Rear-view mirror for muni/coker?

Unicycles and Equipment
1

Does anyone use and/or recommend a good rear-view mirror that can be attached to glasses or helmet? I want something like this for muni and coker rides not only to see bicyclists that may be behind me, but to alert me to motorists coming from behind as well when/if I’m near traffic.:slight_smile:

2

I’ve tried 3 glasses mounted mirrors: 3rd Eye; Take-a-Look; Heads Up. A Google groups search for posts to uk.rec.cycling with me as the author and mentioning mirrors will find comparisons. Mostly I use them on my recumbent, but they’re also very useful on the Coker.

All 3 mirrors give a good view to the rear. I wouldn’t recommend the Heads Up, as mine broke within a few weeks. The 3rd Eye tends to break in cold weather, but is otherwise an excellent mirror.

I find that the 3rd Eye is the best mirror if I’m wearing cycling glasses with prescription inserts. The Take-a-Look is the best mirror if I’m wearing contact lenses. The Take-a-Look is also the best to use through the winter, simply to save money on broken 3rd Eyes.

The 3rd Eye is the coolest looking mirror. The Take-a-Look looks rather geeky, but the look can be improved with a little imagination.

Helmet mounted mirrors are of no use to me due to the associated requirement to wear a helmet. I never cycle without glasses of some description. YMMV.

3

are there any piks of these mirrors i am to lazy to google them

4

I’m too lazy to answer that.

5

good answer

6

I started using a rear view mirror for road uni riding Spring of '05. It’s the smallest piece of equipment I’ve purchased that’s had the greatest impact on my riding and more importantly my safety. It has become as indispensable as my helmet and I now refuse to road ride without it. I highly recommend it.

Here’s a photo of the one I use.

7

Is that the “take a look” brand?

8

Yes, Bike Peddler Take A Look Original Cyclist Eyeglass Mirror Rectangle. It’s available at Amazon.com or possibly your local bike shop.

9

I use the Heads Up…picture below. It works well for me, and can fit on either my regular glasses or my sunglasses. My first mirror was a helmet mounted model after I saw famed distance rider Lars Clausen using one, but I didn’t really like it, and couldn’t get it to fit well on my style of helmet. I like the Head Up glasses mounted mirror much better. It’s also two part, so if you break the stem part (most likely to break), you can at least salvage the mirror as a back-up. They don’t last forever, but at $12 a pop, it’s a good safety investment. I keep a primary and backup at all times.

B00012346Y.01-A14YJK68RCA7I2._AA280_SCLZZZZZZZ.jpg

10

That’s one of the reasons I prefer the Take-A-Look, NONE of it is likely to break :slight_smile: - it’s made of steel and brass - and it can be bent :astonished: to my preference. It can be used on either side of a helmet or glasses (for those of you that ride on the other side of the road :roll_eyes: ) and it vibrates less than any of the plastic mirrors I’ve tried. :sunglasses:

11

I’ll even tell you where to buy them, if you’re happy to pay for shipping from the other side of the world.

3rd Eye and Heads Up:
http://www.kinetics.org.uk/html/mirrors.shtml

Take-a-Look:
http://www.ice.hpv.co.uk/trice_details_general_accessories.htm#takealook

12

I’m relatively new to this forum but I must ask anyone who reads this, I’m from Western Australia and I’m wishing to get a helmet/eyeglass mounted mirror but I only get the dregs here (as perth and to a lesser degree the Eastern States are primarily “car cities” and don’t have the economies of scale nessisary to support anything but the basics in cycle accessories. I tried the Take-A-Look mirror on amazon but to ship it to australia is going to cost me 51USD (13 (25%) of which is the cost of the mirror!!!)

So my question is does anyone know of a cheaper way to get my hands on such.

(I have no US or for that matter foreign friends that have access to such nor do I ever intend to set foot on US soil in the near or moderate to far distant future.)

13

Whilst I was browsing in the LBS a few months ago, I saw a helmet with a pretty nifty built-in mirror. The ‘looking-at-part’ was built in to the visor of the helmet which reflected everything seen behind you using a convex (or concave?) mirror running along the top and centre of the helmet. I thought it was a very good idea.
Can’t remember the name of it for the life of me though.
Sorry.

14

Mirrors

This site really likes the Take A Look mirror. They can be obtained from:

Bike Peddler Bike Products
5991 W 26th St
Greeley, CO 80634
(970) 339-2453

I don’t think they have a website.

Two biker friends have helmet-mounted mirrors that have goosenecks to bend/twist them in an infinite number of directions. I need to find where they got them. Does anyone know?

15

Rear-view mirror for muni/coker?

I’ve used the same “take-a-look” mirror for many years and 1000’s of miles on my recumbent, finding it to be the best one for my needs. Never thought of using it on my uni, until last week when I was “brushed” from behind by a mountain biker and knocked to my knees. Been off it a week recovering. Think I’ll start riding with my mirror, and recommend it to others…