Take A Look Cycling Mirror – Low-Tech Rearview Mirror for Bikes – Fits Helmet & Sunglasses – Shatter-Resistant Polycarbonate Lens, Anti-Vibration Stainless-Steel & Brass, Always On (Left-Side)

I have been riding bicycles for a very long time. As a teen and a young man I rode to get places, not in competition or for exercise or for personal amusement. I never needed a mirror because the traffic was lighter, I usually rode faster than most of the traffic, I never rode in groups to speak of, I had plenty of flexibility in my neck and shoulders to twist to see behind me, and most of all since I was young I was certain I was invincible. I'm getting back into cycling now for exercise and fun. But with more traffic, riding with friends, going at a slower pace so that the traffic is often overtaking me from behind, and mostly now with the wisdom that only comes with age that I will certainly not come out well in an altercation with a cell-phone distracted idiot-automobile operator. I decided reluctantly that it was time to try a bike mirror. Here is the problem: You are a pretty compact package on a road bike. You neither have nor want things sticking way out to the sides, but if you keep the mirror in tight how do you see past yourself on the bike? You block your own view! And you don't want an over sized wind-dragging mirror, so small and light is good, but where do you put it so you can see behind you when you need to? I experimented with a few of the more popular concepts and concluded that a flat (non-wide angle) mirror on your eyeglasses or helmet is best. You want a small mirror because you don't want the windage or the sticking out factor. But if the mirror is already small, you really don't want to make the view even smaller by using a wide-angle mirror. So forget about the supposed benefits of a wide angle (convex) mirrors unless it is going to be on your beach cruiser and as big as the side mirror on your SUV... BUT if it is a small mirror how much can you see? Can you see enough? Well, if it is on your head like this "Take a Look Mirror" it turns out you quickly adapt to tilting or turning your head ever so slightly this way and that as necessary to peer anywhere you please around the vicinity of your 6 o'clock. If you try this mirror walking around the shop or home, you will not appreciate how intuitive that head tilting is, and how quickly you learn to adjust the mirror so that you can glimpse it in your peripheral vision. Or if you are deliberately looking into it, how you still have your peripheral vision engaged on the road ahead. It is a lot like using your automobile side mirrors: You don't feel as if you have to look entirely away from where you are going, and if you move your head slightly to change your mirror-view a little, it's no big deal. I walked around the house with mine and was totally skeptical that it was going to work for me. Once on the bike it was entierly natural and intuitive. OK so this is the right design: A small helmet or eyeglass mounted mirror, flat, not convex. But what about the quality? adjust-ability? value? and so on? Well I was absolutely floored that the quality was so good at this price point. It is a simple thing, but it is also well made from good materials. Perfect! And it comes with a lifetime guarantee from a company that has been around long enough that you know they must mean it. There is a reason this has been such a popular product for so long. As for adjusting it? You can move it very easily to whatever orientation you like. In my experience so far it stays put where you adjust it. It is also easy to adjust with one hand while riding for fine tuning if you need it. Size? I got the "original" and I think it is about right, though I suppose some may prefer the newer compact version. It is important to set the mirror up so that it doesn't interfere annoyingly with your forward vision, but isn't too far over so that you can't just glimpse it. With so much adjust-ability in the mounting there are several options. You will have to experiment and decide what works for you. For me the "original" size works great. Not too big to block my forward vision, not too small to see behind. Just right. I have mine on a pair of aviator style sunglasses that have lightweight thin bows. Not quite wire bows as on RayBans, but nearly so. This is no problem for the mounting. It would also clip easily onto wide bows on wraparound style glasses. And you snap the mirror on and off easily enough to move it to other specs or to your helmet, or if you just want to use you glasses without the mirror while you are having lunch or something. I think there is an "optional extra" to mount it to a helmet, but I also think that for many helmets you might not need it. Just clip it to the shell which might require removing a little foam. And how do I like it? I LOVE it! I never thought I'd be the sort to say that. I'm not the spandex type, but I'm not into looking like a fool either... and I never thought that these mirrors were "cool." However this mirror gives me a good view astern which has added unanticipated confidence and opportunity when I'm riding. I can speed up or slow down to time my left turns when there isn't an idiot behind me trying to run me off the road; I can cross busy intersections when I know there isn't some soccer mom on her cell phone about to cut me off; if I have to swing wide around a pothole or sewer grate I can look behind in an instant to check for an oncoming dump truck....and best of all I can look back there to see if my mates are still keeping up with me ('cause I'm still way faster than most of them *wink*) Fist off if you are on the fence about getting a mirror, just get one. Any one. You won't regret it. You will like it. Next: The "Take a Look Mirror" beats out the bar end mirrors, the frame mounted mirrors, and all the other wide angle helmet or eyeglass mounted mirrors hands down. Don't waste your time with the others. Try this one first and you won't have to try anything else. There is a reason they have been around so long and why they keep getting repeat customers. Peter

