Best mirror option?
 

I still need to set myself up with a mirror for road riding. Some of my friends tape a mirror to the inside of their helmet, while others clip them onto their glasses. I was just curious what the majority of you recommend. I found the taped in mirror to be a bit uncomfortable, and I use the same helmet for road and MTB, so I would have to re-tape it for road use.

What would most of you consider the best option for using a mirror on road rides ... i'm tired of having to turn and look behind to see if traffic is coming my way!

Thanks!

I have a "Third Eye" that clips to my glasses frame and it works well for when I wear my regular glasses, however, when I wear my Bolle Parole sunglasses (with optical insert) , the mirror doesn't fit so well on the thicker frame of the Bolle's.

I went to a Blackburn Multi-Mirror that installs in the end of the drops (remove plug, install mirror) and it works really well for road riding even with moderate bumps....but if you ride on really chopped up surfaces the mirror would probably vibrate to much to be useful...see it at
http://www.performancebike.com/shop/....cfm?SKU=14655

I use a helmet mirror modded with a 2nd leg. Holds rock steady even on rough roads. I always have a crystal clear pic of what's going on behind my left side.

none. bad idea.


Commence flaming. :D

I like my helmet mirror, but a lot of folks swear by mirrors that mount on glasses. I don't rely on it 100%, but it gives you a good idea when you need to take a look.

http://a1072.g.akamai.net/f/1072/206...19_9996Lrg.jpg

Zefal Spy Mirror

That's a curved wide-angle mirror? I have a Bell wide-angle mirror, but I need a flat to go with it because it's impossible to see anything more than a half block back.

Chuck Harris at the Ultralight cycling shop in Ohio makes/sells mirrors, helmet or eyeglass mounted. He uses recyled materials!
Or Take-A-Look mirrors, also made in the US that clip to eyeglass frames.
Clipping to eyeglasses or helmet are preferable, as road vibrations can mess up your view on bar mounted mirrors; as can going around corners . . .
Just our opinion.

I second the Take-A-Look. Has the best rear view coverage, easy to get used to and increases your safety margin dramatically. I see roadies wearing mirrors all the time here in N. Texas.

I am happy with the Italian Racing Mirror I learned about from this forum. The mirror connects in the end of the handle bar drop and allows you to see behind you while being unobtrusive. They are available on ebay at: http://search.ebay.com/italian-racin...jsZ1QQfromZR40

The mirror is great when riding on country roads and most people don't even notice I have a mirro on my road bike.

Is it any heavier than the Third Eye? The problem with these glasses-mounted mirrors is the extra weight torques your glasses which can be annoying. That one looks like it's made out of metal.

I have tried almost all of the mirrors out there. Take-A-Look seems to be the best one to mount on your glasses. I have tried the horseshoe that mounts to the top bar; it can work ok – good view of the seat post. I have just purchased the "Italian Road Bike Mirror" and so far I think it to be the best of the lot.

I have a young son that rides with me and it really helps to keep an eye on him. It is also works well when it comes to viewing traffic.

So far so good.


http://www.aspirevelotech.com

I have used several helmet mirrors before and couldn't stand the "insect" look.

I was looking for a light and minimalist mirror and found the M2Racer Stealth mirror mounted on my Oakley's the best. It is very light and its black finish make it almost invisible. It also works great. The only downside is that it is pricy at $18.30. I live in CA and paid about $25 including tax and shipping.


http://www.m2racer.com/products.php?...products&id=12

...sorry, being lazy again, here's my (edited) cut&pasted reply to a touring thread...

...I use a helmet mount mirror, which can also easily be attached to any glasses. I've also mounted it to the brim of a hat on occassion while on tour.

A decent review of various models can be found on the Icebike site. The model I use is the "take a look" model. To mount it to a helmet, there is a small plastic plate that sticks to the helmet-I just attach mine to my helmets visor.

I think that this model is excellent, it hardly vibrates+I rarely need to re-adjust it. I've previously used the plastic helmet mount types, and found they vibrate too much and lose there adjustment easily.

So far I've lost two. One popped off when I went down in deep snow last year (I didn't notice 'till later), one popped off due to the vibrations of rough roads while cycling in Romania. I wasn't wearing my helmet at the time-it was strapped to my rear rack+I didn't notice when the mirror fell off (I had a spare).

Mirror or not, you still need to turn your head and look/check prior to changing lane position.

I posted some pictures of a "Take a Look" mirror mounted to my specialized MTB helmet visor on another thread.

I posted some pictures of a "Take a Look" mirror mounted to my Giro Pneumo helmet on a different one. (also shown is a petzl 3W LED head lamp).

Just went out to the garage to check it....if it's curved it's only a very slight curve, definitely not as much as a passenger side car mirror (where they need to put "objects in mirror are closer than they appear"). I can see cars from pretty far back...a lot more than half a block.

Take-a-look.

Take-a-Look.

By far the best glasses mounted mirror (it can also be helmet-mounted with the included adapter).

I use a Third Eye glasses-mounted mirror. I can only use it with my sunglasses, as it makes my regular glasses skew to the left when I use it. When it's adjusted right, it's great, but I find it too easy to knock it out of alignment, and adjusting it while riding is a lost cause. But I may also be a klutz.

flame me too then.

i'm a noob and recently went to the lbs for the same thing. the owner almost wanted to talk me out of buying the mirror. he said with experience i'd get good at safely peeking over my shoulder at regular intervals... i bought the mirror anyway - the kind that attaches to the helmet - and used it once then threw it away... found that looking for the little mirror was taking my eyes off the road longer than peeking over the shoulder...

When you first started driving a car I'll bet the car's rear view mirror also distracted you from time to time, and you took your eyes off the road to use it. Would you drive your car without a mirror now?

Compared to twisting around to look back, the mirror is much safer to use. Unlike twisting around, the bike never wavers when using the mirror and your eyes are off the road for much less time.

Compared to "listening" for traffic, the mirror provides much more information, much sooner.

I find that a good mirror (e.g., the Take a Look) greatly enhances "situational awareness" while riding, with almost no effort.

yeah, and i didn't give myself much time to get accustomed to it, either.... the mirror surface was small and jiggly and by the time i could find it and process what it was displaying my eyes had been off the road too long... plus what the lbs guy said - and he's a solid source - led me to ditch it....

fwiw, see this poll on mirror usage.

Not to be crass, but does a mirror really help?

Yes...mirrors really do help. When I'm on group rides, the folks who first call out "car back" are almost always the ones wearing a mirror. They enhance situational awareness on the bike exactly the same as they do in your car.

Try removing the mirrors on your car for a few days and see whether or not they "really help".

I wouldn't be without one on busy roads or on large group rides