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markeb01 · 03-09-2012, 06:38 PM

Outside Mirrors

I always had a passion for peep mirrors ever since I was a kid, probably because of their rarity and sense of impractical style. In the early 50’s not all that many cars had outside rear view mirrors. And the majority of cars that did have a mirror used the common straight arm accessory type that clamped on the front edge of the door. Very few cars used an overhead mirror, or what is now commonly referred to as a peep mirror. As a car nut kid that cared about this stuff, I probably saw less than half a dozen of both types of peep mirror throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s. The majority of those were the type that clamped on the rain deflector above the vent window found on cars up until about 1954. They looked like this:

And here is a rather poor photo of how they mounted:

Although aftermarket peep mirrors are now as common as lug nuts, in the period before about the mid 1980’s when they started being reproduced, I only remember seeing two, and unbelievably at the same time in the same place. I was wandering through Mathis Auto Wreckers in San Leandro when I spotted not one, but two of these mirrors. The now common type clamped on top of a door was easy to snag, it came right off. The one on the vent deflector of a late 40’s Chevy coupe put up a real fight, and won. I just couldn’t get it off. I came back a week later with more tools but the car had been crushed. I’ve always been disappointed I couldn’t snag that one too, purely as a collectible.

Here’s the one I did get, mounted on my 1950 Plymouth coupe. And for those that know the difference, yes I swapped over all the fenders, grille, and bumpers to make it look like a 1949:

It lived on to serve duty on my last 54 Chevy:

And later on my 46 Ford:

When the Ford was sold, I reinstalled the swan neck mirrors and kept the peep. It was mounted on the GMC for several months and worked fine (sorry no picture), but was replaced with a factory door mirror when one presented itself in the junk yard. If the factory hadn’t installed the permanent mounting nuts in the door, I would probably still be using the peep. I actually loved the view out of the mirror back then, because it was so close to my face I got a pretty good picture.

Recently I tried installing it on my 1960 GMC again with the intention of mounting it permanently and pulling the factory door mirrors. Unfortunately I couldn't see doo doo. It was at night, and the mirror I have is an original Yankee with black beveled glass. It's nice for reducing glare, but may not be as user friendly as I remember it being, or maybe my eyes just aren't as young as they once were.

I threw in the towel and accepted I just couldn’t sacrifice the visibility offered by the factory mirrors, so they are going to stay. After spending so much time studying the mirrors, it became obvious they really needed a tune up. I never liked the stainless screws against the black arm, and the flat gaskets were shredded around the edges. The mirror heads were shiny black when purchased back in 1998, and long ago lost their luster

Here’s a shot of the passenger side mirror when the spotlights were installed about a year and a half ago:

Off the truck, I took the opportunity to polish the back of the mirror heads. It took 6 different grits to remove the many years of oxidation. Here’s a shot of the finished driver side mirror on the right compared to the untouched passenger side.

And here’s a pic of the old flat passenger side gasket. It wasn’t really offering any protection to the paint, which now has gouges in it. Fortunately the new pad covered all the sins:

Here’s the new LMC molded mounting pad:

It’s a very nice part and makes the mirrors look much more finished on the truck. I’d seen them earlier on the Trucks TV show build up. The mounting pads do not disappoint, they are very high quality. I believe LMC is actually the company that produces these. I haven’t seen them available from anyone else. Here’s a link – part numbers 38-5806 and 38-5807:

http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/cbe/full.aspx?Page=47

The mounting screws were hit with a stripper disc, coated with acid/etch primer and painted black. Here’s a shot of the finished effort. The picture isn’t all that great, but in real life the mirrors look like they belong now:

Fyi - I've read where a lot of customers are not very happy with LMC customer service. I’ve only purchased from them twice and both were good experiences. The other item was their clear dome light (36-4205 again available only from LMC). It’s a nice product that puts out about 10 times as much light as the factory lens, and I'm using the stock bulb. Since we actually use the truck at night it’s a nice upgrade:

http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/cbe/full.aspx?Page=40

This wraps up the last project completed on the truck. Next up is polishing the newly acquired stainless windshield trim. If all goes well, and assuming I can find a functional windshield gasket, the trim will hopefully be on the truck this summer.

