Commuting - Looking for handlebar mirror

I'm looking for an handlebar-mount mirror for my MTB. Something that I can attach to my left bar-end. Should be low-profile and, if possible, easy to remove to prevent theft and vandalism. I don't know if I should go for a model with real glass or polished plastic, because of safety reasons. Plastic tends to scratch fairly easy, glass has better clarity and scratch-resistance but is also more fragile. I'm a little bit worried about getting glass in my face or cuts if I crash. Oh btw, I will be using the mirror for commuting purposes, not for off-roading.

Did a little bit of searching and so far I found the Cateye BM-300G, BM-500G and a 3rd Eye.

Cateye BM-500G
http://a1072.g.akamai.net/f/1072/2062/1d/gallery.rei.com/regular/chips/683206_9996.JPG

Cateye BM-300G
http://a1072.g.akamai.net/f/1072/2062/1d/gallery.rei.com/regularimages/683208.jpg

3rd Eye
http://a1072.g.akamai.net/f/1072/2062/1d/gallery.rei.com/regularimages/686043.jpg


Any thoughts or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

I like unobstrusive things, that don't get in the way w. cluterring my handle bar: try glasses mirror, mine works.
if you still like handlebar's there are a bunch of'em.
Corsaire

I like unobstrusive things, that don't get in the way w. cluterring my handle bar: try glasses mirror, mine works.
if you still like handlebar's there are a bunch of'em.
Corsaire

I have to agree. I use a small mirror that mounts to my helmet for road riding. It may be the best investment I ever made! :)

I think the glass in those mirrors is the same as auto safety glass. The plastic ones might break and leave more sharp edges.

How about this one:
Topeak Bar ‘n Mirror
Sale Price:$34.99 $24.99 (That's 28% Off!)
Item #40-1702D
In Stock

First of its kind! These bar ends include an integrated fold-out mirror – perfect for mountain, touring and commuting bikes. Cold forged aluminum body, engineering-grade plasic mirror holder. Mirror adjusts freely for optimum viewing angle. Includes right and left side mirrors. Wt: 216g/pr.

I use a Third Eye glasses mount mirror. Slight movement of the head allows you to scan a wide area behind you.

Hi

After a cycling friend was sideswiped by a lorry we decided to put a mirror on. We decided on the Cateye BM-300G. Nice feature about this is that it fits into the handelbar. If you race you just undo the adjusting nut and remove the mirror. The plug then acts as a bar end plug. Works very well for us. on the tandem.

Keep those wheels spinning!!!!

PS the friend is out of hospital and on the long way to recovery.

Big H

I've tried both handlebar mounted and glasses mounted mirrors and by far prefer the flexibility of a glasses mounted mirror. The mirror below is from Colorado Cyclist, I prefer this mirror over third eye mirrors because they last longer (I haven't broken one yet) compared to third eye which I broke the arms off of several. It also offers more flexibility than third eye mirrors.



http://www.coloradocyclist.com/common/products/productdisplay2_v2.cfm?PRRFNBR=16494&S=16494,10778,10668

https://shop.sunrisecyclery.com/item/246/

That's the one I use, it's glass and insanely durable.
I've hit car mirrors with this going 20, been hit by car mirrors on it doing 30, endo'ed with it on, fallen over on my side with it, it's got a whole bunch of scratches on the case but the thing's still intact.

What I like about it is that it attaches with velcro, it's pretty secure, I glued a piece of rubber bumper that they use in bike mount attachments onto the inside of the grip to make it stick better.

If I'm leaving it somewhere I simply pull it off and take it with me. It only takes about 5 seconds to put it back on and another 5 seconds to adjust it once I'm on the bike.

My girlfriend has this one: https://shop.sunrisecyclery.com/item/247/

Instead of using velcro, it inserts into the handle bar and when u need it out of the way, u can either lossen the press fit and yank it out and pop it back in when u need but that takes about twice as long as the velcro. The only good thing about it is that people sometimes think it's integrated into the handle bar and they won't take it. When u park, u can fold it upwards out of the way like the car door mirrors.

I use the Mountain Mirrycle. Fits into the bar end, works great.

http://bikegallery.com/site/showitem.cfm?Category=37&searchtype=Category&Catalog=1

I have the Blackburn MTN Mirror mounted on the hood of my drop bar. I like the style, and the bright wide view, however, I find that it is too easy for the position to be jogged. Always resetting it. I've been thinking about applying some Loctite to the threads.

