Jane Powertwin - advice please on new or older model?

[Deleted User]

We have decided this is probably the double buggy we want, but don't really like this seasons colours. Our local baby shop said they are unlikely to change until late next year which is not in time for us.

We still like the Jane but are now wondering if we should buy second hand from ebay, but we have these doubts:-

1) If something went wrong, it would be out of warranty and would cost us maybe more than buying new. (although I said any teething problems would have been sorted out after the first year).

2) Does anyone know if there have been any changes to model specifications in the last 1-3 years. We would be buying second hand based on what a new model does, but have they been new and improved recently? We know this to be the case with the phil and ted E3 and sports version, as the seats recline better on the sports for example.

We would be grateful for any input or advice.

Many thanks,

Jen

Anthillmob

have you played with it in a shop and folded it up? its extremely heavy, even the assistant in mothercare couldnt lift it and it doesnt fold down enough to be able to get it into the boot of a family car (if you have one). its also very expensive. i was looking at getting one myself but now ive got this

http://www.kiddicare.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/productdisplayA_0_10751_-1__4864_10001_#

its lightweight, easy to fold, folds down nicely and compactly and its only £189 on the kiddicare website compared to the powertwin which is in excess of £300.

EDIT TO ADD - however check the weight of your eldest against the recommended weight on the combi caterpillar. also i dont know if the powertwin is the same but check the weight that it can hold also.

HTH

[Deleted User]

Thanks for your feedback, we also have a lighterweight buggy for the car, so I shouldn't need to lift it in and out.

We also prefer the 3 wheeler type as we have a single of these and find it much easier to push. We liked the quality of the Jane, extra padded seats etc, easy to push. Could you tell me more about your buggy, pros and cons please?

We are looking for something that my 1yr is going to be very comfy in as he is terrible for sleeping in the buggy. He is so nosy he doesn't let himself drift off.

Do shops stock the model you suggested, its not one i've heard of or seen?

I've only been to mothercare and a few independant baby shops.

We don't want to make an expensive mistake, can't afford to, so we want to get it right and not regret it.

Anthillmob

ive not seen ours in mothercare or toys'r'us (they stock buggys also), i went to kiddicare to order the 'combi wie' (think thats how you spell it) which is a double side by side that folds down and then in half and stumbled accross the combi tandem which ive got more chance of getting on a bus with.

am yet to use it as baby hasnt arrived yet but the seats are far easier to lay back than on the jane powertwin.

got this from kiddicare about our tandem

The caterpillar tandem is ideal for the newborn baby and toddler it´s super lightweight - only 9.5kgs approx and has 6 wheels which maximises maneuverability so that it can be pushed with one hand.


The deep multi position seats have 5 point harnesses with padded shoulder straps for added security and comfort ,it comes complete with 1 foot muff, a front playtray and also 2 canopys to protect your little ones from the sun, wind or rain.

• Super lightweight aluminium tandem
• 9.5kgs approx
• Unique 6 wheels, maximises maneuverability
• can be pushed with one hand
• Large deep multi position reclining back seat from birth and multi position front seat from 6 months
• Very compact when folded - free standing
• Includes one foot muff
• 5 point harness with padded shoulder pads
• 2 Deluxe canopies
• Front child play tray
• Cup/bottle holder
• folded dimensions L 113 x W 53 x D 38 cm
• Conforms to BS EN 1888: A1, A2, A3

the 6 wheels does make it easier to push (ive pushed it round the flat!!). its a bit longer than most tandems. you might find one on ebay.

cant really say ive noticed any cons yet apart from kiddicare not stocking the rain cover wich cost me £20 from another website. also the front seat isnt very high backed but i dont think front seats on most tandems are as theyre meant for older children. and the 'locking' mechanism on the harnesses are easy to use.

believe me, because of my hands (arthritis) this combi caterpillar is so easy to use and fold down, thats why we brought it.

one con is that because the handle is an 'all-in-one' you cant hang bags off of it when out shopping but theres a big basket thing underneath. i dont know if them bag hook things you can buy will fit.

Cissi

I can't comment on the newer model, but we bought the Jane Powertwin just over a year ago and have been extremely happy with it! It's very easy to manoeuver, both in town, shops etc (for example, it's narrower than the P&T E3) and on rougher terrain. We also have the Bugaboo Frog, and the Jane feels almost the same to push around, which is impressive for a double buggy! Both children have napped well in it, although the front seat is getting a bit tight for our eldest - but then he's nearly 3 1/2 now, and doesn't nap anymore anyway. However, I'd recommend buying a head hugger for the infant - you can get them online for less than £10.

The only downside is what the PP pointed out: I wouldn't recommend folding it up and putting it in the boot of the car, but if (like us) you won't be doing this, then I can warmly recommend it.

We bought ours from https://www.twoleftfeet.co.uk . They had a special offer at the time: £349 which included 2 footmuffs and a changing bag. No colour choice, the offer was for the brown/beige, but that was fine with me

1jim

dont know if there are any differences in the models but we bought our powertwin just over a year ago in the silver colour. We get on great with it, very easy to stear with 2 children in, good around the shops and great for walks out over rough terrain. Is a little heavy to lift in and out of boot but have never found that a huge problem, we have a citreon piccaso (the old style not the c4picasso) and it fits in the boot ok.
Hope that helps, any specific questions please feel free to ask
Jim

[Deleted User]

Thanks a lot Jim, well you did say, so I am going to ask away!!

