3rd Eye early opinions

When I mentioned last week that I was planning to order a glasses mounting 3rd Eye mirror, Tony
Raven kindly offered to send me his (he'd found it to be about as much use as a fart in a
thunderstorm).

I used it for the first time riding home from work yesterday, then I used it riding to and from work
today. It's hard to be sure after only 3 rides (I had intended to allow several weeks to get used to
it anyway), but I think I'm going to like it.

I've read quite a few positive reviews of this mirror, but it occurs to me that most of them were on
alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent. I'm not sure how I'd get on with it on an upright bike, but frankly I
can't imagine using any mirror on an upright as long as I'm flexible enough to look over my
shoulder. Since I very seldom ride an upright, though, that's not an issue.

One criticism often levelled at glasses mounted mirrors is that they lose their adjustment whenever
you put the glasses down. This is true, and the 3rd Eye will need adjusting at the start of every
ride, but I can live with that. It's a lot easier to adjust than the helmet mounted mirror that I
tried (and rejected) a couple of years ago, and if I get it right then it won't need adjusting again
for the rest of the ride. My handlebar mounted mirror needs tweaking every few minutes.

I hadn't anticipated having to move my head to look in the 3rd Eye, and I hadn't realised until
yesterday that I also move my head to look in my handlebar mirror. It feels like I have to move my
head and eyes further to look in the 3rd Eye, which means it takes longer to look in the mirror. But
I'm not sure that it's actually true, it just feels that way because I'm not yet used to the
movement. And once I've made the movement, if the 3rd Eye is properly adjusted then the view is
actually better than that in my handlebar mirror.

After using it for a few minutes on my first ride, I was reasonably comfortable looking in the 3rd
Eye on the cyclepath. On my second ride I still didn't feel comfortable using it on the road and
continued using my handlebar mirror instead, but made a point of using the 3rd Eye once I reached
the cyclepath. By the end of the third ride, using the 3rd Eye felt more natural than using the
handlebar mounted mirror. This compares very favourably with my helmet mounted mirror, which I used
for 2 weeks without getting the hang of.

The 3rd Eye does have two significant drawbacks compared to the handlebar mounted mirror. One is
that if the sun is ahead and to my right, I can't see anything in the mirror. The other is that it
creates a blind spot on my right hand side. I'll have to decide over the next few weeks just how
much these things matter. If I continue using the 3rd Eye it will be as a replacement for my
handlebar mirror, not supplementary to it, so I need to be able to rely on it.

Slightly less significant is that, after removing the 3rd Eye, I was still able to see an imaginary
shape at the edge of my vision. It was nowhere near as obvious, as long lasting or as irritating as
the shape I used to see after using the helmet mounted mirror, and I don't think it'll be a problem.

Riding to work this morning, with the sun ahead and to my right, I found it slightly disconcerting
to see my shadow moving along behind me out of the corner of my eye. Then when I got to work a
couple of people told me I looked like the Borg, but I can live with that.

Thanks Tony.

--
Danny Colyer (remove safety to reply) ( http://www.juggler.net/danny ) Recumbent cycle page:
http://www.speedy5.freeserve.co.uk/recumbents/ "He who dares not offend cannot be honest." -
Thomas Paine

 

I wrote:
> It's hard to be sure after only 3 rides, but I think I'm going to like it.

4 commuting days later, I've still got the mirror mounted to my handlebar, but I haven't used it
recently. To do so would require a conscious effort - the 3rd Eye is just there, and easy to use.

I still can't see myself getting much use out of it on an upright bike, but for recumbent riding the
glasses mounted 3rd Eye really is the dog's danglies.

I have found an unexpected danger, though. When I rode an upright bike, I would on occasion spend
far too long looking over my shoulder after passing an attractive woman going the other way. When I
got bent I got out of the habit, since I couldn't see enough over my shoulder or in the handlebar
mounted mirror to be worthwhile. But with the 3rd Eye I can.

--
Danny Colyer (remove safety to reply) ( http://www.juggler.net/danny ) Recumbent cycle page:
http://www.speedy5.freeserve.co.uk/recumbents/ "He who dares not offend cannot be honest." -
Thomas Paine

 

I like the 3rd Eye mirror a lot too but I must offer a caution. (I'm writing from the US and I
assume that the mirror you got is the same as the one we get here, all plastic except for the
reflective part). The three legged part that mounts onto your glasses bow will fatigue and break
after extended use. A couple of years if you don't handle it too roughly when you mount and remove
it. It's disconcerting to be deprived of that mirror when you've come to depend upon it. You can
carry a spare 3rd Eye as a spare, carry some sticky tape (what we call duct tape over here, or just
leave that handlebar mirror inplace as a backup.

Bob Taylor

 

Robert Taylor wrote:
> The three legged part that mounts onto your glasses bow will fatigue and break after extended use.

Thanks for that advice. I'd read elsewhere of that particular failing (I've also read that it's
particularly prone to failure in cold weather, which is understandable). If after using it for a few
weeks I still like it as much as after using it for a few days, I'll certainly order a spare.

> You can carry a spare 3rd Eye as a spare, carry some sticky tape (what we call duct tape
> over here,

Gaffer tape over here. I was actually thinking of carrying a mini bulldog clip for emergencies.

> or just leave that handlebar mirror in place as a backup.

Ooh no, don't want to do that. There were 2 reasons I wanted to try the 3rd Eye. One was for
unicycling - it can be quite hairy looking over my shoulder on the Coker once I get much past 10mph.
But the main reason was to replace the handlebar mounted mirror. If I can get rid of that then I
effectively reduce my handlebar width by a few inches, which is good for filtering and for getting
between the bollards that the local council placed on my cyclepath commute 18 months ago.

--
Danny Colyer (remove safety to reply) ( http://www.juggler.net/danny ) Recumbent cycle page:
http://www.speedy5.freeserve.co.uk/recumbents/ "He who dares not offend cannot be honest." -
Thomas Paine