Bike Mirror

[DaveB]

Thanks for the info everyone!  I'm leaning towards a bar end mirror so it's easy to get used to and not too distracting.  I appreciate the advice!

I agree.  I never ride without a mirror if I have any choice.  I've tried just about every type of bicycle mirror available and have settled on the bar end type.  I use the Third Eye mirrors but there are others that work also.  Their only downside is you can't use them with barend shifters as there is no place left for them but I use either brifters or Kelly Take-Offs so I don't have that conflict.

[solsrch]

Personally, I'm off and on with the mirror.  If I'm using a mirror I like my small one that attaches to my sunglasses.  I don't know if it is one of Chuck's or not, it is small, lightweight, easy to adjust and I bought it in the early 70s.  I like lights or mirrors that remain oriented to my head/vision in a consistent way even as I move or look around.  Just my 2 cents.

[BikeFreak]

Some of my personal statistics:

1. I never use a mirror (exept once) - both touring and commuting.
2. The one time I used a mirror was on my trike when doing the perimeter of Australia. Actually, I never made use of the mounted mirror - I always used my ears and the turning of my neck.
3. I live in a capital where you have more bicycles than cars in the city (CPH). I have never seen one single person using a mirror.
4. I have bicycled in many heavily congested European areas and I never see bicyclists using a mirror.
5. The times I have seen cyclists using mirrors was almost always in USA on some ACA routes.

I guess its an American thing.

Lucas

[John Nelson]

I use a helmet-mounted mirror. It took me forever to get used to it, but now I can't ride without it. I even find myself trying to use it when I'm not on my bike and not wearing my helmet. Sure I can turn around, but I'd rather keep my eyes on the road if I can. It's especially useful in tricky situations where I need to keep my eye on multiple things at the same time. I often use it when I suddenly come upon an obstacle like glass and I want to know instantly whether it's safe to swerve around it.

I do have a stack of other kinds of mirrors in my garage, but this is what I finally settled on.

[waynemyer]

Watching some of the replies to this thread, I would like to add:
I am so accustomed to the helmet mirror that I am spoiled. When walking down the sidewalk, I keep snapping my eyes up and left, expecting to be able to look behind me, both to the rear left and rear right. I feel naked without my mirror.

Again, that is strictly my personal experience. YMMV. Your preference may vary. And until you try a variety of mirrors, you won't know what works best for you.

[pptouring]

...
4. I have bicycled in many heavily congested European areas and I never see bicyclists using a mirror.
5. The times I have seen cyclists using mirrors was almost always in USA on some ACA routes.

I guess its an American thing.

Lucas

Sorry to disagree but it's definitely not an American thing. It's true that you may not see a bike commuter on his/her Fixie zipping around the city with a mirror, but you will most certainly see many other cyclists in Europe with mirrors on their bikes. 

[bogiesan]

I cannot imagine riding my bike without my mirrors. I have two, one on each bar end.
I would neve drive a car without the mirrors.

This thread should not be about our personal prejudices, what kind of mirror do you use and where'd you get it? On my particular recumbent, on which I urn a fairing, the bar end mirricycle works best and I've tried almost every brand and style of mirror on the market.
Many years ago I used a single helmet mount. In 2005 I was descending frm Dante's Point in Death Valley and reached my personal high speed tucked in behind the fairing. When I raised my head into the slipstream, the mirror caught the wind just right and whipped off. For the rest of the week I rode without a mirror and never felt good about it.

[whittierider]

When I raised my head into the slipstream, the mirror caught the wind just right and whipped off.

Get one of the ones made with a spoke that lets you modify the bend to suit your glasses.  Mine (a "Beer-View mirror, made by Dick Bird in Irvine, CA) would let me swing the glasses around by the mirror and the glasses absolutely will not come off of it.  Actually it's somewhat of a challenge to get it off even with two able hands.

[johnsondasw]

I cannot imagine riding my bike without my mirrors. I have two, one on each bar end.
I would neve drive a car without the mirrors.

My feelings exactly.  Without it I feel at the mercy of circumstances out of my control.  With it,Ii can adjust to the conditions of the road all around me, not just in front.  For me, this is essential.  I have taken evasive action several times. It has also allowed me to "take my lane" when necessary to establish position necessary due to upcoming conditions,i.e., obstructions ahead, narrowing shoulder, pedestrians, etc.

[rjones35]

Don't know where you are with the mirror thing now, but I use a Zefal (i think) bar end. It actually straps on the end of the bar with a rubber strap, easy to take off and put on.  Small enough to not be in the way but big enough to shoe what's behind me.  I've tried the Take-a-look mirror that goes on the glasses and it worked pretty well when i get it adjusted just right, but I'm always taking it off my glasses and then have to readjust it.  its kind of pain, but if you never took it off it would probably be great.

[onebikeoneworld]

I've been using the Take-A-Look mirror for the last 9 months of cycling around the US and the most negative thing I can say about is that it makes it $15 more expensive when I loose my sunglasses. It's a superb device and allows you to see that drivers really are nicer than you'd imagine.

[CyclesafeSr]

I am compelled to add only that the mirror/no mirror debate is errily akin to the helmet/no helmet debate.  The strange thing for me is that in each of these debates I take the opposite side.  I have tried several mirrors and have always found them a dangerous distraction.  But I would never even get on a bike without a helmet.

[johnsondasw]

I am compelled to add only that the mirror/no mirror debate is errily akin to the helmet/no helmet debate.  The strange thing for me is that in each of these debates I take the opposite side.  I have tried several mirrors and have always found them a dangerous distraction.  But I would never even get on a bike without a helmet.

And I would feel naked riding down the block without a mirror.  i find the bar end type of mirror is not a distraction at all, but that's after some 40 years of using a mirror.  I got one in the late 60s when I was riding in Seattle at dusk on a busy arterial and a car came close enough to "brush" my left foot as it went by.  The driver stopped and begged me to get lights and a mirror because he would feel terrible if he really hit someone.  I appreciated his advise and took it to heart.