New Pampers Crusiers 3 Way Fit

[disposablediaperboy]

These new pampers look amazing and it appears they come in size 7. To babies r us !!!

[clandestinest]

Let us know how they are

[Dirty Diaper/Maxipad Lover]

These are really nothing special from what little research I've been able to do on them. Basically, P&G is rebranding the "Pampers Cruisers Dry-Max" line as "Pampers Cruisers Three-Way-Fit." Whether or not Pampers has dropped the Dry-Max technology or not will have to be determined by whomever purchases the "three way fit" diapers though. It really sounds like P&G is just trying to get away from the Dry-Max stigma which has become the "red ring of death" of disposable diapers. I'm not saying that this is a bad thing, but these may or may not be a significant update. Someone should compare the two to see if there have been any "silent" revisions to the product line as a whole. (The reason these are available in size 7 is because they're replacing the Dry-Max size 7 in the Cruisers line.)

[disposablediaperboy]

These are completely different from previous releases.

[Guest]

How so?

[Angela Bauer]

The strange thing is that although I routinely buy Pampers Cruisers, Size 4 as well as Pampers Extra Protection, Size 4, I have not studied the cartons.

Extra Protection apparently are only sold by Target. To me they seem like a pre-DryMax Cruiser with additional SAP. Therefore the EP are thicker and stiffer when dry than DryMax Cruisers. It is true EP has extra capacity. For me when using EP as my slip-in pad I can be sure of 4 hours capacity even when I am wetting heavily, as compared to 3 hours with a Dry Max Cruiser. I find Size 4 fit me best. When the EP came out in late 2009 they were only sold in sizes 4 and 5. A few months ago Target started selling them in sizes 3 to 6.

Often I do not need a full 4 hours of protection because sometimes I can change more often. During hot weather away from air conditioning I prefer to change my pads sooner than 4 hours. I never had any problems with DryMax, so when I do not need extra capacity I like the slightly softer and thinner Cruisers instead of the EP. In size 4 the cost difference is only a cent or two per diaper lower for the Cruisers.

Going back to 1991, when I married Don and thus could wash my cloth diapers, I continued to wear disposables during the day at work and pinned gauze diapers inside soft vinyl panties at home or when being discreet is not important. Since 1991 I routinely sleep in pinned gauze diapers.

During the summer of 2010 I realized that for about 4 hours every morning when I changed from over-night gauze diapers to a disposable slip-in pad, the pad felt strange. In the evening I loved the feeling of being in gauze, but most nights I do not play as a big baby. I experimented with the EP and DryMax Cruisers as slip-in pads replacing one of the Gerber Birdseye pre-fold infant diapers I use as part of my gauze diaper set. Wearing the disposable next to my skin there is no difference in sensation, so I am more comfortable.

In our home storage space is no problem, so I tend to buy several cases of the Size 4 EP when I make a trip to Target. I use just under 20 a week, so a carton of 64 EP lasts about 3+ weeks. Size 4 Cruisers are sold in cartons of about 100 or so. I find the price is usually lowest at super markets. When I see the price is below average I buy another few cartons. On 5 August 2011 I used a discount coupon, plus my Rewards card, to get a deal on 3 cases of Size 4 Cruisers from my favorite Ralph's Supermarket. I did not study the cartons and put them on a shelf behind other Size 4 Cruisers.

Several days ago I noticed this thread about the 3-way fit. I went to the Pampers website and saw claims of improvement. I saw other DD members had added to this thread so I made no effort to locate any of the Size 4 3-way fit. On 1 September I started to pack for our annual Shadow Lane weekend in Las Vegas. My supply of Size 4 Cruisers with the wings cut off to use them as slip-in pads was low. I had spare time so I converted 20 from my existing stock. At that point I needed to bring more Size 4 from a carton in the closet.

Only then did I see all the new cartons of Size 4 Cruisers are the 3-way fit. So I am able to compare those with the older DryMax version. I also decided to bring a supply of the 3-way fit Cruisers with me to Las Vegas, since I would only need a few Extra Protection.

The first obvious difference between older DryMax and new 3-way is the printing. The size marking on the diaper is on the front left instead of the right as you view it. There is much less printing around the leg holes and except for the character in the landing zone the front is plain white. The rear of the 3-way is still decorated and also has a size marking at the top center. This is good because the front and rear are more obvious to a care giver. For me this is great because with the wings cut off it was not as easy to tell front from rear.

On the Pampers website they say the 3-way fit have a slightly longer absorbent zone and that 3-way Cruisers in sizes 3 and 4 are quilted like softer Swaddlers. This is true but also the entire diaper shell is slightly longer. Otherwise any difference in construction of the leg guards is not obvious. At least in Size 4 the 3-way are softer and more flexible than the DryMax. Removed from the compressed bag, the 3-way vary less, as if the QC was better. The construction seems the same, but as if more care was being taken to control over-spray of adhesive. The absorbent core has a very-white acquisition layer, that in Size 4 is quilted. Like the DryMax these deal very well with larger dribbles. Pampers say they design Sizes 5, 6 and 7 to deal even better with large wetting at the expense of less relative total capacity. I dribble so Size 4 are ideal for me.