1. How old are your children?
2. Do you find that the child in the front is long enough for their feet to knock the front wheel lock - making it fixed (which can turn into a good game)? That is something I have heard from a couple of people.
3. Do you feel it could be unstable when going up a steep hill if you have a heavier child in the front.
4. Is there still a lot of head room for your children underneath the canopies?

That is a start anyway.

We are looking at this model
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=130169410043&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=003
It doesn't come with cosy toes so I guess we'd have to buy them seperately.

We are looking at the Combi Caterpillar, but we would want to play with it and can't find a stockist.

Thanks to everyone's help so far, if anyone has anything else to add please do.

Anthillmob

if you order the caterpillar from kiddicare you get 7 days to return it in which time you can play with it. i emailed and asked them and explained why i needed to play with it. its perfect for me and i have extremely limited use of my hands.

mothercare might be able to order the caterpillar in for you to play with? if they stock the combi double then they must be able to get hold of the caterpillar.

1jim

Deleted_User wrote: »

Thanks a lot Jim, well you did say, so I am going to ask away!!

1. How old are your children?
2and a half, and 11mths, have used this since just before the youngest was born (started using it before to get the oldest used to it)

2. Do you find that the child in the front is long enough for their feet to knock the front wheel lock - making it fixed (which can turn into a good game)? That is something I have heard from a couple of people.
both children have ridden in front and back at various times, changing frequently generally depending upon the will of the 2andahalf year old! When the oldest travels up front she hasnt managed to find the wheel lock yet!!

3. Do you feel it could be unstable when going up a steep hill if you have a heavier child in the front.
Have never found the powertwin to be unstable on any terrain, we often change seating positions depending upon where the oldest wants to sit and when we think the youngest needs to sleep, always seems pretty stable and very easy to push

4. Is there still a lot of head room for your children underneath the canopies?
We have found that there is more than enough room under the canopies/hoods for our 2, the rain cover is also pretty good as it has openings to pass things in and out of to save taking it all off

Hope that helps, it really was the best one buggy for us...we spent ages researching this last year and this ticked all the boxes, made better by the fact that you can also use it to carry a babycar seat on it. It is quite thin so easy to get around shops, we felt that a lot of the side by side ones were just a little too wide to comfortably get around the shops. The seats recline well, again when playing with the seats on other buggys (especially the mutsy [?spelling] the others did not seem to recline as far as we would have liked despite saying that they were suitable for newborns. The padding on the seats is pretty good also so seem quite comfortable...but must admit have never sat in one to make sure:D

Any more questions please feel free to ask.......actually......just talking to the wife to get her input on these answers and she has said that she was thinging about selling ours anyway as she thinks that we might not need it for much longer anyway as out eldest is walking some distance now so if you are interested in the powertwin we might be able to come to some arrangment



Jim

That is a start anyway.

We are looking at this model
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=130169410043&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=003
It doesn't come with cosy toes so I guess we'd have to buy them seperately.

We are looking at the Combi Caterpillar, but we would want to play with it and can't find a stockist.

Thanks to everyone's help so far, if anyone has anything else to add please do.

Hope this helps, any more questions just let me know
thanks
Jim

Cissi

Deleted_User wrote: »

1. How old are your children?
2. Do you find that the child in the front is long enough for their feet to knock the front wheel lock - making it fixed (which can turn into a good game)? That is something I have heard from a couple of people.
3. Do you feel it could be unstable when going up a steep hill if you have a heavier child in the front.
4. Is there still a lot of head room for your children underneath the canopies?

LOL, I know you weren't asking me, but I'm going to reply anyway - my experience has been very similar to Jim's!

1) 3 yrs 3 months and 1 year - we started using it after DS2 was born.
2) Our eldest always sits in front and he's never yet knocked the wheel lock. He's tall, but still fits reasonably comfortably, and even occasionally still nods off in it (even though he doesn't nap as such any more).
3) I've never found it unstable, EXCEPT when there is no child in front, the younger one in the back (who is big for his age) is lying flat to sleep and there is a nappy bag on the handle bars.I just have to remember to put the bag in the front seat instead when DS1 gets out while DS2 is asleep!
4) We took off the front canopy some time ago, as the older one wants to be able to turn around and see his brother. We can still use the rain cover just fine, and I agree with Jim, it's a good one with handy openings.

Hope that helped!

[Deleted User]

Jim and Cissi, thanks a lot for your help and input, its invaluable to get others experience. Many thanks.

Jim please could you tell me more about your powertwin? Colour, age etc (12 months did you say?) and post me a link or a photograph with a pic if possible. Does yours come with footmuffs? Also please could you let me kjnow what sort of price and delivery you would be looking at. Maybe you could PM me?

Another question, I'm going to need a changing bag, I had to sell my silver ccross one when we sold Jack's pram and we are now using a huggies freebie, but its starting to fall apart. It holds Jack's stuff but I'm going to need something bigger for another LO bits too. Has anyone got any ideas on that, did you buy a special double changing bag or use a ordinary bag which is big. I have a bad back, so can't carry heavy rucksacks, i'd need to drape it over the buggy handles.

Thanks all,

bay