Toddler life jacket ??

[jmvotto]

Need a 30 to 50 lb toddler life jacket with collar and padded crotch strap.

anyone with little kids who have used them and have an opinion.

Thanks,

[kaneboats]

I had at least 3 OP ones from ebay that were pretty darn good for years. I think I'm just about done with that size now. I'd give 'em to you but there's nothing left of them.

[jmvotto]

Thanks Kane. i understand the condition part.LOL we have a bunch of small ones but my 2yr old( 6/19 )is pretty tall and weighs 35 lbs so we have to get the bigger size but because she is so young we want to have the rollover feature on it for the collar and heads up system.

[lsvboombox]

BJ's has some kidder life jackets. bought one for my daughter.. fits really good... Most of them seem like they choke the kids out and make them look extremely uncomfortable.... The kidder one fits my daughter well.....

[sandm]

don't skimp..

sad tale from some fisherman this weekend..

http://www.ktvb.com/news/One-girl-de...123165783.html

[KG's Supra24]

We bought a couple different styles like a Hyperlite, an off brand neoprene and one of the generic orange ones. Our daughter liked the orange one more than any of them as it gave her the most flexibility.

Not the U shaped orange one, but a toddler orange one, had the head cushion and crotch strap. It was different from the neoprenes bc it didnt have a lot of flotation on the backside.

[dusty2221]

We have gone through several styles before we landed back at the traditional foam style. I was shocked these are still around, this is the same type of vest I grew up wearing. Out of the 3 different kinds we tried, this one seems to work the best.


We have two other couples that were using the other styles, and they have both now switched to these. My daughter has been in one since she was about 2 if I recall.

[rc5695]

We've always went to Walmart and picked up these for the little ones before theyr'e swimming on their own. They tend to last at least 5 years if you keep them out of the sun. I just pitched one last year that was ~14 years old becuase the buckle broke, the rest was in good condition save a little fading.

[rc5695]

The above jackets are not good for swimming at all. They're designed to roll the kid onto their back and float them face-up. Early swimmers have a pretty difficult time staying on their stomach with those jackets. So as soon as they start really trying to swim on their own, we move them up to a jacket like this one. My daughter has this exact one and loves it.

I've never had a "padded" crotch strap, but I'm sure that would be useful as MANY times, esp. for my daughters, they'll have a rash from it by the end of a long day of swimming.

Once they out-grow this jacket we switch to neoprene. They tend to be much more comfotable.

I'm intrigued by the foamies above, and would be inclined to try them depending on the price... They look like they have a better fit under the arms, which would keep it from riding up...But they'd also be bulkier there..

The MOST important thing to choose, make sure it is a once-piece jacket. Do NOT buy a jacket that is split down the side under the arms... it will always ride up and be very uncomfortable. Made that mistake once nad now they're emergency-only jackets...Just for small kids riding in the boat and not swimming...

[jmvotto]

don't skimp..

sad tale from some fisherman this weekend..

http://www.ktvb.com/news/One-girl-de...123165783.html

very sad, Our little one loves her life jacket and we has tons of them toddler and infant but she it a tweener. two big for the infant rollover type and can't swim yet. Our lake house is right on the water so we want to be overprotective. she motors pretty good.

I just bought two of these one for home for the neighborhood pool, one for the lake.


Thanks for all the replies

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