A Replacement Convex Mirror that Really Works

[patrickt]

For years I've had a little stick on convex mirror, over the regular mirror, on my driver side. It works well enough to rid blind spots up close, but it's of crappy optics and too convex. If a car is more than, say, 20 yards back it looks like it's a mile away. I know some high-end European cars have "slightly convex" mirrors, that are made of real glass, not plastic, and that also absorb the glare of headlights. Finding a replacement mirror that fits, and is of high optical quality, is not easy. I finally found a place that sold the stuff. A 90mm true glass mirror, slightly convex, and, when you hold the mirror up to a bright light, you can actually see through the mirror. Apparently that is how it absorbs the glare of headlights while still providing high optics. Anyway, here's a shot of the new glass, sitting inside my mirror housing on a table, next to the dime store convex stick on that I had been using. Both are the same height off the table. Note the reflection of the light that is over the table and the size difference between the two images. Big, big difference.

[kevins2]

OK, so are you going to tell us where you got it, or taunt us?

Seriously, I still plan to mount my fender mirror and this looks great.

Regards,

Kevin

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by kevins2

OK, so are you going to tell us where you got it, or taunt us?

Well, ok.... Aardvark International in Whittier, CA. They have a very small, rough, web site. Aardvark but I had to email and fax Guenther there to get the price quotes for the parts (the glass mirror, cork, spring, gasket) along with shipping. Expect to spend about $75 for everything. I spent a long, long time looking for a simple, round, first-cut optical quality slightly convex 90mm mirror and, let me tell you, they are darn hard to find.

[FWB]

but can it burn ants on the sidewalk with the reflection of the sun?

[Clayboy]

Patrick,
I went to a Talbot mirror and have found it to be much, much better than the Walmart version of the convex lens that I bought for my existing mirror. It's not cheap, but ya gotta love that German craftsmanship. I got mine from another source, the AlfaCyber Site. It took a while and several phone calls, but it's a great mirror. Well worth the hassle and wait.
Bob

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by Clayboy

I got mine from another source, the AlfaCyber Site. It took a while and several phone calls, but it's a great mirror. Well worth the hassle and wait.

I actually called them first, but they told me they only sold the complete mirror and housing, not just parts. I didn't want to spend $400 on the whole thing, I just wanted a replacement piece of glass that was high-end. They're the ones that referred me to Aardvark. I thought about just buying a replacement piece of high-end convex mirror glass and then having it cut to the right 90mm circle size, but this was much easier.

[blown871]

I too would love to replace the mirror in my side mirror. it is worthless.....
to replace the entire unit; way to much $.. I can turn my neck..

share with us.. how well it works on the car.. and does it sit/swivel nice?

pix?

[ACademic]

Aardvark does sell a decent mirror and I have the entire Talbot set-up. The best $400 of car jewelry I ever bought (sarcasm alert). But since the mount is fixed to the fender, even better quality convex glass doesn't change the fact that you're staring at your left rear fender/tire.

You want originality AND visibility? Then prepare to glance over your left shoulder.

[Clayboy]

Ditto what Steve says...

Like they teach you in driver training, always look... don't rely on your mirrors.

Bob

[Mongoose930]

I purchased high quality glass convex lenses from Tex Automotive in the UK: Tex Automotive Ltd. - Richter accessories. They offer 90MM, 92MM & 95MM. I think I paid under $10.00 for each lens. I don't believe you will find them on the Tex website but e-mail Mike Barker and he can help you: mike.barker@bmh-ltd.com The P/N for my convex Raydyot lense was RGS03. The Talbot style mirror has a slightly different diameter but BMH has that size also.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by blown871

...share with us.. how well it works on the car.. and does it sit/swivel nice?

pix?

Of course. I'll reassemble it this weekend and take a few pics of the process. Now, what I had on the car was the typical knock-off of a quality mirror -- it looked fine from the outside, but the inside has cheap parts. When I took it off, by removing the big screw in the back that holds the swiveling bracket to the main housing, instead of having a spring and cork, like the nice jobs have, it just had some foam blocks in there. Of course, the mirror is just a simple, plain mirror over which I had stuck the cheapo convex plastic mirror. It looked fine, in fact you'd never notice it, but it was too convex for my liking. I'll try and post a pic of how light passes through this new fancy German mirror. It's very, very cool.

[patrickt]

Can your mirror do this?

[ERA Chas]

I never had a problem with this mirror...

[patrickt]

Uhh, tell the truth now Chas, have you ever seen a mirror like that before? You gotta admit it's pretty cool.

[ERA Chas]

Originally Posted by patrickt

Uhh, tell the truth now Chas, have you ever seen a mirror like that before? You gotta admit it's pretty cool.

Yes it is and a good find by you. But you've also never seen one like mine before.
Nice that you posted something to help some guys for a change...

[RodKnock]

What's up with the cheap lighting fixture? Is that an awning on your front window like houses in the 1950's? Oy.

[patrickt]

Originally Posted by RodKnock

What's up with the cheap lighting fixture? Is that an awning on your front window like houses in the 1950's? Oy.

Uhhh, no... that's over my work bench looking out to a patio. But you've seen your fair share of high end cars, have you ever seen a mirror that allowed light through it?

[vector1]

Come on people!

Great Movie Lines #1 - The Gumball Rally (1976) - YouTube

[ERA Chas]

Originally Posted by RodKnock

What's up with the cheap lighting fixture? Is that an awning on your front window like houses in the 1950's? Oy.

Quit yer b!tchin'-we were spared dogs, manicures and expensive watches. This is real good-for him...

[Mongoose930]

Just an FYI, and I have no affiliation with Tex, but those mirrors are also see through glass. I didn't see any advantage to this and actually put painters tape behind them. For $10.00, it is a pretty good upgrade to the flat glass.