My sub-$20 mirror "relocation" solution
03-18-2007, 09:01 PM
#1
JK Super Freak
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My sub-$20 mirror "relocation" solution
... from the same guy that brought you the original (sans 2x4) sub-$20 hard top storage solution ...
I took the doors off for the first time this weekend, and I wasn't really into forking over $90 for the Mopar mirror relocation bracket. I remembered reading on some forum about someone who had cobbled a rear view together out of parts, so a quick run to Kragen and True Value left me with this:
Kragen sells what they call a "blind spot mirror" kit for around $15. This kit gives you the mirror (obviously) and a little arm that I think is supposed to connect to a pre-existing mirror mount if you have a big rig or something.
My basic solution was to create a vertical mounting "post" by dropping a carriage bolt through the hinge. This hardware (three nuts, a bolt, and two washers) was literally less than a dollar at my local hardware store:
I oriented the bolt with the head toward the top (so I wouldn't have to disassemble the entire thing when I was ready to put the doors back on). About 1/4" below the head of the bolt, I threaded two nuts and locked them together against one another. The idea was to give enough of mounting surface for the mirror clamp. It was a little bit narrow, so I wrapped a few turns of cardboard around it to fatten it up.
Below the upper "mounting" post is just a simple nut and a washer, then the whole assembly is dropped through the hinge with another nut and washer at the bottom to clamp it to the hinge.
I took this on the highway for several miles, and it held up fine. It does vibrate a little bit at speed, but nothing major.
A couple of things that I learned: First, the hardware that I used (maybe 1/4" bolt?) is a good bit narrower in diameter than the door hinge. I might consider stepping up to 3/8" or whatever the next larger size is. I would also consider adding a lock washer above and below the flat washers (or use nylock nuts, or thread adhesive, etc.), since at one point the lower nut worked itself loose on the highway -- it needs to stand up to a good amount of vibration. Torquing the two "clamp" nuts down a bit more did fix the problem.
Here are a few more pics, including the view that you get from the driver's seat:
enjoy!
I took the doors off for the first time this weekend, and I wasn't really into forking over $90 for the Mopar mirror relocation bracket. I remembered reading on some forum about someone who had cobbled a rear view together out of parts, so a quick run to Kragen and True Value left me with this:
Kragen sells what they call a "blind spot mirror" kit for around $15. This kit gives you the mirror (obviously) and a little arm that I think is supposed to connect to a pre-existing mirror mount if you have a big rig or something.
My basic solution was to create a vertical mounting "post" by dropping a carriage bolt through the hinge. This hardware (three nuts, a bolt, and two washers) was literally less than a dollar at my local hardware store:
I oriented the bolt with the head toward the top (so I wouldn't have to disassemble the entire thing when I was ready to put the doors back on). About 1/4" below the head of the bolt, I threaded two nuts and locked them together against one another. The idea was to give enough of mounting surface for the mirror clamp. It was a little bit narrow, so I wrapped a few turns of cardboard around it to fatten it up.
Below the upper "mounting" post is just a simple nut and a washer, then the whole assembly is dropped through the hinge with another nut and washer at the bottom to clamp it to the hinge.
I took this on the highway for several miles, and it held up fine. It does vibrate a little bit at speed, but nothing major.
A couple of things that I learned: First, the hardware that I used (maybe 1/4" bolt?) is a good bit narrower in diameter than the door hinge. I might consider stepping up to 3/8" or whatever the next larger size is. I would also consider adding a lock washer above and below the flat washers (or use nylock nuts, or thread adhesive, etc.), since at one point the lower nut worked itself loose on the highway -- it needs to stand up to a good amount of vibration. Torquing the two "clamp" nuts down a bit more did fix the problem.
Here are a few more pics, including the view that you get from the driver's seat:
enjoy!
03-19-2007, 02:29 AM
#3
JK Enthusiast
NICE! 
When I had my YJ I bought a relocation bracket/mirror set for around $35-40 I think that mounted on the hinges, but I only used the driver side anyway. So for half the price one can make there own and get more satisfaction from doing it themselves.
So were you saying yhat you wrapped cardboard around the 2 nuts to increase the diameter so the mirror clamp would fit?
oh and nice star... where'd you get it?
When I had my YJ I bought a relocation bracket/mirror set for around $35-40 I think that mounted on the hinges, but I only used the driver side anyway. So for half the price one can make there own and get more satisfaction from doing it themselves.
So were you saying yhat you wrapped cardboard around the 2 nuts to increase the diameter so the mirror clamp would fit?
oh and nice star... where'd you get it?
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