Rear view mirrors

[Loukiii]

Have any of you made modifications or replaced the mirrors on your FJ? I cannot see behind me to check for cops when I'm sitting at a stoplight and there is a long empty street in front of me... 

[Pat Conlon]

The answer is yes, but different year FJ's used different mirrors.

Go to your Profile (button at top of page) modify your signature line and put in the year FJ you have.
That will help us help you.

[red]

Have any of you made modifications or replaced the mirrors on your FJ? I cannot see behind me to check for cops when I'm sitting at a stoplight and there is a long empty street in front of me...

Loukiii,

I'm sure you can find aftermarket mirrors of many shapes and sizes, but I am partial to the curvy mirror surface of the OEM mirrors.  They have just the right "wide-angle" view, for me.  Flat mirrors don't cut it , on a bike, and I do not want to look at a ball bearing to figure out what is back there.  I have a 1985 FJ1100.

So, I used inch+ long Metric "joiner nuts" on the threaded shafts for the mirrors,  then added a short piece of Metric "All-Thread" into the joiner nut, and re-installed my OEM mirrors.  The trick to cutting All-Thread is to file down the saw-cut ends cleanly, before trying to install the nuts.  I made the mod self-locking by using some silicon RTV sealant on the threads, but unlike Loctite, RTV never hardens, withstands vibration well, always comes apart nicely, and always grips solidly.  This trick mounted the mirrors a little farther out, which got me a good view of the road behind.  This mod is fairly inconspicuous, and cheap.

Metric joiner nuts and Metric All-Thread may be somewhat scarce items there, but I used
WWW.ANYWHO.COM
. . . which is the fer-real Internet Yellow Pages (all the other YPs are wannabees).  "Nuts and Bolts" is a separate heading in the Yellow Pages.  Click on the "Yellow Pages" tab, put in Nuts and Bolts, and if you give a local ZIP code, Anywho will SORT the results by distance from you.  Anywho will even print out maps for you.  Call ahead to verify stock, of course.

[aviationfred]

For the FJ1100,
I know that Pat Conlon uses Rizoma mirrors. I don't know which model.
They are a bit on the Pricey side.... But, for bar mounted mirrors, they do look good.

Here is an example.

https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/rizoma-radial-rs-mirror?gclid=Cj0KCQjwyZmEBhCpARIsALIzmnJV4MgwvtqFhDZbgUyq1xrPa13y9KMXFyPiD0p53Ab9g-SbJLLTdcgaAqFsEALw_wcB

For the 1986/1987 1200
Many have used the Mid 2000's CBR600/1000 mirrors. You have to elongated the mounting holes.

For the 1988-1990 1200
IMO, the 2012 CBR250R mirrors work the best. The mounting holes need elongated

For the 1991 and later 1200
The 2007 Bandit S mirrors work well. The mounting holes need to be elongated.



Fred

[ribbert]

For the FJ1100,
I know that Pat Conlon uses Rizoma mirrors. I don't know which model.
They are a bit on the Pricey side.... But, for bar mounted mirrors, they do look good.

Here is an example.

https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/rizoma-radial-rs-mirror?gclid=Cj0KCQjwyZmEBhCpARIsALIzmnJV4MgwvtqFhDZbgUyq1xrPa13y9KMXFyPiD0p53Ab9g-SbJLLTdcgaAqFsEALw_wcB

For the 1986/1987 1200
Many have used the Mid 2000's CBR600/1000 mirrors. You have to elongated the mounting holes.

For the 1988-1990 1200
IMO, the 2012 CBR250R mirrors work the best. The mounting holes need elongated

For the 1991 and later 1200
The 2007 Bandit S mirrors work well.


Fred

Yep, keep it simple. I have the Honda mirrors and they work fine. They are convex to just the right degree and are big enough. As Fred said, elongate the mounting holes (just one) a whisker and that's it. I have found the optical quality in most cheap mirrors (not all though) to be more than adequate, and I'm fussy. Folks seem to forget your focal range is on the image, not the glass surface. Standing in you garage staring into both as you might a shaving mirror, the expensive mirror's superior quality will be obvious but I would defy anyone to pick the difference out on the road.

Years ago I bought a cheap set of Honda mirrors for less than $30 to see if they'd do the job, it was my intention that if they worked to my satisfaction, I would then invest in some quality mirrors and throw them in the bin. They were so good I never changed them and they are on the bike to this day.

Fred's on top of these things way more than me, but I'm fairly sure the mirrors that are suitable extends well beyond just the year and model he mentioned, for example, I have (I think) CBR 1000 mirrors and I recall many other models being used. More likely though, Honda used the same mirror over many models.

I found riding without a good view behind me really uncomfortable, to me, 360 deg awareness when riding is essential for safety, I don't want anything coming up on me unexpectedly, nor to I need to be pushing my upper body to one side every time I want a glimpse of what's behind.

Good mirrors make for a more relaxed ride and greatly enhance safety. I do not understand people who knowingly sacrifice rear vision and safety for the sake of originality, anyway, these are my Honda mirrors....






...this is the view in my less than $30 mirror!



Noel

[Waiex191]

I've ordered a set of 2012 CBR250 mirrors from ebay.  I'm tired of not being able to see my kid riding behind me.  I wonder if I was narrower in my youth - I don't remember it hard to see behind myself before.

[ribbert]

.....I'm tired of not being able to see my kid riding behind me.  I wonder if I was narrower in my youth - I don't remember it hard to see behind myself before.

Anyone small enough not to obstruct the mirrors would not be able to reach the handle bars on an FJ. Maybe a 5 yo, but that would be it.

Noel

[Millietant]

Ha Ha....... at under 5'8" and under 160 lbs (with short arms), I must be a big 5 year old 

[Waiex191]

Ha Ha....... at under 5'8" and under 160 lbs (with short arms), I must be a big 5 year old 

That is me too.  But I think I can't count my arms and legs if I want to be under 160.

[giantkiller]

I still say 86 mirrors are the best for 89-90

[Millietant]

I don't "need" new mirrors for visibility, but might get a set of these to replace mine, as the right side one has a low rpm resonant "buzz".  ......and I prefer to keep my parts all "Yamaha - mainly to show myself how Yamaha could have made the FJ better without having to design new parts or do any extensive development work.

[Waiex191]

I don't "need" new mirrors for visibility, but might get a set of these to replace mine, as the right side one has a low rpm resonant "buzz".  ......and I prefer to keep my parts all "Yamaha - mainly to show myself how Yamaha could have made the FJ better without having to design new parts or do any extensive development work.

A good alternative is to pick up a vintage Suzuki GN400 single.  Once you are acclimated to that bike, all the vibration on the FJ will be gone.  The mirror resonance won't be an issue assuming it is not flinging around enough to beat up your helmet.

[Millietant]

Ha Ha - it's just something behind the lens, it doesn't bother me really as I generally can't hear it above the sweet sound from my Remus and through my earplugs. 

[FJmonkey]

The OEM mirrors have a steel weight bonded inside. Likely to reduce vibration by changing the natural frequency. But after the years go by that bond fails and it ends up loose at the bottom. After a little more time the weight will start removing the silver from the inside.

[giantkiller]

I've had luck. Drilling a hole in the bottom and filling it with silicone. 

If I ever get back to my fun projects. I'm going to make a rear view camera system with.  2 small monitors. One on each side.  Just have to find the cameras and monitors in all the stuff that got packed up when I started building the house