back carriers again, macpac or bushbaby opinion

[adibranch]

Hi All ! newbie here looking for info from anyone who's used any of these...

Macpac Possum / Vamoose
Bushbaby Elite 2010 model
Little Life Cross country, Freedom etc

We've been ordering off the net (its so difficult to find these things in shops) and currently have two sitting downstairs, a Vaude Jolly Comfort and a Macpac Possum. The vaude jolly i feel is a little too stiff as a comfortable backpack (as the carrier will be used for longish walks), but our 1 year old was happy in it.
The Macpac Possum is amazingly comfy for me, really well padded like a quality rucksack, but the seat section is very wide, which causes our sons legs to stick forward and press against the backframe. Has anyone else noticed this? I REALLY like the pacpac, but i'm just concerned his legs may rub on the frame.

Bushbaby Elite !
Just about to order one, but how padded is the hip belt and shoulder straps? And does the babys legs hang down comfortably or slightly forward and press against the frame?

Thanks for any info

[cjbutcher]

I used the Elite and found it really comfortable. There is plenty of padding on the hips and shoulders.

It also comes with stirrups for little feet.

Overall I think its great!

[adibranch]

well.. after trying the following..

Bushbaby Elite
Little Life Cross Country S2
Deuter kid comfort II
Vaude Jolly Comfort
Macpac Possum

we opted for the macpac possum. FAR FAR more comfy to wear than any of the others. You dont even feel like you're wearing it with the little one in the back.. thats an exaggeration of course, but with the others you could really feel you had a frame on, whereas the macpac just kinda fits. It also had the best cushioning for the adult straps out of all of them, by a long way, both shoulder and hip belt.
The cushioning for our 18lb boy is better too. The others have a square back section with little cushining (on all of the models), whereas the macpac has a very nicely padded and rounded front and rear section.
The ONLY problem with the macpac is that at hgh seat height the bum cushion the baby sits on is very wide, so their legs tend to stick out/forward a bit like they're on a horse.. and this can cause the inside of the top of their legs to touch the framework (as opposed to hanging down straight like on other carriers)but the seat is so soft i expect it to mould pretty soon to his shape, and i wouldnt expect a problem.
(as a footnote i have to say you only get this problem if you want you childs arms OVER the side supports as opposed to inside them, because the seat then has to be higher. Our little one likes the arms over the top, but some might not be so bothered)

I was quite suprised to find all other ones felt as stiff and rigid as they did, even for the baby section. The padding and comfort of any just wasn't good enough for me to wear it on a regular basis.

If anyone is considering a back carrier to do any walks of say over an hour, i'd definitely advise you look at the macpac as well as some of the others. Macpac is an renowned high quality rucksack manufacturer, and the difference shows.

[weegiemum]

I had a bushbaby - old model, my youngest child is now 6.

I carried all of them to age 2+ in it (even when pregnant) and it was fabulous - has now been used for 3 other children and is still going strong.

It suited me as I have a very long back and coudl adjust it as required.

Even backpacked 16mo dd2 round Central America in it. Fabulous bit of kit!

[adibranch]

oh and as a PS, i was really suprised with the bushbaby elite.. considering this is their 'comfort 1' model, it wasnt good. The padding still wasnt a patch on the pacpac, and the whole thing is crazily over engineered with excess straps and assembly options (it takes ages to assemble the overcomplciated an unneccessary bottom frame section)
It seems most of the thought for these other backpacks we tried goes into gimmicks and gizmos, as opposed to actual comfort.

Hope this helps people looking for one in future.

[adibranch]

sorry weegiemum i didnt see your post.. i wasnt ignoring it