Looking for 53 outside mirrors

[MMcKinney]

I see the outside mirors for the 1953 B4B are quite elusive and dificult to find. Is there anyone out there who knows if any repoductions exist or know if maybe some of the larger trucks (like 3/4 or 1 ton) use the same mirror arm? I have called Roberts and the powerwagon site and they have nothing for the 53 Dodge truck. Roberts has the miror arms for the 39-47 Dodge truck, but they say they will not fit the newer trucks.

What makes these 39-47 mirror arms not fit the newer 48-53 trucks? Is it the spacing between the attachments or what? Are the hinges narrower on the older trucks? If that is the case, then it would be somewhat easy enough to cut the arm and make the needed adjustment to make it fit the the newer truck hinge. Has anyone tried this yet? Any information on the dementions of the 39-47 mirror arm or the door hinge would be helpfull at this point.

Thanks

MMcKinney

Caldwell,ID

[41/53dodges]

there was a guy on here awhile back talking about how he had a machine shop and could start making repros of hard-to-find parts.

[Plymouthy Adams]

honestly guy, where about outside are you going to mount 53 mirrors...

[Reg Evans]

Are you referring to this type ?

Or the much rarer type like these. Especially for the passenger side.

[MMcKinney]

Thanks for all the replys everyone. All I was trying to do is find out about the factory 53 B4B mirror arms. I'm not really sure what they look like because my truck came in such bad condition that I do not have anything too go by. The Roberts cataloge photo is all I have ever seen of them (and photos in thedodge photo gallery) and they are a diagram of the 39-47 year truck parts. The Roberts 39-47 arms look similar to the 48-53 arm but they do not fit the 48-53- truck. I was hoping to find out the difference between the avaliable 39-47 mirror arms and then try to make them fit the newer 48-53 truck door hinge. The included photo is what I was thinking of and what I hoping to find as probably many other people on this web site also.

I realize they are difficult to find but maybe with some cutting and welding a person may be able to change the Roberts cataloge parts 39-47 parts to fit on the 48-53 truck hinge. At least so I can have some kind of out side rear view mirror that looks near factory and classic to the trucks appearence.

If I knew the spacing between the door hinge attachments of the Roberts part 37-49 mirror arm (or even the size of the 39-47 exterior truck door hinge) then I could decied if cutting and welding would be an option in changing them to fit the newer 48-53 door hinge. I have tried other mirrors, but they don't look that great and do not function well at all for seeing behind the truck. The extended arm version with a bracket may be the only remaining option left at this point.

The photo by Reg Evans is very helpful. Thanks

MMcKinney

[MMcKinney]

The Roberts 39-47 truck mirror arm

MMcKinney

[townwagon]

At least not for a 1953. Reg was showing the correct and hard to find 1948-50 arm, and the Roberts one looks like the 39-47 arm.

I have pictures somewhere of the correct arm from a 53, if you want to see it let me know and I will spend a couple hours digging them out of my archives. I know I sold some on E-bay a few years ago, and I never toss the pictures I take of parts.

Eric

[SteveMelchiorre]

Those could be nice...wonder where you would mount them?

Steve...

[MMcKinney]

Thanks guys,

Those are door edge mirrors and they are pretty easy to come by. They make many styles and shapes to choose from, but they are not a "real" solid mount. They only clamp on to the door. Which is functional, but I was hoping for a bolt-on type mount option. I may not have a choice and will have to goto the clamp on style if something does not come up better.

I have tried (and mounted) several sets of custom mirrors over the last weeks, but many of them do not allow the mirror to tip in o the driver enough to see out behind the truck. Then if you put them on the passenger side, they won't even come close to being functional enough for seeing behind the truck at all. I think many of the mirrors are on the hot rod cars and truck for just "show" only.

MMcKinney

[Merle Coggins]

I often think I NEED a right side mirror mount like is shown in Reg's photo, but when I sit in the passenger seat and try to see the driver's side mirror it's pretty much useless. I would imagine that a right side mirror on that bracket would be impossible to see from the driver's seat. I really miss not having a right side mirror when I'm driving, but I don't want to go to the larger truck stalk mirrors to get a usable right side mirror either.

Merle

[Young Ed]

Merle my 46 has similar mounts to the pilot house ones and I can see the right mirror just fine.

[townwagon]

Look at this link to see more pictures:

http://imageevent.com/townwagon/5153mirrorarms

As you can see they mount the same as the 48-50 short arm, and the 48-53 long arm, but they look very different.

