John Lee Gets A Passenger Side Rear View Mirror

[Sharps40]

In the finest tradition of spendin, I dumped even more Christmas money on Truck Stuff.....this time another LMC black rear view mirror for the passenger side of John Lee. I put one on the drivers side of Ol John Lee and transferred it to John Lee after Ol John Lee got squished head on.....even though its prolly Taiwan China stuff I like it. Quality is fine, fit is great. Two years on the Drivers side and going strong and lookin fine.



So....to the job. Strip off the door panel. A permanent cup holder is a fine place to put screws and handles and stuff so they don't get lost.



No nut plate inside the passenger door....just a sheet metal bracket outlining the position of the holes and a place for a man with thin long arms to get tangled up in tryin to spin on washers and nuts.



Lookin at them last two photos don't do the job justice. Its three hands.....need someone to screw for ya from the outside while ya hold nuts. Blu Goo is mandatory, so is masking tape, open end wrenches, sockets, a magnet on a stick to get dropped tools and nuts and washers and small biceps, long arms, a good light inside the door and a long center punch (or screwdriver as a center punch) and hammer and touch up paint and lube up the tats on yer arms, theys gonna take a beating.

Briefly then. This is no country for Timid Tom or Fat Arm Freddy.

[Sharps40]

I accomplished the job, door glass full up, vent window assembly installed. Removing them only makes a bit more room for yer arms, ye'll be comeing in from the side and if small enough, from below to get them nuts and lock washers on. No, the sheet metal ain't thick enough to tap 5/16x18 for the screws like the nut plate on the drivers side.

So, grab some lock washers and 1/2" nuts with the common 5/16x18 thread to fasten it all in.....

Oh yeah, a series of drill bits to open the holes in stages and a hand drill.

Here we go....

From the back side, ya can get a Phillips into the top rear hole and tap with a hammer raising a pimple on the outside. Do the same for the bottom rear hole. Ya can't get to the forward (closest to hinge) hole from the backside. So these two hole need to be accurate and your mirror base is the template for the forward hole.

Yep, my old old repaint cracked around the pimple. To big a pimple I spect. make it just big enough to see and crack less paint.



Starting with 1/16 drill bits, center punch from the outside, start drilling....work yer way up in diameter till the screws for the mirror just drop into the hole.

[Sharps40]

Temporarily install the mirror and base gasket with the front two screws. I did not nut them as its just too hard to do it twice. Press the dude down, centerpunch the third hole, remove the mirror and base gasket.



Drill the third hole. With luck ya wiggled em into the proper orientation on the metal plate on the underside by progressing up from small bits to large bits.

Touch up the paint. While it drys, go smoke and drink, the nervous part is done and now the job gets blue streak 4 letter word difficult.

[Sharps40]

Install the mirror and base gasket and run in the three screws. Have GoodWife near by to hold it in and turn the screwdriver for ya....that loving third hand we discussed.



There is a hellofa lotta room in there for yer hand....but with the window mechanism in place or short arms or big biceps its hard to get to. Ye'll be need in that magnetic stick at least once on this part too cause the tools and the nuts and washers WILL fall into the bottom of the door with the leaves and dead bugs.

[Sharps40]

Stripping down to my short sleeve and lubin up my tattoos with some lotion I was just barely able to reach in from the rear of the door and spin on the nuts with lock washers.

After retrieving the nuts and lock washers several times with my magnet taped to a stick, I got out the Ever Faithful Infinite Uses Wish I Invented It, Blu Goo and stuck the lock washers to the nuts. (The lock washers are critical...they'll help halt the nut from turning so most of your torque will be from the outside wif a screwdriver makin the job a touch easier.