My guess is that the outer layer of the 3-way is the same as the DryMax, since neither are stretchy. As far as I can tell the shape of the leg holes is identical, with the extra length mostly in the back. That would improve the fit on an active smaller toddler.

This weekend I have alternated between DryMax and 3-way. I find the 3-way have at least the same capacity. Next weekend at home I will see if the capacity is larger. Certainly when dry the quilted Size 4 3-way are somewhat more comfy, but the Cruisers have always been exceptionally comfy compared to commercially made adult slip-in pads.

At home I still have a sealed bag of 52 compressed Size 4 DryMax which I will save for future experiments. I have about 40 in open bags decompressing. This week unfortunately at work I will only be wearing EP as my slip-in pads.

So far, after wearing the 3-way fit for 3 days I am thrilled with them. They cost the same as DryMax.

One of my neighbors has always preferred Pampers for her children. Her youngest is a 2-year-old who wears Size 4 Cruisers except to bed. That family will be guests along with us for a Labor Day party. That woman knows I am urinary incontinent. If she has not tried the new 3-way I will give her a bag. Her observation about changing her son should be interesting.

While it makes no difference to me, the wings of the 3-way are slightly smaller than the DryMax. Perhaps this does make adjusting the fit better, but it might require some practice. Possible this will not be of interest to AB and DL using Cruisers as stuffers. By the way, back in May of 2007 it was the then 11-year-old daughter of this same neighbor who was not happy with the leaks of her GoodNites. The girl asked to try the then new Size 7 Cruisers. She only weighed 80 pounds at 4' 3" but found the Size 7 too short to reach high enough to stay in place and the leg holes were too tight.

[diggir]

Angela has done her homework. You are now given the title of expert. Thank you. Very informative and a good read.

[Angela Bauer]

Angela has done her homework. You are now given the title of expert. Thank you. Very informative and a good read.

Thank you for the very kind words, Diggir.

Well, it has been almost 2 weeks since I first tried the Cruisers 3 way fit as my slip in pad.

At night, when capacity is not a major issue, I am really loving the Size 4 3-way fit. They start out softer than the DryMax Cruisers they replaced. They absorb every bit as well. Even after 6-7 hours, when I wake up to change the 3-way have not clumped, nor are they entirely saturated.

During the day for me the difference between a solid 4 hours of capacity and 3+ hours is very important. The 4 hours of Extra Protection eliminates a change at 10AM and at 3PM, so during the week my only practical chance to wear the 3-way is for the drive to and the drive home.

I am so pleased that Pampers decided to use the best features of their Swaddlers disposables on the Size 3 and Size 4 3-way fit. They quilted the entire diaper and made the acquisition layer even softer. Dry it feels like a beloved veteran gauze diaper, which is as soft as diapers get. I have never felt irritation from any Cruiser. Still, the 3-way fit are even better.

[diggir]

I may have to check those out. Right now I use a Tena overnight pad as my booster but I think they are kind of pricey. They also tend to really swell up when wet so if I want to wear a diaper out of the house it's baggy pants and a long shirt. The next time I'm out and about I'm going to look for the Pampers Cruisers 3-way fit.

[Dirty Diaper/Maxipad Lover]

I posted an article from Advertising Age on these in the "Diapers in the News" forum. Of relevance is the following passage from that article:

The Dry Max name disappeared recently from Pampers packages, part of a normal rotation in packaging and products as Pampers launched its "three-way-fit" improvement for Cruisers, spokesman Bryan McCleary said. The revamped diapers look a little thicker than the Dry Max version, but he said that owes to a new back sheet akin to those on the Swaddlers line for younger infants being added to Cruisers, not a change in the basic Dry Max design.

(Bold emphasis mine.)

So basically, the "three-way-fit" diapers are essentially "Pampers Dry Max" with a "Pampers Swaddlers" back sheet. Still, this isn't to say that there could have been other "silent" improvements/revisions that we don't know about or that P&G isn't advertising, including revisions to the formulation of the SAP used in the "Dry Max" line. In any case, the improvements made to the "three-way-fit" line are definitely encouraging.

If I had to make an educated guess as to what happened to cause the backlash to the "Dry Max" line, it would probably be as follows: A small group of parents had children that developed severe diaper rash as a result of the SAP not absorbing urine quickly enough, and/or the child not being changed frequently enough, and/or the child having particularly sensitive skin, or the hat trick of all three. The parents of these children began to have problems because they weren't accustomed to using SAP-only diapers, and subsequently sued P&G believing that the diapers alone were the cause of their problems. (Rather then the diapers combined with any of three factors mentioned above.) In any case, it's nice to see that P&G has resolved this issue. The question of whether or not another group of parents will have the same problem with SAP-only diapers in the "three-way-fit" line still remains though, although more parents will hopefully be aware of the differences between SAP-only and traditional disposables, and this problem will ultimately be avoided in the future.

[KrisNdiapers]

wow parent sueing P&g? Must be in some part of the world where pampers are the only diapers. Like in those rich neighborhoods where people can afford atourneys after having kids!