Blackburn MTN Mirror (https://shop.sunrisecyclery.com/item/246/)

Another mirror that I'm considering is the PerformanceBike mirror imported from Germany, the Ultra Light Bike Mirror. Lookas though it has a quality, large mirror that can be mounted nearly anywhere.

Ultra Light Bike Mirror (http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=15318&Store=Bike)

Thanks for all the responses so far. The reason I'm looking for a mirror that plugs into the bar-end(s) is because anything that will be mounted on the outside of the handlebar is doomed to bend or break the day I use it since I commute in a big city with lot's of cars and other cyclists. Glass-mount mirrors are also out because I don't wear glasses, and I have my doubts about safety and (with all respect) visual appearance. The Cateye BM-300GM, Mirrycle, the Blackburn mirrors and the Ultra Light look interesting. I'll check them out. Faust, if you ever buy the Ultra Light, could you post your findings here? Thanks in advance.

Oh RobCat, I noticed that on the Mountain Mirrycle, there seems to be a screw (or nut) on top of the upper tubular part that connects the two tubes like an L-shape. Can you confirm that? Also, if it is a removable screw, is it possible to mount the mirror the other way (so that it can be plugged into the left bar-end)?
Sorry if these sentences come across as poorly constructed, English is not my native language.

Whatever handlebar-mounted mirror you try, be sure to try it with clothes on! It sounds weird, but I once had a Mirrycle and it worked fine providing I rode with bare arms... something that happens about 1-2 months per year.

The Mirrycle was a round mirror attached to the top of the brake lever used with drop bars. It worked with brake levers that had the cables going up in the air, but not with the more recent "aero" design. Very sturdy, stable, good vision, but the arm is so short that if one wears a loose-fitting sweater, a windbreaker or any winter clothing, vision is obstructed. I had one in 1980 and someone machined a much longer arm for me to solve this issue.

Anyway, to make a long story short, I am now converted to a helmet-mounted mirror. Less problems when parking and better uniformity between bikes.

Regards,

Whatever handlebar-mounted mirror you try, be sure to try it with clothes on!

Or not. ;)

A.troll

Watch out!!! Did you see wat they did to the Trolls in Lord of the Rings...... there might be a Frodo or a Arragon in your future !!!!!!! LOL

Keep those wheels spinning!!!!


Big H

Any thoughts or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

After trying a helmet mounted mirror and finding it unsatisfactory I installed the Cateye mirror you showed above. I've been quite happy with it.

I couldn't get the helmet mirror into a position that gave an easy view behind without going cross-eyed, and given that it sits quite close to the face, what I could see I could only see with one eye making distances hard to judge. It also wouldn't stay in position meaning I spent half my ride adjusting it and being dangerously distracted by it. I ditched it after a week.

The bar mirror is easy to adjust, gives me a binocular view of the road behind and feel much more natural to look into. It does suffer somewhat from road vibration, but even when it is shaking you can see that something's coming. Besides, a mirror is never a substitute for shoulder checking.

Oh RobCat, I noticed that on the Mountain Mirrycle, there seems to be a screw (or nut) on top of the upper tubular part that connects the two tubes like an L-shape. Can you confirm that? Also, if it is a removable screw, is it possible to mount the mirror the other way (so that it can be plugged into the left bar-end)?
Sorry if these sentences come across as poorly constructed, English is not my native language.

Please pardon the late response. Yes, the mirror pivots on three points and each point may be adjusted via an Allen wrench. When properly adjusted and tightened I've had no problems with road vibration at all. I would think it would work well on either side.

The only downside I've found has little to do with the mirror itself: My hilarious coworkers find it endlessly amusing to tweak the mirror so that half the time I must re-adjust it before riding home. Har-de-har, guys.

The only downside I've found has little to do with the mirror itself: My hilarious coworkers find it endlessly amusing to tweak the mirror so that half the time I must re-adjust it before riding home. Har-de-har, guys.

Be thankful they're a bit clueless about bikes. If they weren't and wanted to really be annoying they'd give the barrel adjuster on the rear derailleur a few turns, or lower the saddle half a centimetre, or put salt in your water bottle, or let the tyres down just a few psi.

