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Whenever I've made Snickerdoodles, they've been chewy and flat - and they've been huge hits that way (I think it's how they're supposed to be)! Yum! :)
Here's the recipe I use - good luck!! http://lauraezolnoski.com/2009/06/29/snickerdoodles/

I've never had a problem with just multiplying everything by two... It would never have occurred to me to change the quantities.

That said, I usually halve things, rather than double them, except at Christmas, but we've been doing those recipes that way for so long, I'd probably think the original recipe tasted funny at this point. ~_^

hmm, I've never had an issue just doubling. When you have to scale up A LOT, like in a professional setting, you definitely have to change some things, but for just x2 I didn't think it made much difference.

It was more likely some environmental or procedural factor....
-was it hot in the room (softer dough would spread out faster) or humid (more moisture in the air=more in dough)

-was the butter too melted (if it's melted and not softened you wouldn't be able to cream it adequately and there would be less air incorporated)

-too little butter? (fat=tenderness because the fat coats the protein, inhibiting gluten development, so if there was less fat the cookie would theoretically be chewier)

-was the oven set too low (if the oven is hotter the cookies will quickly rise and then the high temperature will quickly set the protein structure, as opposed to a slower, more even baking with more time for spreading in a lower oven)

-did you use a higher protein flour (more protein=more chewy, if you switched brands it could be slightly different or if bread flour was used instead)

-did you not use parchment paper when you normally do? (cookies baking directly on the pan tend to spread more)

OR, maybe I should shut up- I guess it totally could have been the chemical leavening agent! But maybe rather than a wrong amount, it was just old??

Sorry if I'm rambling, just throwing in my two cents.

Like BrooklynBaker, I doubt the doubling of the recipe was the source of the problem.

One other possibility is that because you were making a double batch, the dough sat for too long before baking. Was the first batch fluffy and the last batch flat? In that case I'd guess that the baking powder/soda reacted before you had a chance to get the last batch in the oven. Baking multiple racks at the same time might help.

I always understood that the problem with doubling the baking powder/soda applied only to cakes or larger pastries where the increased leavener affected the overall structure of the cake.
Never occurred to me that it would affect something smaller like a cookie. I agree with the above commenters that it was likely another culprit.

i'm not a snickerdoodle fan but for any other recipe just mixing up twice as much of everything has always worked for me

Samalone, I'd agree that's a possibility with baking soda, but if powder was used it's double acting-so it would react with whatever acid is in the dough first, yes, but it would also react with the heat once they go in the oven, so they should still rise for the most part.

I know it's more work, but I've never had luck with doubling recipes. My cookies ALWAYS taste better when made in smaller batches. So I just stick to the recipe and do it twice.

I have a recipe which makes around 40-50, so no need for me to double it. (It's in the Bake book by Women's Weekly, not sure if you can get it in the U.S)

Now I'm drooling thinking of snickerdoodles- there goes my diet.