Finding a mirror that is not a piece of crap...

Reid Priedhorsky wrote:


Other posters have recommended head-mounted mirrors, which I've also tried
and found very disorienting... apparently one can get over this, but also
I couldn't find a position where I could see behind without head movement.

Mine does require head movement, but it's very natural. I've got it set
so it takes about the same head movement as I use when checking my car's
side view mirror. The reflexes transfer perfectly.

BTW, one advantage relates to the mirror length issue mentioned earlier.
If I do turn my head just a bit (maybe 15 degrees) it causes the
mirror to move leftward enough to clear my shoulder, or a jacket hood,
etc. It also keeps the mirror within the viewing area of my glasses -
right at the top left corner of the field of view.

Hmm. Maybe that's why some people have trouble using an eyeglass
mirror. Maybe they try to set it up so no head motion is necessary.
That may be a bad idea.


--
--------------------+
Frank Krygowski [To reply, remove rodent and vegetable dot com,
replace with cc.ysu dot edu]

"Reid Priedhorsky" wrote in message
news
Other posters have recommended head-mounted mirrors, which I've also tried
and found very disorienting... apparently one can get over this, but also
I couldn't find a position where I could see behind without head movement.

Of course it requires head movement. What rear-view mirror doesn't? Do you
stare at your brake hood the entire time you're riding? Do you stare
continuously at the mirror on the door of your car?

In all cases, the mirror (whether it's on the doors or ceiling of your car,
on your handlebar, or on your helmet or your glasses) is occupying a point
in space, and you have to train yourself to look at that point to see the
reflection of the object you want to view.

With a head-mounted mirror you happen to be moving the mirror into its
required position while you simultaneously look at that point in space, so
the training includes the head movement. It takes a couple of days, maybe
more, but it *does* become automatic, and once it does the head-mounted
mirror offers a much larger and easier-to-resolve field of view than
bar-mounted mirrors do. Among other benefits, the head-mounted mirror lets
you scan for things that are behind you to the right as well as to the left;
with most bike-mounted mirrors your body blocks this view.

Head-mount mirrors do require a period of training and adjustment, no
argument. The benefits are worth it.

RichC

"Reid Priedhorsky" wrote in message
news
Other posters have recommended head-mounted mirrors, which I've also tried
and found very disorienting... apparently one can get over this, but also
I couldn't find a position where I could see behind without head movement.

Of course it requires head movement. What rear-view mirror doesn't? Do you
stare at your brake hood the entire time you're riding? Do you stare
continuously at the mirror on the door of your car?

In all cases, the mirror (whether it's on the doors or ceiling of your car,
on your handlebar, or on your helmet or your glasses) is occupying a point
in space, and you have to train yourself to look at that point to see the
reflection of the object you want to view.

With a head-mounted mirror you happen to be moving the mirror into its
required position while you simultaneously look at that point in space, so
the training includes the head movement. It takes a couple of days, maybe
more, but it *does* become automatic, and once it does the head-mounted
mirror offers a much larger and easier-to-resolve field of view than
bar-mounted mirrors do. Among other benefits, the head-mounted mirror lets
you scan for things that are behind you to the right as well as to the left;
with most bike-mounted mirrors your body blocks this view.

Head-mount mirrors do require a period of training and adjustment, no
argument. The benefits are worth it.

RichC

On Fri, 03 Sep 2004 22:31:33 -0400, Frank Krygowski wrote:
Reid Priedhorsky wrote:


Other posters have recommended head-mounted mirrors, which I've also tried
and found very disorienting... apparently one can get over this, but also
I couldn't find a position where I could see behind without head movement.

Mine does require head movement, but it's very natural. I've got it set
so it takes about the same head movement as I use when checking my car's
side view mirror. The reflexes transfer perfectly.

I'm one of those folks who can't use a mirror on my head or glasses
because I can't seem to focus on the mirror without a lot of pain. So
I gave up on them. I do use a mirror which fits over the left hood of
my STI. I've broken one mirror but found another (on the road a day or
2 later, wow :-). I've saved the parts and if I break another I'll
take it to a local glass shop and see if they can make a new mirror. I
think it was a mirror made by Rhodes. I'm one of the few who has no
problem with a mirror on my STI. I've had it for 15 years. Makes me
look like a Fred but I don't care.

--
Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry
http://home.comcast.net/~ncherry/ (Text only)
http://linuxha.sourceforge.net/ (SourceForge)
http://hcs.sourceforge.net/ (HCS II)

On Fri, 03 Sep 2004 22:31:33 -0400, Frank Krygowski wrote:
Reid Priedhorsky wrote:


Other posters have recommended head-mounted mirrors, which I've also tried
and found very disorienting... apparently one can get over this, but also
I couldn't find a position where I could see behind without head movement.

Mine does require head movement, but it's very natural. I've got it set
so it takes about the same head movement as I use when checking my car's
side view mirror. The reflexes transfer perfectly.

I'm one of those folks who can't use a mirror on my head or glasses
because I can't seem to focus on the mirror without a lot of pain. So
I gave up on them. I do use a mirror which fits over the left hood of
my STI. I've broken one mirror but found another (on the road a day or
2 later, wow :-). I've saved the parts and if I break another I'll
take it to a local glass shop and see if they can make a new mirror. I
think it was a mirror made by Rhodes. I'm one of the few who has no
problem with a mirror on my STI. I've had it for 15 years. Makes me
look like a Fred but I don't care.

--
Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry
http://home.comcast.net/~ncherry/ (Text only)
http://linuxha.sourceforge.net/ (SourceForge)
http://hcs.sourceforge.net/ (HCS II)

"Reid Priedhorsky" wrote in message
news
On Fri, 03 Sep 2004 23:03:51 +0000, Bill wrote:

I'm thinking of perhaps hacking up some old handlebars and attaching them
to the real bars via pipe clamps or something (properly protected against
scratching, to prevent stress risers) so I can position a bar-end where I
want. Or perhaps some other widgetry. If I do this I'll post pics.


You could try a Minorua Space Grip for a clamp-on adjustable mount, though it
might not be rigid enough with the weight of a mirror on it. Have you thought
about kluging up a brace to stiffen one of the available hood mirrors? I used to
use a Rhode Gear mirror when I had barend shifters and it seemed that a lot of
the motion was at the flex joint. I thought about attaching a piece of aluminum
to the back to stiffen the mirror but switched to cowhorn bars before I got
around to trying it,