Mirrors on your tractor?

[KevT]

I have been thinking of putting a back up camera on my L3901 so I can see behind me without having to turn around in my seat and back again ( back ain't what it used to be), but I don't have a cab and worried that sunlight will make it hard to see. Then the other day my wife made a comment that I never turn around to back cars/truck into a parking space and how do I do it. That is when I realized I am so comfortable with side mirrors that I don't even think about it. I looked at my tractor and think I can mount them on the main posts of my FEL. But first wanted to get opinions and advise from others that might of done it. Is that a good place to mount them? I never remove my FEL. What mirrors did you use? Do you have pictures?

 

[JerryK]

I put one on my left FEL post using the existing bolt on the top pin. Used a couple stainless tabs welded to some 3/8" stainless rod. Mounted about a 6" Ebay convex stainless [ are you seeing a pattern here..?? ] on it. Liked it so much the following year I put one on the right FEL post. Mine are mainly for ' noticing ' folks coming up on me whilst I am out on the road, though.

 

[Baby Grand]

My back is arthritic and the bottom few vertebrae are fused, so turning around to see involves rotating my butt in the seat to get enough rotation to actually see anything. Not a good solution, and results in a painful neck the day after a workout with the tractor, so I know the pain of which you speak.

To my mind, the FEL main posts are the most logical places to mount mirrors on an open station tractor.
They will provide a solid, low vibration attachment point and are located approximately where you want to mount the mirrors for the best view behind the tractor; to either side.

For a view directly behind the tractor, I think one of those backup cameras looks like the cat's whiskers.
Having all 3 in the same visual plane seems like the ideal solution, and is what I want to try.

 

[mud roller]

I have been thinking of putting a back up camera on my L3901 so I can see behind me without having to turn around in my seat and back again ( back ain't what it used to be), but I don't have a cab and worried that sunlight will make it hard to see. Then the other day my wife made a comment that I never turn around to back cars/truck into a parking space and how do I do it. That is when I realized I am so comfortable with side mirrors that I don't even think about it. I looked at my tractor and think I can mount them on the main posts of my FEL. But first wanted to get opinions and advise from others that might of done it. Is that a good place to mount them? I never remove my FEL. What mirrors did you use? Do you have pictures?

Howdy KevT

I bought golf cart mirrors off of Amazon for $12 apiece, they rotate when hit and have been doing great.

I secured them with Weld Mount 2 part adhesive with stainless Steel stud mounts.

Sets in minutes.

The weld mount is FAA approved so its a pretty tough adhesive.

I also hung a fire extinguisher on the ROPS with it and so far so good.

Picture kind of bad hope it helps.

Mirrors sure save neck time.

 

[oosik]

I had a backup mirror mounted on the FEL main post on my previous tractor. It was just a plain old round mirror on a stalk and attached to a bolt on the FEL. It was a Godsend in the winter when I cleared snow off my mile long gravel driveway. I used a rear mounted snow thrower.

 

[Gordon Gould]

This is how I mounted mine. I wanted to keep it in a little as I am in the woods a lot but I can still see behind fine. I just put it on last month it is very helpful especially when doing road work and backing into the garage/shed when you also have to watch where the bucket is going around other equipment or the wife's car.



gg

 

[keg99]

I secured them with Weld Mount 2 part adhesive.

I'm new to "Weld Mount". Can you tell me more about your usage and experience? I typcially use JB Weld, which is great stuff, but always looking for alternatives.

Do you use AT2010, 4020 or 6030?

It also seems kind of expensive. I checked Amazon and they have AT4020, but it is $44 and they don't tell you how much you are getting.

 

[mud roller]

I'm new to "Weld Mount". Can you tell me more about your usage and experience? I typcially use JB Weld, which is great stuff, but always looking for alternatives.

Do you use AT2010, 4020 or 6030?

It also seems kind of expensive. I checked Amazon and they have AT4020, but it is $44 and they don't tell you how much you are getting.

I went with the 1030 two part applicator and stud kit from Jamestown Distributors.
It is a little expensive but just so easy to glue the studs on in some of those hard to reach places.
I also make my own studs and widgets out of stuff from the parts drawer or the hardware store.
Shelf life in the fridge is a year.
The small 1030 applicator I got a year ago is still about half full after many projects.
So far after a lot of bashing none have failed.

 

[Jim Timber]

I have a mirror for mine too. I just haven't gotten around to making the mounting bracket. I plan on mounting it to the FEL bracket as well since there's already holes/slots in it and I can get the mirror in a good spot without too much trouble.

Mine's just a $10 replacement truck mirror with swivel mount stud.

 

[s219]

I haven't seen the need for side mirrors, but I did put a rearview cam on my open station L3200 (nearly identical to your 3901) and it works well. There is a whole thread about that, "rear cam for under $50" I believe. Do not spend a lot of money on the camera or screen, as they are all cheap Chinese components, even the name brands, and because of the wiring used, there will be no such thing as "HD", so don't pay more for that "label". I think I spent $12 on the camera and $27 on the screen from Amazon, and it works great. Also added a front bucket cam, which was a bigger project. In either case, the labor/customization is the consuming part, so from that standpoint, mirrors would be quicker/cheaper. But what I really wanted was a rear view looking directly behind the tractor with a clear look at the 3-pt implement, and no mirror is going to do that well on an open station tractor.