I've seen other cyclists with these but they looked kind of weird and like it would get in the way.. Boy was I wrong. I commute on my bike and it's in a high traffic area where you definitely want a mirror. I've used many types that install to the handle bars. If you're reading this, please don't buy one of those. As cool as they look, they never work out(the vibration moves them around) and it's dangerous to turn the bars for a better view. Which brings me to the take a look mirror. The best feature is it is attached to your head so once you learn the movements you can see just about anywhere behind you. Like other reviewers I find this mirror works best attached to your sunglasses. I've tried both and for me the helmet doesn't work as well. It fell off once while riding attached to the helmet. The most important step to remember is that the middle clip needs to be on the outside and the other two go on the inside. It's very simple and I was able to get it installed the first time in under a minute. If you have any issues there is a website address with more detailed instructions included on the manual in the package. I find this mirror very easy to use. The little arm that the mirror is attached to rotatates vertically, while the arm that is connected to rotates horizontal. Meaning you can adjust the mirror anywhere you want. I put the clip in the center of my sunglasses so the mirror is just outside my vision and adjust the mirror so it's perfect viewing when my head is looking Straight ahead. Then for fine turning I turn my head to the left to see me behind me and to the right to see more to my outside. Once you have it adjusted and ride a couple miles you will figure out the angles to turn to see where you want. I can't believe I waited this long to buy one. No more guessing or straining your neck to see behind you. This mirror allows me to quickly scan behind me when ever I need to. Unlike handlebar mirrors that vibrate and bounce and eventually fall off, this little mirror attaches very well. It's simply made but well thought out and works well. I've had zero issues with stability or it detaching outside of the one time it detached from my Hemet but I do believe that's because it hangs upside down from my helmet. I have had no issues with it attached to my sunglasses. Even if it comes off I know where I put it(right in the middle) and then just a couple seconds to look behind me while wearing it to tune it in. The quality of the mirror is good as are all the parts for the mirror. You will be able to see in it. If you ride a bicycle and want to see behind you this is by far the best mirror I've used to do it.

Having used many different rear view bike mirrors over the years, the Take A Look has its pros and cons. It is very light weight and attaches reliably to a pair of sunglasses. Since glasses stay firmly in place on your face, the mirror stays in position throughout your ride. Attaching the mirror to a bike helmet is more problematic since most helmets tend to move around, rendering your view somewhat unpredictable. Having the mirror attached to glasses means that you don't have a clunky mirror sticking out of your handlebars where it can get in the way. On the other hand, if you sometimes ride without glasses as I do in the winter when glasses tend to fog up, you have to do without a mirror. The Take A Look is pricey for what you get, but unlike most handlebar mirrors, it is made in the USA, so worth a few extra $. Also, I find that you need to take your eyes off the road for a longer period of time using the Take A Look vs. a handlebar mirror. It takes a bit longer to swivel your head and focus your eye on the tiny mirror to get a good view behind you. Whether you prefer the Take A Look or a handlebar mirror comes down to personal preference. Both work OK but neither is without drawbacks.

