Jane Powertwin?

[naturalbaby]

I'm looking at these on ebay and thinking about swapping my Phil and Teds. I have a 3 1/2yr old, 2yr old, 10month old and sometimes my 3yr old goes in the buggy on long days/walks. I've had enough of toddler/baby legs in the shopping basket and want a double with 2 seats the same size so it doesn't matter who sits where. Sometimes baby goes in the front of the p&t and 2yr old in the back.
do you think the powertwin is the answer? i've never really looked at one properly so don't know what it's like to fold or use but the photos and reviews look good.

i do like to keep the raincover in the basket. can anyone tell me how small the raincover folds up and if i can keep it in the basket?

is there anything else worth looking at? i did look at the mutsy a while ago and we ended up with the p&t. i don't want a very light stroller type tandem but am thinking about them. i need something sturdy and able to cope with walks across a muddy park/snow/beach. our p&t has been well used!

Out n about nipper 360's are lovely to push, my friend has a Jane power twin she's selling for about £40 if you're interested in them she was gonna eBay it.

No, the Powertwin is awful. The front footrest is too near the front child's knees that even my 12 month old baby was dangling his legs dangerously near the front wheel. My then 2.5 year old could put her feet behind the wheel. This left me with no choice but to put the eldest in the rear and the baby in the front. But he had virtually no recline for napping. I found it tippy, with a chunky fold and the basket is relatively small. My toddlers feet were in the basket.
I think the B-Dual takes a lot of beating. It went straight over soft sand. It's got a huge basket, and yes the child's feet will be in the basket but there's easy access at the front and sides, and there's space at the front of the child's legs or at the sides or under the child's legs / seat for shopping.
If you don't mind allocating the children seats then the new Mountain Buggy +One is very good, but the baby would have to go in the front, the recline is limited. The basket is good but you do have feet slightly in the way. It's sturdy and pushes easily.

Just to add there are fold photos and photos of children in the seats here. I forgot that on the model I had the harnesses were unbelievably huge - useless!!

i did read about the footrest problem, i have tall kids so will try and get to a shop to try them in the front seat.
£40?!? i was thinking £150 via ebay so that would be great. can you give me more details south345?

i've read good stuff about the B-dual on MN so did look at it but prefer the stadium seating or the seats at the same level. i'm really tall so not a fan of getting right down on the floor to get a child in/out the buggy, and our trips out are like musical chairs!

thanks for the advice, will look at the mountain buggy.

I have a powertwin, for twins.

I do like it overall. But the front footrest is quite an issue. DT's now 23 months and the front twin always has their legs hanging either side of the footrest and once I did catch their foot in it. It is a bit 'tippy' if you're on a slight camber. And the recline of the front seat is bad. So for twins napping at the same time, the one at the back always got a better deal, dropped off first and slept longest. But the turning circle is great and I like having them tandem, much more easily manoeverable than a side by side, and them both at the same height is great for them.

I agree that the power twin probably wouldn't be great for older children. And the harnesses were enormous. It pushes so well though, lovely and light compared to most doubles. And we had the older version and it seems that the newer one you had twinkle doesn't fold so well. Ours seemed much neater and more compact except that the front wheel didn't tuck in, it just kind of stayed sticking out. But it was still fine in the boot and left plenty of room for other stuff.

I wouldn't say it was awful, you just need to know that the child in the front is going to be able to stop the wheel at the front and won't be reclined much at all. I did think the seat backs seemed short, did you twinkle?

The rear seat is 44.5cms high which isn't terribly tall. The front seat is a little taller at 47cms tall which isnt too bad.