Re: Side Mirror Glass Replacement

Posted by BH On 2012/2/17 18:39:31

Kev -

WRT to template for the 51-54 mirrors that mounted on the belt line trim, go to the Section III - Accessories of the 51-54 Service Manual, starting at the bottom of page 3. Figure 7 shows layout for drilling, but is somewhat illegible; perhaps you can rescan the figure (and related text) and post in this thread.

However, drilling requires a fixture - perhaps to locate the holes vertically, but certainly to keep the bit from skipping off the crowned trim and onto the paint. Although it looks like the holes are centered vertically, looks can be deceiving. It would help if you could find a car (or at least the moulding of one) that had been fitted with such a mirror inspect the location of the holes. I'm sure you could make a fixture from a scrap of hardwood and drill bushings.

Meanwhile, read the shop manual instructions carefully on final installation. It appears, to me, that Packard had an elegantly simple trick for mounting this mirror (on 51-54) WITHOUT any special bracket.

I can't tell from the present, low-rez scan, but am guessing that the special screw (with Allen recess on one end) used the washer on the bottom end (with a little help from leveraged gravity) to hang on the top of the one hole that goes through the outer door panel. (Refer to Figure 7, Section A-A.) The mirror is cinched in place by BACKING the screw out to tighten the washer against the inside of the panel.

Meanwhile, a locating pin, that's part of the casting, projects beyond the bottom of the base on the 51-54 version of the mirror, engaging the other smaller hole in the trim only. (Refer to Figure 7, Section B-B.)

Did your mirror include this screw? If not we'll talk about fabricating a replacement, later - as was done for the 55-56 repro.

BTW, except for the projection of the locating pin and the angle of the stem where it meets the mirror head, I believe that the base of the OE 51-54 and 55-56 mirrors start out as the same casting, just machined/finished a bit differently.