January 2019 update to my reviews which I still give five stars. A few years ago I switched to a Fly Racing Freestone helmet, which has a built in visor and better rear coverage of the head. The helmet is designed for MTB use, but I prefer the better coverage at the rear and the solid (as in screw attached) visor. After getting tired of the eyeglass mount of the Take A Look mirror and all its compromises, I cobbled together a semi-permanent mount to the visor of the helmet, using cable ties and the mirror mount. The end result is a vastly improved mount and view. I no longer had to fiddle with the mirror on my glasses, and now just rotate the mirror under the visor when dismounting. Still have to fiddle with it when first donning the helmet, but it works so much better now. Vibrations are minimized to almost non-existent. Downside is that my other helmets do not have the same type of visor, but since I like the Freestone (a great helmet), it is not such a negative. I have gone through a few helmet mounted mirrors before finally trying this one. This model has been around for years, is still made right here in the USA, and I like it best. My main issue with helmet mount mirrors is the way they quickly go out of alignment. Be it the ever changing location of the helmet in relation to your view from daily donning/undonning, the mounts coming loose (Velcro adhesive or hard mount adhesive loosening over time), and my own clumsiness in dropping the mirror onto something while attached to my helmet, they always left me irritated. The Bike Peddler model slips onto your eyeglass or sunglass (for those of you blessed with decent vision) frames, staying in place via friction mount. The mirror has ample swivel points to it and folds flat. With my nearsightness, I assumed it would be difficult for me to focus on the mirror, but that was unfounded in use (physics ain't my strong point). This mirror works perfectly for me. Yeah, you may look goofy, but knowing what is coming from behind is of much greater benefit than appearance as one ages. The mirror stays in place using plastic pads (on metal arms) of the eyeglass, and once adjusted is locked in for that wearing. No more worrying about my helmet mounted mirror getting bumped out of view. One of the reasons I hesitated on this model for so many years was the metal construction, worrying that when I took a spill, bits of metal framing would poke the head, and it's semi useful contents. Still possible, of course, but no more so than eyeglass frames I suppose. And helmet mounted ones have bits that could easily become projectiles, so it is a wash. Only nitpick, and this is my own doing, is that it is so small, I have already lost one. So I purchased another to replace it. Worth it and recommended.

Easy to hook on glasses and adjusts easily. Easy glance to see what is over my left shoulder and gives me a deep and wide enough field of view when I do.

I'm almost seventy and my last biking experience (not counting motorcycles) was in my early adult years. I've never had a rear-view mirror on a bike, of any sort. Since this product is relatively inexpensive, I decided that, even if I didn't end up liking it, it was worth a try. If you've ridden with glasses or a helmet attached rear-view mirrors before and you're used to it, this might be "just the ticket." For what it is, it works as advertised. Common sense should have told me what the challenges of this mirror would be and, for me, they were more than I anticipated. Your head is on a swivel and constantly moving, so then is the mirror. You must get your eyes to first find the "sweet spot" where the tiny mirror reflects what you need to see, (all while safely peddling. ) I found I had to start searching for the mirror with my eyes long before I needed to know what was behind me (for an upcoming turn for example). Couple that with having to move your head to assist you seeing where you need to see. Perhaps, over time, with more experience and as muscle memory sets in you would get used to it. I found it frustrating, in fact, exasperating. I never had that experience with motorcycle mirrors which (of course) are bigger and mounted to the bike. I can't recommend this, as it didn't work easily or well for me and I felt it was unsafe. The small size means you get a limited area reflected. Instinct and habit caused me to turn my head to use my peripheral vision to see what was behind me, also unsafe. The mirror, being so small, requires you to have your eyes and head in just the right (sweet) spot to work as designed. Also, while it's true that it's easily adjusted (to any angle) that doesn't resolve the inherent problems. It is also easily bumped and moved in typical use. I frequently found myself reaching up, (often while peddling) to try to make micro changes in the mirror's angle. Something to consider is that if you install it (easily done on most types of sunglasses) what do you when it's evening or night? You're not going to want to be messing with moving it from your sunglasses to your helmet, etc. You'll be forever making adjustments to its positioning. Incidentally it may or may not work on all types of helmets. It would depend on what type you have. Cloudy day, evening or night time riding, it doesn't matter, you still want to see behind you. I suppose there are clear sports glasses to keep the bugs out of your eyes at such times. That's probably the answer. I just ordered a $25 handle bar mounted rear-view mirror.