03-09-2012, 06:38 PM	#105
markeb01 Senior Enthusiast Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Spokane Valley, WA Posts: 8,356	Re: Markeb01 Build Thread Outside Mirrors I always had a passion for peep mirrors ever since I was a kid, probably because of their rarity and sense of impractical style. In the early 50’s not all that many cars had outside rear view mirrors. And the majority of cars that did have a mirror used the common straight arm accessory type that clamped on the front edge of the door. Very few cars used an overhead mirror, or what is now commonly referred to as a peep mirror. As a car nut kid that cared about this stuff, I probably saw less than half a dozen of both types of peep mirror throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s. The majority of those were the type that clamped on the rain deflector above the vent window found on cars up until about 1954. They looked like this: And here is a rather poor photo of how they mounted: Although aftermarket peep mirrors are now as common as lug nuts, in the period before about the mid 1980’s when they started being reproduced, I only remember seeing two, and unbelievably at the same time in the same place. I was wandering through Mathis Auto Wreckers in San Leandro when I spotted not one, but two of these mirrors. The now common type clamped on top of a door was easy to snag, it came right off. The one on the vent deflector of a late 40’s Chevy coupe put up a real fight, and won. I just couldn’t get it off. I came back a week later with more tools but the car had been crushed. I’ve always been disappointed I couldn’t snag that one too, purely as a collectible. Here’s the one I did get, mounted on my 1950 Plymouth coupe. And for those that know the difference, yes I swapped over all the fenders, grille, and bumpers to make it look like a 1949: It lived on to serve duty on my last 54 Chevy: And later on my 46 Ford: When the Ford was sold, I reinstalled the swan neck mirrors and kept the peep. It was mounted on the GMC for several months and worked fine (sorry no picture), but was replaced with a factory door mirror when one presented itself in the junk yard. If the factory hadn’t installed the permanent mounting nuts in the door, I would probably still be using the peep. I actually loved the view out of the mirror back then, because it was so close to my face I got a pretty good picture. Recently I tried installing it on my 1960 GMC again with the intention of mounting it permanently and pulling the factory door mirrors. Unfortunately I couldn't see doo doo. It was at night, and the mirror I have is an original Yankee with black beveled glass. It's nice for reducing glare, but may not be as user friendly as I remember it being, or maybe my eyes just aren't as young as they once were. I threw in the towel and accepted I just couldn’t sacrifice the visibility offered by the factory mirrors, so they are going to stay. After spending so much time studying the mirrors, it became obvious they really needed a tune up. I never liked the stainless screws against the black arm, and the flat gaskets were shredded around the edges. The mirror heads were shiny black when purchased back in 1998, and long ago lost their luster Here’s a shot of the passenger side mirror when the spotlights were installed about a year and a half ago: Off the truck, I took the opportunity to polish the back of the mirror heads. It took 6 different grits to remove the many years of oxidation. Here’s a shot of the finished driver side mirror on the right compared to the untouched passenger side. And here’s a pic of the old flat passenger side gasket. It wasn’t really offering any protection to the paint, which now has gouges in it. Fortunately the new pad covered all the sins: Here’s the new LMC molded mounting pad: It’s a very nice part and makes the mirrors look much more finished on the truck. I’d seen them earlier on the Trucks TV show build up. The mounting pads do not disappoint, they are very high quality. I believe LMC is actually the company that produces these. I haven’t seen them available from anyone else. Here’s a link – part numbers 38-5806 and 38-5807: http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/cbe/full.aspx?Page=47 The mounting screws were hit with a stripper disc, coated with acid/etch primer and painted black. Here’s a shot of the finished effort. The picture isn’t all that great, but in real life the mirrors look like they belong now: Fyi - I've read where a lot of customers are not very happy with LMC customer service. I’ve only purchased from them twice and both were good experiences. The other item was their clear dome light (36-4205 again available only from LMC). It’s a nice product that puts out about 10 times as much light as the factory lens, and I'm using the stock bulb. Since we actually use the truck at night it’s a nice upgrade: http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/cbe/full.aspx?Page=40 This wraps up the last project completed on the truck. Next up is polishing the newly acquired stainless windshield trim. If all goes well, and assuming I can find a functional windshield gasket, the trim will hopefully be on the truck this summer. __________________ My Build Thread: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=444502 Last edited by markeb01; 05-12-2012 at 07:29 PM.