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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 42
Vacaville, CA United States | This is kind of an odd problem that I've not heard from anyone else...thought I'd post to see if this is only happening to me.
Like many (I suppose), I have chosen to have handlebar mounted mirrors (Witchdoctor tear-drop shaped) in addition to the embedded mirriors in the cowl on my 2013 Vision. I recently removed my trunk and installed the passenger back rest as I usually do in the summer. I came out of an eating establishment recently and found smoke rolling off om backrest and a concentrated beam of light being reflected off my handlebar mirror to my backrest. It burned completely through the leather...looked like a ciggarette burn. I since installed my trunk for a weekend trip and it happened again, this time to the passenger backrest of the trunk...but I caught it before it burned through.
I started putting my fingerless gloves over the mirrors when parked and just recently made leather covers for the mirrors when parked.
Has anyone else experienced this type of issue?
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Visionary
Posts: 4278
| NO
you sure your not having a wire short out on you. If you think its a mirror take it off and see if you can start a piece of paper unfire |
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Visionary
Posts: 1365
Central Maryland | I would think that what you experienced is plausible; though it's the first time that I've heard of it. The mirror would have to be convex though; to gather light in such a way that it could focus radiant energy like that to start a fire in your backrest.
Maybe your mirrors are slightly convex. Good idea with the gloves over the mirrors.
Since your in sunny Kalifornia; no doubt that there's ample sunlight for this to happen.
There's all kinds of hits on Google for a mirror starting a fire:
https://www.google.com/search?q=mirror+started+fire&ie=utf-8...
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 42
Vacaville, CA United States | It is most certainly the mirror. When I witnessed the burning, I could clearly see the beam of light causing it. I had to place my hands in front of my mirror to stop it. |
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 42
Vacaville, CA United States | Both mirrors are slightly convex. When I witnessed the burning, I could clearly see the beam of sunlight being concentrated in that spot. I had to place my hand in front of my mirror to block the light and stop the burning. |
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Visionary
Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA | Fascinating! |
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Visionary
Posts: 4278
| Daveg53
can you post a photo of your mirrors or mirror |
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Visionary
Posts: 1229
Rancho Cucamonga, CA | Only a concave mirror could do that. it would bring the sun's rays to a focal point hot enough to burn. Your focal point sounds to be about 3 feet, since the focal point is farther then your normal viewing distance, you would not see any image reversal and the magnification would be minimal (objects are farther than they appear). A convex mirror is the ones your used to seeing on cars and bikes (objects are closer than they appear). A convex mirror will disperse the rays out, giving you a wider field of view (like the stock mirrors) and make it impossible to generate heat.
If you stand back from your mirrors at a distance (past the focal point, farther than your backrest), are images flipped in your mirrors? If you hold up graph paper in front of them, do the lines curve?
Concave mirrors are very bad, not just for your stated reason, but also because you limit your field of view. No manufacturer produces these on purpose. It will happen on their own as a flat mirror lifts from its bond at the edges, while still secure in the middle.
Edited by Nozzledog 2015-05-27 7:09 PM
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Visionary
Posts: 1365
Central Maryland | My mistake about the convex description... I always get those two shapes mixed up... |
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Tourer
Posts: 573
Central Illinois | Nozzledog - 2015-05-27 7:03 PM Only a concave mirror could do that. it would bring the sun's rays to a focal point hot enough to burn. Your focal point sounds to be about 3 feet, since the focal point is farther then your normal viewing distance, you would not see any image reversal and the magnification would be minimal (objects are farther than they appear). A convex mirror is the ones your used to seeing on cars and bikes (objects are closer than they appear). A convex mirror will disperse the rays out, giving you a wider field of view (like the stock mirrors) and make it impossible to generate heat. If you stand back from your mirrors at a distance (past the focal point, farther than your backrest), are images flipped in your mirrors? If you hold up graph paper in front of them, do the lines curve? Concave mirrors are very bad, not just for your stated reason, but also because you limit your field of view. No manufacturer produces these on purpose. It will happen on their own as a flat mirror lifts from its bond at the edges, while still secure in the middle. I think Nozzledog has a possible cause with adhesive loosening first on the outside edges and the mirror curving in slightly. I have never heard of this happening but his explanation makes good sense in the world of physics. |
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Mirror issues