Jeff,
I am in the prototype stage of shaping convex mirror glass. What I do is
cut out the proper size from a larger replacement mirror. In the process I
crop out the "objects in mirror are closer than they appear" message. I
have these mirrors on both sides of one of my DeLoreans and they help
enormously for visibility. The problem is that I'm having lots of trouble
with breakage. For every one I break, that eats up any profit I could make
on the next one. As soon as supplies arrive, I'm going to try another
process that should hopefully eliminate my breakage problem.
If you or anyone else is interested in putting convex mirrors on either side
of your Bricklin, send me some patterns and take photos. I have no idea
what a Bricklin mirror housing looks like up close, so I need to know
tolerances, etc. It would help if I could borrow a pair of mirror
assemblies so that I can make a proper fitting master pattern. It is really
difficult to transfer a flat pattern to a convex piece of glass and get it
right the first time (or even the second time). Once perfected then I can
use that convex shape as a master pattern to trace out others. But making
an accurate master pattern is critical. Do the Bricklin side mirrors
cross-reference with another kind of car so that I could find some in a junk
yard?
Be aware that converting a mirror housing from a flat glass to convex
requires that the mirror be aimed out quite a bit more. Otherwise half of
your view is wasted on the side of the car. I don't know if this could be
an issue on Bricklins. It is for DeLoreans, but I fix that by adding a
wedge-shaped rubber pad underneath so that the electric aiming doesn't hit
the limit and blow a fuse.
I should know in about a month if my new cutting process is successful. If
it works as hoped then I will be producing convex side mirrors and selling
them for somewhere between $40 to $60 each. They look exactly like what is
OEM on new cars except they are missing the standard text warning. These
can be glued over the original flat mirror.
Walt Tampa, FL
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