Bike mirror advice

Blue407
Blue407 Posts: 33
edited April 2012 in Commuting general
Hi All

I have a GT Transeo Hybrid and would like a single mirror for the right side. Mainly to be used to see where my partner has got to as I have a tendency to push on ahead :shock: Also useful to check for cars before turning.

I don't have any space on the bars for a clamp on model. I was wondering if there are any I could clamp onto the forks so it would be out of the way?
Don't want anything too large, need something sleek and aerodynamic.

Any advice, suggestions appreciated!

Comments

  • colonelkurtz
    colonelkurtz Posts: 32
    Hi - remember seeing this a while back which may suit your needs:

    http://www.bike-eye.com/about.html

    Going to put the usual caveat about no mirror being as good as a turn of the head but for keeping your partner in sight it may suit.
  • Blue407
    Blue407 Posts: 33
    colonelkurtz wrote:
    Hi - remember seeing this a while back which may suit your needs:

    http://www.bike-eye.com/about.html

    Going to put the usual caveat about no mirror being as good as a turn of the head but for keeping your partner in sight it may suit.

    I saw something similar on eBay, it clamped to the frame. I was concerned that my body and legs would be in the way though..... (I'm not exactly small and slim! LOL)
  • corshamjim
    corshamjim Posts: 234
    If you have a bar-end free then the Blackburn Bar end Mirror is very good, as I believe is the equivalent B&M one.

    http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/blackburn-bl ... d-prod662/
  • Gizmo_
    Gizmo_ Posts: 558
    I realise it's not terribly helpful, but the advantage of turning around and looking is not just that you have a better view. What's far more important is that when drivers see you turn round, they realise it's a person, not a cyclist.
    Scott Sportster P45 2008 | Cannondale CAAD8 Tiagra 2012
  • corshamjim
    corshamjim Posts: 234
    Sometimes I think it's useful to see who's behind without giving them the impression you've seen them too!
  • shouldbeinbed
    shouldbeinbed Posts: 2,660
    corshamjim wrote:
    If you have a bar-end free then the Blackburn Bar end Mirror is very good, as I believe is the equivalent B&M one.

    http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/blackburn-bl ... d-prod662/


    TBH I found that one terrible for vibration, even when bodging a metal brace beam and grub screws and damping it with foam & tape.

    15+ years of mirror use and I've tried dozens. Anything with an arm, however small that may be is cr@p compared to the plug in directly types, you simply cannot eliminate the arm vibration.

    you can get way with a zefal spy mirror if you're image conscious as it is very discrete and universally mountable, but the standout mirror by far is the Zefal Dooback. These are absolutely brilliant, I have a badly damaged neck and looking round is exceedingly painful, I do it at the crucial moment only and the Dooback is the only mirror I literally trust my life to for the rest of the time, the image is rock solid and gives a very accurate judgement of distance.

    http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/zefal-zefal- ... prod14283/

    make sure you but the right side one, there are shaped and ratchet differently for left and right hand drive roads

    I've even had crashes and put that side of the bike hard onto the ground and it has survived, the mirror surface is surprisingly hardwearing and not only resists scratching well but is also still clear when it does get a bit used, it copes very well with misting and the ratchet & ball joint plug gives a superbly solid lock out with a good range of adjustment for different angles of straight bars, I've even had one on some heavily moustached style ones (not ideal but do'able, they are best suited to a straight or gently swooped back bar shape).

    Try it, if you don't like it I'll buy it off you and pay the postage


    if you have a drop bar bike, this one works just as well

    http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/sprintech-ro ... prod18601/


    I've never worked out how you see through the frame mounted ones without making some odd compromises or contortions with your legs and I'm not convinced they'd be much use with panniers or a rack mounted bag.

    http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/bike-eye-rea ... prod20715/ - this is the type, I can't see a single feature to recommend it over a bar mounted one.
  • utgaardaolle
    utgaardaolle Posts: 28
    Mirrycle has worked well for me. http://www.mirrycle.com/mirrycle_mirrors.php
  • Initialised
    Initialised Posts: 3,047
    I saw a bloke with one on the down tube and another with helmet mounted mirrors.

    Unless you have neck mobility issues just stick with a shoulder (last chance glance/lifesaver) check before every manoeuvre. With a mirror you'll have blind spots.
    I used to just ride my bike to work but now I find myself going out looking for bigger and bigger hills.
  • shouldbeinbed
    shouldbeinbed Posts: 2,660
    Initialised wrote:
    I saw a bloke with one on the down tube and another with helmet mounted mirrors.

    Unless you have neck mobility issues just stick with a shoulder (last chance glance/lifesaver) check before every manoeuvre. With a mirror you'll have blind spots.

    other than directly behind my back -and even with a good neck my head never did a 180 rotation, the dooback has a far greater range of continuous rearward vision than your average owl, blindspots are my concerns with the frame mount types tho.
  • utgaardaolle
    utgaardaolle Posts: 28
    My neck is part titanium and doesn´t turn as freely as it should. A few more injuries and I could be recycled (ha) as a bike.

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