70-convertible-carseat-review/
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@looch: @Adira: Britax states that their limit is based on the shell height, not the moveable head wings. For Graco I found this on the Car seat blog review:
According to Graco’s updated guidance: “It is important that the top of the child’s head must be at least 1” (2.54 cm) below the bottom of the red head support actuator when using the seat rear facing. The head support may be placed in any of the adjustment positions provided that the shoulder harness is positioned at or below the child’s shoulders and there is no interference with the front vehicle seats.”
@kiddosc: That's where I checked too! lol
Anyone know how the Graco measures up fitting 3 across? That seems to be the one thing I haven't really found and would definitely be the deciding factor for us!
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@kiddosc: Thanks for linking that article! And here's the same information from the Graco blog:
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@runsyellowlites: According to their website, the Graco MySize is 18.5" wide, so I'm not sure how well three across would fit. Supposedly the Diono Radian RXT can fit three across and they are 17" wide, so the Graco seat is 1.5" wider, x3!
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@Adira: Thanks! Pretty sure that would be too wide for our configuration.
2 rf convertibles (outboard & center) & a backless booster (outboard)... G has to be able to reach the seatbelt which is what makes it a little more difficult in spacing. if it was 3 harness seats then just as long as they can all get a good install individually it would work -
@runsyellowlites: Ahh, yeah, sounds like you'll probably want to see if you can try some out in your car before actually buying anything! I've heard that some Babies R Us let you try the model in your car!
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We have a Britax Marathon and I like it!
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Here are photos of my 2 carseats in case anyone is trying to compare height and width... Diono Radian RXT and Britax Advocate.
Note, the Radian isn't that much taller, but the seat is lower, so there is more room in terms on height.
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@Adira: The closest BRU (2 hours away) doesn't carry the radian or foonf in store.
Any seat we get we'll be ordering online. boo that!
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@kiddosc: @Adira: hmmm.... Thanks for the info! I would be lying if I said you weren't changing my mind. The price difference is tempting too.
Of course, toys r us charges $25 in shipping to APOs. Scumbag TRU. At least they'll ship it.
The only thing that's holding me back is the fact that the radian converts to a booster. So it's the difference between spending that extra $100 now or later when she outgrows the Graco.
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@runsyellowlites: Booo!!! That's too bad! Hopefully you can order it from somewhere that has a good return policy in case it doesn't work out!
@loveisstrange: That's a good point about the booster. I originally wanted to get something that converts to a booster, but I've decided that being able to rear face longer is more important to me! BUT it all depends on your LO! Xander's tall, so he might hit height limits on other seats earlier than other babies! I your LO isn't very tell, I think the Radian would suit your needs just fine! Especially because it ALSO can fit tall children - just not AS tall as the Graco MySize, but it might not even matter!
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@Adira: C is stupidly tall. She's 34" tall at 18 months.
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@prettylizy: Not sure if you knew, but when the time comes the Alpha Omega is not a recommended booster, it's actually on the "do not recommend" list from a couple different organizations due to poor fit & the ff strap limit (to be at or above the shoulders) is often reached before the child reaches the height limit. It was crazy, one of the reviews I read showed how the harness slots were too high for a nb (which it says it fits, didn't fit until almost 3 mths) and too small for a child still within the max limits. Since it's so cheap though & markets a great range of limits & use alot of people get it not knowing. Grrr.
Did you have any issues getting it installed properly? That seems to be a complaint from alot of techs too.
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@loveisstrange: Oh geeze!! Tall baby!!! In that case, you presumably would be able to rear-face the longest in the Graco. Although - where is her height? If it's all in her legs, then I would think the Radian would work just fine!
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@Adira: I'm not honestly sure. I think a lot of it is leg, but her torso is pretty long too. I'd say it's probably pretty evenly distributed. I'll have to measure her tomorrow.
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@loveisstrange: Wow she is tall! Love the choice of words. lol
@Adira: Yea I hope! I'll probably ask some techs when we're ready to start shopping. They do a pretty good job of recommendations and who knows, maybe G won't need the booster anymore by then!
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@loveisstrange: Yeah, I actually need to get Xander measured too (hopefully on Friday) because I think he's close to the limit on our infant car seat and then we'll have to get a convertible!
@runsyellowlites: That's true! Hopefully when you're ready to buy one, you can get some good advice from techs and get a good seat!!
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@runsyellowlites: Hahaha, that's how I feel! She is so freakin tall. She's slowing down, finally. Thank god. She's been known to grow as much as an inch per month, so yeah.... Ugh.
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Recaro in my car and a Britax Marathon in DH's car. We both {hands down} prefer the Recaro. We also have the <$100 car seat that Costco sells for travel, but I can't remember who makes it.
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@loveisstrange: The Graco My Size 70 does look like a good choice... I hadn't looked at that one before I got the Radian. I don't know if has steel construction, which was important to me. I just looked and both the Radian and Graco My Size 70 have internal harness heights of 17.5". The Radian's internal height is 25 inches and baby's head must be 1.5" below that (so 23.5")... the Graco's is 27.5" and baby's head must be 1" below that, so (26.5)... so it looks like the Graco has more room but the harness may be a limiting factor...
ETA: My LO is 30.5" at 10 months!
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I have a recaro proride an loooooove it.
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@78h2o: @Adira: @runsyellowlites: @kiddosc: do any of you know if the Graco is airline certified? I can't find anywhere that says.
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@loveisstrange: I couldn't find anything anywhere so I'm asking in the CSFTL group. Hopefully a tech will know.
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@loveisstrange: I'm on my way to my car now, I'll look and see if there's a sticker.
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@loveisstrange: It is certified for aircraft use.
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@kiddosc: thanks!
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@loveisstrange: @kiddosc: Yay! Crazy how I couldn't find anything online anywhere! lol
2 rf convertibles (outboard & center) & a backless booster (outboard)... G has to be able to reach the seatbelt which is what makes it a little more difficult in spacing. if it was 3 harness seats then just as long as they can all get a good install individually it would work 
Any seat we get we'll be ordering online. boo that!
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