has anybody made their own custom mirror stems/mounts that you could actually see out of and look cool at the same time lets see what you did . .
.heres a pic of my passenger door.the way i see it i could mount a mirror on the top or just above the upper hinge.i tried out some peep mirrors but not to my liking because they are too small too short and the mounting is too flimsy.it would soon be off after damaging the paint.im thinking i need a bigger version of a peep mirror that bolts to the door.mt trucks a 38 chev pickup.the A pillars are closer together than the B pillars so they will need to stick out enough to get a good rear view.mirrors are 5" round from jim carter with flat glass.id like convex glass for a better view.driving a lhd vehicle on the left means i need 3 good mirrors.my rear view mirror is a 2003 vw golf item.high quality item with night dim with great vision.my truck is nearly all black so probably make my mirror from stainless steel and powder coat it black.i can source high tensile slotted countersunk screws to keep everything traditional looking where possible.if i remove the window channel i might be able to access the inside of the door for the mounting.if i drilled and tapped a plate for the inside of the door i could do away with nuts etc.i have recently aquired versachem 2 part adhesive would use that to hold the plate in place once the mounting is finalised.goes off in 4-5 mins so would need to move fast
if i mount it above the door hinge access is good inside the door,could stick a plate to reinforce the door drill and tap there would be no need for nuts inside the door.cmon guys lets see what you have done
Not an exterior mirror but this is the bracket I made for the dash mounted rear view mirror in my Studebaker.
Is there something here that would work? https://www.classicpartsusa.com/category/1938_Truck_Parts_Mirror_Items Or here? https://store.fillingstation.com/detail/K-72/Chevrolet_19361938_PICKUP_MIRROR_KIT_PAINTED.html Or here? https://oldchevytrucks.com/mi127.html I hope these give you some ideas.
thanx gary i need one on the outside.imagine you were driving a rhd car in the states the issues you would have.plenty blind spots in the 38 cab.on the other hand driving a vette c5 convertable over here no issues with the top down.
the old chevy trucks arms would work.$30 bucks apiece plus $100 ship and e50 tax works out expensive .i have 2x 5" heads and the extended top pins in stock.i like to make things myself that fit right and are custom with a traditional vibe.thanx
In the old days, big trucks had mirrors on both sides, but most vehicles did not. Many cars came with only an inside mirror, and many light duty trucks came with only a driver side door mirror as standard equipment. The mirrors on those big trucks were large and ugly. It's not easy to get a mirror on the passenger side, that actually works, on older cars. The mirrors on modern cars are huge and ugly, and are a bad example of what to do. Good luck, it's not an easy problem to solve. I deal with it by only having a mirror on the driver side.
On many of our early cars, especially open cars, you don't need much to see in your blind spot. On my old T all I ran was one of these little 2" stick on peep mirrors in the upper right corner of the windshield. You really don't need to see anything in detail to know somebody is back there. Just the ability to see an object.
Hagan Street Rods, www.haganauto.com 888-464-2426, has a line of mirrors called "Fatties". There are several sized mirrors and several different brackets available. I have them in both my cars and I really like them.
ive heard of them ,their stuff looks quality but it a bit street rod looking.im sure i can do something similar that looks more hot rod .but thanks for the input.ill do a sketch of what i have in mind and post in a bit.
I have used either the swan neckvw mirrors or these hinge pin ones in the past.https://www.jbugs.com/store/graphics/00000001/113857514AME.jpg
This is what I have, the pass. side had a mount on the fender so I went with that and just made a arm. It needs a brace and that will come this winter. The drivers side had the factory mount in the door and the original arm was broken off. I made a new arm and welded it to the remaining original. These big gaudy mirrors fit this truck perfect !
I have used some generic 4" clamp type mirrors which the arm unscrews. You can make your own length and shape arm, drill and tap the ends, and replace the short arm with one of your own making. (Around 3/8" diameter rod.)
