what's the best mirror for a survival kit?

[jehan60188]

http://outsideonline.com/adventure/t...ev_150640.html

Obtain a quality glass signal mirror- the 2" x 3" size is sufficient and you will have a signaling tool that can get you rescued in a flash. We have tested such mirrors up to 27 miles in the desert and the record rescue with a glass mirror was 105 miles!
Avoid the plastic or polycarbonate mirrors as well as CDs. These scratch easily and don't have the distance capabilities of a quality glass mirror.
Students are often concerned that a glass mirror is too fragile but in all my years of using and carrying one, I've never suffered a breakage. I store mine in a thin bubble-wrap sleeve to be extra careful.
Here's the beauty in using a glass mirror- they are incredibly easy to accurately flash a distant searcher. Place the mirror up to your eye, tilt the mirror up towards the sun (not directly into the sun though!) until you see a small bead of white light. Make sure the surface of the mirror is not obscured by your brimmed hat or fingers. You may have to angle the mirror a bit if the sun is at an unusual angle in order to see the bead of white light. Once you have the white light, simply move it over to your intended target (plane, searcher on the ground, etc.) and flash the person three times.
A pattern of three is the universal distress signal, so use this whether your signal is three toots on the whistle, three flashes with a mirror, three flashes with a flashlight at night, or firing three shots with a rifle (out of harm’s way).

[Gnarly]

Not sure if this'll help,but the folks over on EquippedToSurvive Forum have had a discussion of same.
Picture: http://richard-fowell.fotopic.net/p65100683.html
and discussion: http://forums.equipped.org/ubbthread...=202810&page=1

~Gnarly

[Sharpdogs]

It also depends on the size of the kit. If it's a small PSK you may want go with a Tops dog tag mirror or a piece rearview autoparts mirror trimmed to fit your kit.

[Crco]

You want a one-hand aiming, retro-reflective glass mirror (the extra carrying weight over the plastic ones are worth it).

I recommend you read this entire article to get a proper education on the merits of a world-class signaling mirror. The link also offers suggestions on where you can best buy them.

Having had to use one of these glass mirrors recently for signaling purposes, I can give an accurate testimonial on how easy and effective these mirrors are to use.

Good luck!

http://www.equipped.com/phony_signal_mirrors.htm

[Caveman]

Take a google look at "hard drive platter".
The one I carry is 2.5" and is hard to scratch, much harder than a plastic mirror.
And can be used as a mirror, unlike some of these signal mirrors.
They can be easy to find in old hard drives.
Just a thought.

[Dizos]

Take a google look at "hard drive platter".
The one I carry is 2.5" and is hard to scratch, much harder than a plastic mirror.
And can be used as a mirror, unlike some of these signal mirrors.
They can be easy to find in old hard drives.
Just a thought.

That is a good idea. You can use the center hole for aiming.

[Crco]

That is a good idea. You can use the center hole for aiming.

Assuming you are well-trained at it and extremely accurate at aiming. You'd be surprised how many people over the years who have bungled the aiming process when using substandard signal mirrors and/or crappy aiming technique due to no or limited training. I've been in conversation with a number of people who've suffered from this in addition to search pilots who never ever saw the flashed signal even though they themselves were well-trained to look for such things.

[xbanker]

I'll stick my neck out and be the contrarian here.

"Avoid the plastic or polycarbonate mirrors as well as CDs. These scratch easily and don't have the distance capabilities of a quality glass mirror." The last sentence is true enough; but like with most things, there is a "rest of the story."

If you're watching ounces, wouldn't entirely dismiss a quality plastic mirror (granted, there are a limited number on the market).

Thanks to comments by Doug Ritter (www.equipped.org), discovered a small company -- Rescue Reflectors -- that manufactures and sells both glass and plastic. Arguably the highest-quality non-glass mirrors made (but on the moderately expensive side as plastic signal mirrors go). You can read Doug's comments here and here. I've read somewhere that Malcolm Murray, the owner -- who "hand-tunes" every plastic mirror and designed to control warpage -- claims efficiency equal to over-90% of a good comparably-sized glass mirror.

Here's a 2003 article in On Scene, The Journal of U.S. Coast Guard Search and Rescue (page 23) that talks about the mirror.

And here's an interesting 4-page article written by Mr. Murray about signal mirrors in general, published in an engineering-related publication -- Aimable Air/Sea Rescue: Signal Mirrors -- that's worth reading just for its detailed history and facts about signal mirrors, along with good selection advice. It's fact-filled and not a 'commercial' for his company or product.

No affiliation of any kind with the company other than having bought a mirror w/case about five years ago.