Triple buggy

[bunyip]

Does anyone have any comments on a triple buggy?

I'm particularly looking at the 'T3 Jogger' sold by Lotsofbabies.com . I'm looking to replace a twin, then thought this triple would be useful, particularly since the 'jockey seat' is detachable, making it a twin/triple convertible.

Does anyone have any experience with this model or similar?

I'm especially keen to discover:-

size - I need to get through doors and use buses
durability - my last twin practically buckled up and had to be ditched
raincovers - I'm sick of these splitting

.....but any information/comments at all would be useful

Thanks.

[blue bear]

I. Borrowed one, it was too heavy to push up hill, couldn't get it through my extra wide doors, too heavy to lift Into the boot and didn't fit when I did lift it.
The children loved it, nice roomy comfy seats.

Can't see you getting it on a bus

[mama2three]

use mine as a double every day.
doesnt fit through my front door ( but neither will any side by side) , but does fit through all the shop doorways Ive ever tried.
Really heavy to lift , not ideal for in and out of the car.
Sturdy , copes well in the forest as well as on the pavements.
Nice to push , heavy with 3 but what wouldnt be! Im only small and manage to push 3 uphill to school no problem.
very comfy for lo's and they all love the front seat too.
Plenty of storage underneath and great additional pockets which you can zip on and off.
Mine was an ebay bargain ( £62!!) and Im really happy with it.

[lulubelle]

i have one and like it, some of my local minders have also borrowed it as they have 3 side by side and cant fit anywhere! it fits in all the places i have tried, the toddlers argue over who is going to ride in the front seat!
i think its great but would not wanna lift it in and out of the car all the time!

[Goatgirl]

Hi :),
I have the abc adventure buggy, with double reclining top seat which despite its drawbacks I have found invaluable in caring for 4 under 2's. It,s big but the wheels come off easily and it folds in half and re locks to upright easily. Heavy to carry so instead of storing it in the shed it does tend to stay in my hallway. Nice small turning circle :thumbsup: Unbelievably expensive as I bought it new and had it shipped from australia after a fruitless ebay search. They are much less on ebay and I've seen many since, go for far less than I paid, even less than half what I paid :rolleyes:, but hey ho : I had a couple of months to get sorted and couldn't risk being without transport before having 2 babies start :cool:

You can get reclining or static top seats which fit by sliding on to an adapter bar: single or double. I bought reclining double ones just in case we were out for long periods and all 4 children needed to sleep. They all suit newborn to 4 years. There is a sun shade and raincover for the main buggy and top seat.
I don't find it heavy to push and can also hold a toddler's hand whilst pushing it easily... But then I don't have hills to negotiate. It does have its own momentum, great on the flat, so would think uphill could be a struggle with all children and reclining seats in use.

Don't find it heavy to push unless
1) all seats are being used and I need to go up and down kerbs: use slopes/crossing points if there are any

2)the front wheels have stiffened up where water gets into the slot they fit into: easily remedied with a wipe, some lubricant and slot back in, easily removed with the push of a button.

I haven't tried it on a bus as yet, but it is only 73 or 74 cm wide and fits easily through my standard front door ( so slimmer than my nipper 360! )

However, I am 5' 2.5" and although with my chunky walking boots on I can see over the top of the top seats, and there is also a gap and window in the back of each seat which I can see ahead through, my vision of the area in front of the buggy is very compromised.
I have schoolies walking behind me if i use the top seat now as I can't tell how close to the front of the buggy they are unless they walk a long way ahead and don't want to bump into someone. Same problem where there are other children running around: can't see the floor for a good distance in front of the buggy so have to look ahead and be aware of my 'blind spots' as I would easily not see a small child running in front of the buggy if I looked away for a second or 2.

The raincover for the top seat i find very annoying as it ends bofore the LO's feet and water runs off it, onto these and my hands on the push bar. I have overcome this problem by dressing top seat children in all in one rain suits and wellies or waterproof foot covers.