I like these...Shelby Daytona Coupe style. https://www.shellvalley.com/index.cfm/page/ptype=results/category_id=158/mode=cat/cat158.htm
Mirrors were an issue for me as well. I was lucky enough to find a pair of NOS "Joma" clamp on mirrors on eBay. They are telescopic, and as you can see from my potato quality pics, the passenger side sets at a different angle for visibility. I can configure them anyway I want and if I ever lose my mind and want to haul a trailer behind the truck, all I have to do is loosen them up and position them where I can see. They work great. One potato. Two potato. I stole the idea from an old Canadian show truck and was able to find the exact mirrors that builder had installed. Here's a pic of my mirror superimposed over a pic of the Canadian show truck: Here's hoping you find a solution that suits you. This stuff is fluid and generally comes along if you dig hard enough. Good luck. Cheers
heres a sketch roughly to scale of what im thinking.the mirror head is a 5"item from jim carter in black.stem is 12mm tube probably 2mm wall but maybe heavier wall depending on whats available.supplier closed at 4pm today.i work on later than that.stem will thread into the bush welded to the mounting plate.mirror mounts with 1/4 thread bolt to the stem.im thinking a threaded bush welded to the stem .sketch of a section through the door top may not be 100% accurate.id like to get a plate inside the door section but i dont think this can happen without cutting into the door.so my alternative would be 2 /3mm plates. inside plate would be stuck to the door with versachem 2 part adhesive ( strong stuff) also held in place with 2/ 4mm countersunk screws .door skin is approx 1mm.the 4mm countersunk screws would really be holding the plate in place while the adhesive set giving it a mechanical fixing also.
mirror stem would be threaded at the door end .the threaded bushing would weld to the outside plate 3mm stainless the outside plate would fix to the inner plate with domed slot head bolts (high tensile steel)inner plate would be drilled 4.2 mm and tapped 5mm.drilled and tapped after stuck to the door skin. for maximum grip.eventually loctited in place (loctite 222 for small threads)id want the stem as short as possible to keep vibration to a minimum.as drawn maximum amount of lens would be in my eyeline.because the B pillars are 8" wider than the A pillars .the stems need to be 4"long plus 2 1/2" minimum length. to the centre of the lens.might take more than 1 attempt to get it 100%,but ill be pretty sure before i go drilling the doors.ive a couple of jobs to do finish dash wiring for one before i replace the doors on the cab to get moving on the mirrors.when/if i finalise the design ill send away for satin black powder coat on the parts for a stealth traditional look c
i feel mirrors suspended down from the door tops are a better option offering increased visibility with shortest stems to reduce vibration.if at a later date i come accross convex glass in an oval mirror with offset mounting ill surely upgrade the parts.thats hotrodding
I used the Swan neck on my 41 with a wedge under the passenger side to angle it more so I could see out of it, the door mount peep mirrors seem to shake a lot.
the swan neck look suitable.could be mounted on the top of the door frame ,if swapped over left and right.thanx for the photo it shows the taper on the cab.very similar to my 38.your mirror heads have offset mounts allowing more alignment.i have a set of clip on peep mirrors but im going to use them on the lawnmower,not very good at all.on the 38 cant see past the side of the door.
.cut my sketch out and laid it on the door.first impression is its too long overall.ill keep the diameter of the centre but reduce the front and rear tabs maybe remove the sharp corners to make it easier to cut and sand it.if i get them laser cut it ill be waiting ages so have to go oldschool route and cut it myself .also the 7 m4 domed nut will need to have one at the very top so i can drill and tap through the double thickness of door skin at the top.the m4 and m5 bolts are a fine thread and should give good grip in the thin door skin.
Hello, Without ruining the stock look of the cool 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery, we stuck by pair of NOS outside mirrors on our 327 sedan delivery. it was exciting for several years and tons of long road trips. They gave us some view outside of our sedan delivery with the solid panels, as much as possible. On day, I was in a van with a friend and drove the van home from a long day of surfing. The vision of his van was taller looking forward and the outside view was still blocked by the solid panels on both sides. But, his saving grace were two outside mirrors that were rectangular, longer and wider than my small circular mirror. Sitting in the passenger seat going to the surf spots, I could see the highway in front easily through the high up seating and large front window. The view out of the passenger window was enhanced by the large rectangular mirror. I could see a ton of stuff covering the side of the van and all around that side of the normal blind spot or little view out of my own circular mirror. It was like night and day. With the view from the driver’s side mirror was the same feeling of a wide open view backwards all around the van. When I told my wife of the larger mirrors giving an excellent view while driving the van. Her response was, “But they would look terrible on the sedan delivery.” Plus, they are not stock appearing and despite the better view, those small round mirrors were a part of the cool look of the sedan delivery. That was the fun part of driving around in a hot rod, a more powerful motor, a comfortable seating arrangement and the classic look of a car that was almost 30 years old at the time. Jnaki So, despite putting up the larger mirror on the side of the sedan delivery for a quick look, she said no and that it would ruin the sleek cool look of the 40 Ford Sedan Delivery design. We tried to find a smaller version, but each had their own downfalls. Plus, anything larger would be an automatic wind block and create noise on window down running. We kept up as much as we could, but eventually, she quit driving the sedan delivery and wanted something that would give her better vision all around with no hiding shadows, etc. We sold it to another young couple and they were enthralled to be able to get involved in hot rodding with such a cool sedan delivery. YRMV
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