Mirror problems... help me find a solution, please.

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eggsalad
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Mirror problems... help me find a solution, please.

Post by eggsalad »

In my current situation, getting my scoot out the door requires loosening the (stock) mirrors and swinging them in - there's no way around that.

In general, threaded fasteners are designed to be used so many times. After that, you start to develop slop in the threads.

And that's where I'm at. No amount of tightening will prevent the mirrors from vibrating loose within a couple miles of riding.

In another situation, I'd lock the dang things with blue Loctite. Not viable for me.

I've tried locking washers, both toothed and split. They only delay the mirrors from loosening for an extra couple miles.

So I've been bouncing around other ideas to resolve this problem.

One obvious solution is narrower mirrors, i.e. mirrors with shorter stems.

These would work - they have shorter stems...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-Mini-GP ... 1282036248

...but I'm concerned that means I'd only be seeing my own shoulders in the mirrors when I ride. It's just a guess - have any of you installed mirrors with shorter stems, and what was your result?

Another idea is to use "mirror extenders", such as these...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/TAIWAN-MADE-8m ... SwEW9aaXQ8

With something like that, I could Loctite the extenders into the handlebars, and have fresh threads for the mirrors. But these extenders are aluminum, and I believe those threads would develop "slop" sooner than steel threads.

So neither of these two ideas strikes me as a really good solution to this problem. Please, if you don't mind, tell me why I'm wrong about those two possibilities being less-than-optimal solutions. Or feel free to suggest another idea I might not have thought of.

Thanks as always
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babblefish
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Post by babblefish »

How about putting a rubber washer under the nut then tightening just snug enough to squish the washer but not crush the snot out of it?

Another idea is to wrap the threads of the mirror with thread tape, also known as plumbers tape.
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eggsalad
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Post by eggsalad »

babblefish wrote:Another idea is to wrap the threads of the mirror with thread tape, also known as plumbers tape.
Since I own it already, teflon tape is effectively free, so it's certainly worth a try. Thanks for the idea!
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DeeDee
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Post by DeeDee »

Do you have the Buddy long stem mirrors?
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eggsalad
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Post by eggsalad »

DeeDee wrote:Do you have the Buddy long stem mirrors?
Yes, I believe that's what I have.
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DeeDee
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Post by DeeDee »

Try swapping them for the short stem standard mirrors. I have a set on my C3.
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olhogrider
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Post by olhogrider »

I don't know if they will fit on a Buddy but Napoleon bar end mirrors rotate and are spring loaded into four detents. You can simply rotate them inboard when you need and outboard when it's time to ride.
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