The raincover for the main buggy I was very impressed with at first, looks great, very streamlined, but it was a little tight fitting and hasn't improved with use: the plastic has now started to pull away from the fabric edging. Where the cover is tight, there is a v.small area at the back of the hood where it attaches to the handlebar that is unprotected canvas and in the kinds of persistent downpours we've had this year, the driving rain can seep through and eventually drip inside the hood 'windows'. Very annoying. I am now looking for a 'universal' raincover which will work better (though not look as good, lol)

I have now also managed to buy a static top seat which I find much less hassle, far lighter than the reclining seats, hardly any impediment to vision (just the child in it), has no raincover or sun mesh but I just dress children appropriately for the weather and it is so much nicer to push. When I have 4 LO (once a week) I tend to not do long journeys so that the 2 who can walk (just turned 2) can take turns in the top deck ( which they all love, babies included!) and walking. Everyone's a winner :thumbsup:

got the static top seat on ebay for less than £50: on the lookout for a double static too, so can go further and faster :rolleyes: that one day a week.

I realise this is ridiculously long: hope it helps :thumbsup:

best wishes,
Wendy :)

[Boris]

I have the T3. I got it from Lotsofbabies. I love it. It is heavy with 3 children in it, especially if they are toddlers, but I still manage to push it to and from school/toddler group with no problems. It collapses easily and I get it in the boot of my C4. It's no wider than a normal double. The rain covers fit well. If the 3rd seat is on and you want to use the raincover you need the hood on the 3rd seat which is fine if you're 6' tall like me but my mum struggles to see where she is going! Nothing bad to say about it really!

[miffy]

Glad you asked this bunyip as I'm also thinking I might need a triple soon. There doesn't seem to be a lot of choice. I would prefer a side by side but I want one with the bigger wheels ( easier to push and to cope if we have a bad winter) but not having much luck finding one. Anyone used a triple mountain buggy (now discontinued) or safe tech triple?

Miffy xx

[The Juggler]

i have the T3

positives

it converts from double to triple
lovely accessories (cosytoes, headhuggers)
lovely to push on the flat, over bumps etc, etc
comfy for the kids
fits through most normal gates/doorways (not my front door but then none of my doubles every have (if I could get them in I'd not be able to get past them anyway)
you can get a good deal on e-bay/gumtree

negatives

very heavy to push uphill (bit of a workout - I now have biceps like arnie :laughing::laughing:)
storage (for me) is a nightmare as it's big when folded and I live in a victorian terrace with no shed/garage - don't get one unless you have a garage or a v. large hallway and rear access
very expensive new

good luck

x

[winstonian]

I've got the Triple mountain buggy, although I've not used it for a while. I really like it. It is very wide though - in our local co-op I can get through the doors and down the main aisle and then have to reverse out! It doesnt fit in a car boot or on a bus. Very generous comfy seats and a great shopping basket. I bought mine 2nd hand and its been well loved, it didnt have a raincover and I havent been able to find one.

[mama2three]

Miffy i had the safetech double and really liked it , really comfortable for the children , - but it was incredibly wide and I often found doors I couldnt fit through - so the triple must be huge! I killed it 2 winters ago in the snow - 2 heavy preschoolers and we got stuck in the 'potholes' in the ice - I gave it a huge shove and broke the front wheel joint!

[onceinabluemoon]

I have the Adventure Buggy Company triple everest that Florabird mentioned. I use it as a triple or double and have to say its brilliant.

I got mine off ebay but bought spare parts from ABC in NZ to improve it as some bits were missing. The company is owned by Phil Green of P&T and you deal directly with him when importing not an office full of staff who don't know what they're doing.

I've taken it on the bus as a triple and whilst it wasn't easy it was do-able. The only problem I found was that when there was already a buggy on the bus the driver asked me to fold it down and that really isn't going to happen with 3 or 4 LOs running around...

It IS heavy pushing up a hill fully laden with toddlers but imagine trying to carry them up!! Its definitely the easiest of all those I have tried (Easylife sport, or baby side by side by side were both manageable and I thought good until I had the ABC).

The only downside is that there no suspension other than the air tires.

The fold is flat but very long. Its about 3 or 4 inches deep when folded without wheels on (if that) so very easy sot stats upright up the back of a cupboard when not being used.

MOre info here: http://adventurebuggycompany.com/triplebuggy.htm