Fixing an Old Mirror

I have been restoring my BMW 1968 model 2002 over the last few months and wanted to keep as much of the original components that I could to keep the car "original". One of the things that was in desperate need of repair was the driver side mirror.

So, in this Instructable I will show you how to remove the backing from the mirror, clean and prepare the surface, and paint the mirror to FIX the discoloration or the separation of the mirror's backing.

Not many tools are required and you will need Flat Black Paint... not gloss or chalk board black paint... it needs to be flat black.

Razor, one sided

A razor with a handle

Paint, Flat Black

Clean cloth

glass cleaner

news paper, for when you paint the glass

While doing this task, be very careful as razors are sharp.

With the mirror our of the housing, you may find a plastic type layer. I used the razor to go around that edge and peel up the outside edge. Be very careful to not scrape the tip on the silver oxide backing of the back side of the mirror.

After removing this cover you should see the remaining black backing that has stuck to the mirror glass.

Using the single sided razor carefully scrape the remaining paint off of the back of the glass. Keep in mind yo want to be very careful and NOT gouge, nick, or scrape off the 'silverish' lining of the mirror.

Wash, clean and dry the mirror so that as much scrapping and dirt is removed from the back of the surface.

Ensure that you have cleaned as much of the back surface and that the surface is dry and ready for paint. Using only flat Black paint, coat one layer of paint over the entire surface. Use a well ventilated area and use newspaper to put under the mirror to provide a perfectly flat surface so that no paint gets onto the front of the mirror.

As you can see on the correct side it looks like a fog of almost silvery powder, this is the side you will want to paint flat back.

I didn't over do it with the paint. One layer of a light spray will do the trick. Let it dry over night.

As you can see the one layer makes the mirror look new again and has no remaining fog or cracks.

I gave the front of the glass a good cleaning and proceeded to the next step of putting it all back together.

I used some painter tape to protect the back side of the mirror from scratches and to provide a surface for the spring to push back on while assembling / placing the mirror.

Using the plastic retaining ring I wedged the trim back into the metal housing.

Putting the mirror back into the housing, and mounting it on my old car you can see how nice the mirror reflects without looking foggy or cracked.