Be thankful they're a bit clueless about bikes. If they weren't and wanted to really be annoying they'd give the barrel adjuster on the rear derailleur a few turns, or lower the saddle half a centimetre, or put salt in your water bottle, or let the tyres down just a few psi.

Ha! Allister, these are the guys who ride! Of course, none of them have mirrors (or bells; they're always ringing mine!) on their bikes, or wear helmets. All good-natured, but if any one of them decides to attempt any of those other things you mention...best not to contemplate it. Please tell me that active sabotage is not common among our brethren and sistern!

Oops...back on topic, please excuse...

Ha! Allister, these are the guys who ride! Of course, none of them have mirrors (or bells; they're always ringing mine!) on their bikes, or wear helmets. All good-natured, but if any one of them decides to attempt any of those other things you mention...best not to contemplate it. Please tell me that active sabotage is not common among our brethren and sistern!

Oops...back on topic, please excuse...

Not common - I did it once to a guy many years ago - that's it. I wouldn't even call it sabotage as such. None of the things I mentioned actaully put the rider in significant danger - they're more the sort of things where they won't notice it by looking, but a few km into the ride they'll be thinking 'something feels a bit odd here'.

Anyway, if the mirror thing gets too annoying, I suggest lowering the saddle a few mm as a suitable payback. ;)

Anyway, if the mirror thing gets too annoying, I suggest lowering the saddle a few mm as a suitable payback. ;)

You're the Devil Himself! Back, I say! Back! :lol:

Cateye BM-300G
http://a1072.g.akamai.net/f/1072/2062/1d/gallery.rei.com/regularimages/683208.jpg

3rd Eye
http://a1072.g.akamai.net/f/1072/2062/1d/gallery.rei.com/regularimages/686043.jpg


So far I have tried two items shown above. I have had Third eye on my drop handle bar for many years. After I converted the drop bar to straight handle bar, experimented with two mirrors above. Here's my review.

Cateye BM-300G has a plastic mirror. It's supposed to be scratch resistance. When I first look at it, I was impressed by its clarity. If you didn't already know it's a plastic, you probably can't tell it's a plastic even if you compare it to a glass mirror side by side like I did. Only if you hit the surface with some hard object, it sounds like plastic. You can also it's a plastic when you hold it in one hand and another glass mirror in the other hand, it's lighter. Don't ask me to try how much of abuse it'd take before it gets permanent scratch mark. I'll leave it to you.
Now the design part. I like the upright position of Cateye better than Third eye for its looks, it's less obvious and less nerdy looking but the draw back is it gets obstructed by my own arm. You have to constantly move your arm or move your head side for the better view. About one third to half of the mirror is blocked by my arm. Another negative opinion about Cateye is it's placed so close to the hand, you have to be careful not touch it or it moves around a lot, even when you have small hands like me.
Third eye has much better visablity. I don't like the fact that it sticks far out and telling whole world that I have a mirror. And also it makes it harder to pull the bike out of garage if you park your car in the garage and not leaving a scratch mark on it. As I said before, the positive side is it sure shows a lot of activity behind you just by moving your eye balls.
One thing I don't like about both mirrors, they move so easily just by hitting a bump on the road. I corrected this on both models by inserting a small rubber washer I got at a local hardware store and it worked. Engineers at those company should know that the friction between two hard plastic won't create a friction great enough to hold those mirrors. It cost me only 10 cents for a rubber washer. It works much better now but if the company realize this and design with a rubber parts for more holding power, it will work even better than the way I did.
I haven't decide which one I'm going to be keeping on my bike. I'll switch back and forth for a while and see which one's going to stay longer.

Thanks for your input, allgoo19.

I believe there is a slight misinterpretation of where on the handlebar I want to mount a mirror. My bike has a flat-bar and I want to plug a mirror into the L-shape bar-ends.

http://www.foamtubing.com/on%20frame%20grips/barEndD8.jpg

Perhaps I should have been a little more clear on that. :)

good posts.... i was just starting to consider a mirror... realising that looking over the shoulder is a bit scary as i commute more often

good posts.... i was just starting to consider a mirror... realising that looking over the shoulder is a bit scary as i commute more often

Anyone seen a handlebar mirror that has a turnsignal that faces oncoming traffic???