Eric

Edited February 12, 2010 by townwagon
move image

[HanksB3B]

(shown in the thumbnail), if so I have an idea. I worked long and hard on restoring mine. One of the tubes was stuck inside the other and it took heat, liquid wrench, banging and pulling to get them apart. they were then powdercoated. The mirror itself came from Roberts Motor Parts and was fairly priced. After all that effort, one day in a parking lot a Jeep pulled up next to me and I noticed it had the same telescoping tubes. I wonder if they still make them. If worse came to worse, because the parts are so simple it wouldn't take much more than finding the right materials, a vise and a drill press to fabricate them.

Good Luck finding or fabricating,

Hank

[MMcKinney]

You can buy a hinge mount similar to the one you have (HanksB3B) on the Power Wagon web site. Now I know what the mirror arms are suppose to look like it will be easy to fabricate what you have there. The Power Wagon site even has the adjustable arm as well but it looks like its longer and more for the larger trucks. The tubular arm part can be easily copied to a fairly close match and will still look close the factory classic look. Thanks everyone!

MMcKinney

[HanksB3B]

to find is that little chrome collar. It looks like a plumbing part sort of and has an allen screw so that you can adjust the telescoping inner steel tube. A pipe supply house should carry the outer tube and one that slides inside as well. I'll try to find some better pictures I have when they were un-assembled and get some O.D., I.D. and tube lenghts.

Hank

[MMcKinney]

Hank,

The Power wagon Web site stocks this one. It seems to look just like the one you have on your tuck. They also stock the hinge clamp as weel but I can't see to get the photo off there web site.

MMcKinney

[HanksB3B]

Wish I knew back in the time I had more money than time. How much are they asking for them. Do they sell the brackets and the door pin that is threaded and has a nut as well?

Hank

[MMcKinney]

Hank,

They sell (vintagepowerwagons.com) the extention rod, the clamp and the mirror. The extention rod is about $15, the clamp is $23 and the mirrors are $20 & $25. The mirrors are a bit expensive, but Roberts has the black mirrors for $8 each and I beleive Roberts has the has the correct bolt for the clamp too. Vintage Power Wagon has the bolt too, but they say you have to cut it to fit, and when ever you cut a bolt on the threads it just does not come on an off very well. The clamp at Power wagon site is slightly differeint than yours, but it will work just fine. I going to try tomorrow and see if I can get these parts going for next week, and I will probably make an order from each company.

Thanks for the all the help Hank

[Young Ed]

Next time you gotta cut a bolt try doing it by hand with a hack saw. The thin blade can go between the threads. Also make sure you put the nut on beyond the cut. Then when you take it off it will fix any imperfections

Edited February 15, 2010 by Young Ed

[MMcKinney]

Very true on that bolt fix and I have done that many times. It works pretty good but the correct bolt works just a little better.

I just called Roberts and they don't have the bolt that is need for the hinge pin. I'll probably have to find a longer 11/32 inch door pin at the the auto store and then cut a standard thread on the end of that. No one seems to make the correct door hinge pin. I have a broken hinge pin in my hand that I'm going to have to copy. Some of these Dodge parts are so difficult to find.

MMcKinney

[HanksB3B]

work fine. Those are the ones in the thumbnail in the previous post. They are worth $8 for sure.

Hank

P.S. After you cut a bolt, the next thing to do is to back the nut off flush with the cut, then flat file to get the cut @ exactly 90deg. Next either file or touch grind a slight 45deg chamfer. You'll never have a problem. If you use a fine enough file on the flat cut no one but you will know the bolt has been cut.

Hank

[MMcKinney]

A quick update on the 1953 Mirrors... Ordered the arm and the clamp from the Power Wagon site and the clamp does not fit. Its too expensive to cut up and make a new one from. I can make a better clamp in my shop for much less money. Also the arm is not solid and is not tight enough so that it won't move about while driving. So I sent both parts back and went to garage to make my own.

I ordered the mirors from Roberts and they look very nice and are a great large size (5 inch). They will work very nicely. Below are some of the photos of what I fabricated. These are fairly similar to the photo that "Townwagon" has in the above post. The bolt is also difficult to find as well and I will have to think up something because I do not have any. Diameter and length are critical.

MMcKinney

[geopcanuk]

If you're still looking for the long 11/32 hinge pins,you can get them at Napa Canadian catalogue p/n 250-559

George

[MMcKinney]

Thanks, I'll look in to that.

MMckinney

[Edrowesuave]

I found this mirror arm and hinge bracket at Vintage Power Wagon.I like this mirror.Has anyone bought these and tried them?

Edited November 1, 2014 by Edrowesuave