That there solo nut and screw all the way forward by the upper hinge....no way I could reach it by hand wif the window and mechanism in place. So, I put tape on one side of the open end of an open ended wrench.....pressed in the nut. Coated the nut wif God's Own Miracle Sauce, Blu Goo and stuck on the lock washer.........reached inside from the rear of the door and held the captive nut and lockwasher and wrench assembly against the screw as GoodWife turned it with a screwdriver from outside......It worked, spun on like I knew what I was doing.

I watched as she switched to a number 3 Phillips to really snug down the screws.....they snugged and the lockwashers kept the nuts from turnin and its all on tight as new.

[Sharps40]

The view from the drivers seat....



And a view from the passenger side....



Have fun fellas....45 minutes start to finish. Looks good and trust me, some lil turd breaks it off the passenger side and I'm gonna stake em on a fire ant hill for 20 minutes naked covered in honey.

Like I said, this one ain't no easy country....but its worth it!

[TJ's Chevy]

Nice job!!!! If you had the chrome one it would have been a 70 hp add on by the way.....

[Sharps40]

I got black cause it has the Bat man smoke generator built in. The horses are under the hood. Ain't just another frackin small block It's a buzzin half dozen!

[firemanjimtfd]

I just put the same mirrors (only chrome) on mine 2 days ago had to have my boy with smaller arms reach in to put the nuts and lock washers on. Tight space.

[RoyL]

Great write-up with excellent pictures to see how to do this! I had more "blue streaks" cause I couldn't find my better half when I needed her...

[Sharps40]

Yeah fellas, my tats on the right are are still cursin at me for the abrasions!

And, yep, I think this job, specially if ya tried doin it alone will have ya makin up some pretty new and unique Blue Streak words!

[Old Bleu]

Excellent write up and pictures as usual Sharps! I'm surprised that GM used a nut plate on the driver side, but not on the passenger side. Must have saved a few cents. I'll bet they did it to make it easier to install the standard driver side mirror on the assembly line, but didn't care about the extra work for the dealer or owner adding a passenger side mirror.

I've got my door off at the moment while I replace my driver side rocker panel and kick panel. I guess it wouldn't be any easier with the door off, so guess I'll wait until I rehang the door. Might have to go with the stainless and chrome setup too. My little 230 could use the extra horses!

[JWheeler331]

Came out nice. I have a set of these waiting to go on in the future.

[Sharps40]

It's a complete look and I can see stuff outta it I'm pretty happy. Glad there ain't no more to do.

[TJ's Chevy]

Plus he got a 50 hp add on......

[shok]

Cool didnt know there was something to guide you on hole placement on the inside, I thought I was gonna have to make a template from the drivers door and reverse it.

[doobiebro]

Thanks Sharps for the write up! I ordered a long time ago the matching passenger side mirror assy but never installed it because of the invisible holes on the door. This will be my next t do list..

[Sharps40]

Cool. Getcha a supply of lock washers, some goo, a helper and the threads on the screws should be 5/16x18 TPI.

Luck!

[Old Bleu]

Sharps, do you think you could measure and tell me how far the mirrors stick out from some point on your truck? I will be repalcing my little car mirror with that style soon, and am concerned with getting the truck in the single door bay on our garage. It's an 8 foot opening, and it feels pretty tight when I pull in now. Would hate to mount new mirrors and then find out I can't get it in the garage!

[Sharps40]

I'll check but I can tellya if yer already worryin then they will stick out far enough to make ya fart tube slam shut like a steel gate on the first 17 trips into the garage.

Stand by.

[Sharps40]

Here ya go....an extra three to four inches per side as measured from the pointy part on the door.

[Old Bleu]

Thanks! Didn't mean for you to go to that much trouble. But you are right, it feels tight now, and adding another 6 inches is really going to u the pucker factor. Might have to think about parking my commuter car in the sigle bay and swing Old Blue through the 18 foot door!

[Sharps40]

Yep. Big garage for the cool ride and lil shoe box for the rockemsockem robot!

[Desert.Chevy]

Looks good from your pictures, could you post a side and a front picture of your truck. Thanks.