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Hi all. I have old (maybe original) side mirrors on my '66 F-100. Problem is they are floppy ... won't stay in position. The ball and socket joint seems worn out. I'd rather not put new mirrors on the truck; I like the patina of the old ones. Is there any way to fix this?
Detached from the arm ... This is the joint that seems floppy ... is this fixable?
Bishicka:
To my knowledge, the only way to get inside to tighten the ball, is to remove/break the mirror glass. I can't recall on these original mirrors, if there is a snap ring on the glass side that you can remove to get the mirror glass out. Actually, having a new piece of circular mirror cut to fit is rather inexpensive. Others here may enlighten us at the same time if there is something else that works, such as squirting some kind of garbage into the ball/socket, but I doubt it would last long.....
I’ll betcha if you bought a new set of re-pops, someone here would be willing to trade you a decent set of originals, if you just gotta have that patina stuff.
Bishicka:
To my knowledge, the only way to get inside to tighten the ball, is to remove/break the mirror glass. I can't recall on these original mirrors, if there is a snap ring on the glass side that you can remove to get the mirror glass out. Actually, having a new piece of circular mirror cut to fit is rather inexpensive. Others here may enlighten us at the same time if there is something else that works, such as squirting some kind of garbage into the ball/socket, but I doubt it would last long.....
Thanks ... replacing the glass doesn't scare me, but once I get in there how do I tighten it up?
I’ll betcha if you bought a new set of re-pops, someone here would be willing to trade you a decent set of originals, if you just gotta have that patina stuff.
Good idea ... although if these are fixable I'd really like to keep them since they came with this truck!
I think there are a pair of screws with a dimpled metal plate that tightens to the ball. However....if I am wrong, you will find out after breaking the glass!! Let’s see if anyone can verify that...I don’t want to be completely responsible for a $4 piece of mirrored glasss!
That answers my statement about there being a snap ring retaining the glass....that should be a snap. Yes, tighten the plug, it has slots in it for a large screwdriver to tighten the interference with the ball. Others I have seen had two screws and a metal plate....the concept is the same...
Don't break the glass. There is a flat spring-steel ring that holds the glass in place. It can be removed with a sharp awl or pick. Once you are in there you will know what to do.
Eric.
I did a little "Tech Page" starting on page 9 (post #134) on this thread for exactly this problem.
Outstanding! thanks dubya and @resonateur and all! I love learning how to do this stuff ... I'm a rookie mechanic but eager to learn. I'm gonna give this a try tomorrow!
Outstanding! thanks dubya and @resonateur and all! I love learning how to do this stuff ... I'm a rookie mechanic but eager to learn. I'm gonna give this a try tomorrow!
Thank you!
No worries. Hope it works out. Be sure to get a helper putting it back together. The original Ford script logo mirrors are definitely worth saving.
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Repair side mirror joint?
