The original side view mirrors on my 83 F250 will not stay in place. The socket is loose and just closing the doors knocks them out of alignment. The mirrors other wise look great and I do not want to replace them because it would detract from the original design. The brackets are in great condition and do their job as intended.

My question is does anyone know how, or a tip to tighten or other wise stabilize the mirrors?

 

You might be able to get replacement barrel nuts at a decent hardware store.

 

I am not sure what type mirrors you have. I know the little dinky ones that came on a ranger I have could not be tightened, but the larger ones on my f150 and f250 have little phillips screws that can be tightened under the mirror head, and that will tighten the ball and socket under the mirror head.

 

The mirrors are not the huge ones but just a nice size, about 8" X 5". The only screw is to hold the stem on to the bracket. I do not see any nut on the exterior of the mirror.

This is a mirror that is close to mine except that these have the screws next to the stem and mine are not chrome but a polished aluminum: 73-79 Ford truck Bronco outside door mirror assemblies;F100-F350 Ranger XLT | eBay

I appreciate the effort, thank you!

 

The local stores usually carry a Ford "look alike" mirror. They are not the best quality, but they are cheap enough and they do look pretty close to the originals.

 

Franklin2, thank you for your response but I do not want to change the original mirrors. I want to repair and keep the original ones that came with the truck.

Thanks again for answering.

 

The screws may be inside the mirror head itself. You will have to remove the mirror to get at them to tighten them up.

Depending on the mirror, (I would need a picture of your specific mirrors as Ford had dozens of different types of that 6x9 low mount mirror) the mirror may be glued in place, or it may be pressure fitted with a rubber gasket.

 

81-F-150-Explorer, thank you for your input. I have suspected that this was the secret. My mirrors do have a gasket but I was afraid of destroying it while removing the glass. Is there a secret to removing the gasket and therefore the mirror? And, thank you for the correct measurements.

 

Check around the local parts stores and glass places. I know my local Napa repairs mirrors, they will cut and install a new mirror glass. I would suspect they might have rubber to fit also. Most of the mirrors I have seen have a splice line in the rubber, like they just cut it to fit from one long piece off a roll. I am not sure if a local glass place could do the same, but I would check around, they may have a mirror repair service also, and could fix it if you end up breaking it.

 

Thanks Franklin2, I will check out your suggestions.

 

If the mirrors are pressure fit, then just pulling on the rubber gasket should get them to come loose. Try not to damage the gasket. If they are glued in, you will wind up breaking the mirror unless the glue is old and brittle. You risk breaking the mirror no matter what. Most glass shops can cut you a replacement though.