I used the Third eye mirror for many years. It was adequate but I didn't like how easily it was to knock it out of alignment and not just while taking the glasses on or off but also when riding in strong winds. I did try using glue to hold the alignment but this meant I had to buy a new one every time I got new glasses frames and that I couldn't adjust it to avoid the sun's glare when it was directly behind me. Given these problems I looked to see if there was an alternative and found the Take a Look mirror. I've now had a chance to ride with it for over a 1,000 miles and in some very extreme conditions including gale force winds and torrential down pours. It held its alignment well in even the extreme conditions. In this relatively short period of time it hasn't broken and given that it is constructed with metal and not plastic I expect it will be good for the long run. The mirror is a bit larger than the Third eye and has a rectangular shape instead of being round. It took a bit of getting used to but I find I do like the better view behind and it is worth the tradeoff of a bit less peripheral vision. Drawbacks: 1. It is a bit heavier than the Third eye mirror, 8.5 grams vs. 6. The extra 2.5 grams aren't a problem for me but perhaps would be for others with looser fitting glasses. 2. The initial adjustment is more difficult than the Third Eye because you actually have to bend the wire that goes from the eyeglass mount out to the mirror. This is more difficult than it sounds because you have to do this without bending the brass sleeve that holds the wire. I managed to do this without incident by using a vice to hold the mounting prong closest the mirror and then bending the wire by holding the brass sleeve along its entire length and applying pressure. This is a real nuisance because it will probably take you several iterations of bending, trying it out, and then bending again before you get it right. 3. Costs a few dollars more. I find the drawbacks are well worth the trade off for a more stable alignment. Yes, the initial adjustment is a nuisance but once you have it done you won't have to bend the wire again (well, not unless you go on tour where they drive on the other side of the road). You can still easily adjust the alignment without bending the wire by rotating the wires in the sleeves and this allows you to adjust for the sun behind you problem. So, as long as the Take a Look mirror is available I won't be going back to a Third Eye.

Some of the customer reviews for this product left me wondering whether it would attach well to a helmet visor. It appeared from those reviews that it may attach well only to sunglass/eyeglass frames. But it attaches well to my helmet visor and will stay attached while I ride. It’s very useful and to me, it’s the perfect size: it’s big enough to show me all I need to see behind me but small enough that it doesn’t obstruct what I want to see in front of me. And it doesn’t look awkward. It’s also very easy to install (5 mins or less) and very easy to adjust once it’s on - even while I’m riding. At first, when I removed my helmet after the first dozen or so rides, it would sometimes detach from my visor if an object jostled my helmet. It was very easy to put it back on, but I finally decided to eliminate the hassle by using a zip tie to secure it. Now it stays on all the time. Bottom line: I considered buying a more expensive, larger helmet mirror but am very happy I picked this one. I think you’ll feel the same way. It’s user-friendly in every way.

An absolutely must for cycling.

This is a great little mirror. It attaches firmly to my glasses and the mirror is not blurry or distorted at all. It is light weight but solid. It does take a bit of getting used to, since the view changes whenever you move your head, but after a few minutes I got used to it. I would recommend this product.

Overview: This tool is simply amazing. A no-nonsense lightweight and sturdy tool that performs as designed. It allows you to easily and securely mount an unobstrusive optic on a helmet or eyewear so that you can minimise your rearview blindspot. Whether you are riding a bicycle, rollerblading, longboarding on a skateboard or even walking your nervous pups, you will never be surprised or startled by anyone, much less a fast moving person or object from behind you again. Adjustability: -The tool itself is mallable (steel) in a couple of areas, to enable micro adjustments to suit individual needs -It can be used on either the right or left side; but requires a bit of mental juggling to find the best in/out/up/down option- in my case, it is set up for the right side Pros: -Most affordable option -Light weight, durable -Low profile -Never need to twist your head to see what’s behind you again Cons: -Once mounted, it takes up space

I bought 2 mirrors, one for myself & one for my partner, and we have both been very impressed with them. After trying them on both helmet visors & on cycling glasses, we have both settled on using the attached to glasses - but they work in either location. Setting the mirror angle up to work does take a bit of fiddling (and can only really be done o the bike). We have both found that we need to turn our head slightly to bring the road behind into the field of vision, but this is no big deal. The view in the mirror is clear (mirror is high quality), and being able to confirm whether or not there is a vehicle sitting behind us has transformed riding pleasure on busier roads. Will certainly be ordering a spare.

しっかりと造られており走行中もブレがなくバッグが良く見える。これなら早くつけておけば良かった。