| cruser |
does any one know of a place to buy large frontsurface mirrors
im looking for a place that has prices posted
i cant find any that post prices for mirrors larger than 4"x4"
and im looking for about 2'x4' thanks |
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| mikejz84 |
| I believe that first surface mirrors are used in rear projector tv, so might be able to get on off of a dead big screen. But I am not sure. |
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| Crash |
| I will dispatch an email to my parental units to see if they have a source anymore. They bought some 3" X 12" or so ones a few years back for a some kaleidoscopes my dad was building. I think that they were kind of pricey but I'll see where they got them from anyway. |
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| ap0the0sis |
as mikejz84 said, its called first surface mirrors and this can be very expensive. I found a company that had all sizes and the quote i got for a 4" X 4" was about $30.00 so a 2'x4' gonna run you a few hundred dollars.
ap0 |
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| antfungi |
:idea:
I'm working on a projector project where I need front reflective mirrors too. I have an idea which I havn't put to the test yet but I have been researching.
I beleive you can use mylar film (this is an extremely metalic/polymer which comes in rolls, same stuff those shiny balloons are made of). You wrap this film around a frame and I think you can use a hair dryer to heat it and tighten it to make a very cheap, smooth reflective surface.
I had an older projection tv and they used a styrofoam type board wrapped with this mylar type film. I'm gonna try and reproduce it.
Good luck |
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| cruser |
hi antfungi
that sound ingenious let me know how your tests come out .
if you can give me an idea where to get some of this stuff i will try it also |
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| m00p_d0gg |
| What kind of mirrors do overhead projectors use? My 3M 9200 came in the mail with the mirror smashed. It's 6"x4". I need to find out where to get a replacement. I think im going to build and enclosure, but i wanna use the projection unit from the OHP that holds the lens and mirror in proper position. Anyone know of a cheap place to get what im looking for? |
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| ace3000_1 |
ive got brand new front surface mirror bud but its not 2' x 4' lol u can join the stuff but it has to be perfectly flat and the cut perfectly square, in the last projector i just sold i joined a mirror and it worked a treat.
Trev |
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| mhelin |
Sciplus 160 x 183 mm $3.50
Anchor optical
AX31025 149 X 171/260 X 6.4 FS MIRROR $12.00 is their largest one. You don't need 2' x 4' (600 x 1200 mm is huge) FS for pj. |
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| m00p_d0gg |
160 x 183 mm $3.50?
I need a 4in x 6in, which is about 101mm x 152 mm. Could I get this mirror and cut it to size? Are you sure this mirror will work? Seems too good to be true. First Surface mirrors are usually a lot more expensive. |
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| jcbklyny |
http://www.edmundoptics.com//IOD/Di...?productid=1667
$29-77.00 and well worth it. You can find better but you have to order in bulk or buy them surplus.
BTW... please dont try to compare these to the ones Anchor is offering. 2 totally different products. Not all front surface mirrors are created equal :) and the 4-6 wave measurement, is the surface accuracy in case anyone asks. |
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| Dnt32 |
I have these plates that may be used as FS mirrors they would need to be polished. If you are interested they are free, Just pay postage or shipping.
They are about 1/8 in thick.
I have about 150-200 of these plates.
Doug |
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| Ehuwiko |
| What supplies would be needed to polish them? Anyone know if polished aluminum is reflective enough? |
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| Dnt32 |
Im not sure what would be best but they are already smooth, I would think something like neverdull would work well I guess i could get some polish and try it out then post my results.
But as I said they are very smooth and very reflective now as is but I know they'd need polishing to get the maximum out of them |
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| jcbklyny |
Polished alloy is about 88% reflective... but it still wont do. You need a quality front surface mirror. If you dont wanna spend the money... dont design your box where you'll need a mirror!
How anyone can say 50-70 bucks is expensive... I'll never understand! |
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| cowanrg |
well, these are the same people that are spending hundreds on a project that you could just go out and buy a decent projector for the same price, or just get a tube tv...
| quote: | Originally posted by jcbklyny
How anyone can say 50-70 bucks is expensive... I'll never understand! |
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| jcbklyny |
| I totally understand your point and dont wanna go off topic here.... But I just see alot of people trying to turn water into wine and it's just not possible. You end up spending more money in the long run through trial and error. |
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| Ehuwiko |
| I don't actually need any, I was just wondering if it really was refelctive enough. If/when I build a box, I'll probably salvage parts from my OHP. It was one large FSM that is used to reflect the light upwards through the fresnel. OHPs usally have quite large pieces of FSM in them. If you can find old junked ones there's a good chance you could salvage some mirrors. |
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| jcbklyny |
| Ehuwiko has a good point. If you dont wanna spend the money on a new mirrors your best bet would be ripping them out of old Overheads. |
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| Dnt32 |
been seeing alot of those old polaroid instant developing cameras....look
inside...they have a nice front surface mirror and most ppl toss them in the
garbage....:)
i found this in another forum |
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| moltenrock |
| I'm sorry this question sucks, but what is a front surface mirror? How does it differ from any ordinary mirror, say, like one that you might buy at Home Depot or something? |
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| Sir_Vival |
| Most mirrors have two layers, which reflects twice, which equals bad. These mirrors are just one surface, if I'm correct. |
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| jcbklyny |
...yeah kinda :)
Regular mirrors are just glass with the reflective surface applied to the backside. So any light has to pass through the glass in order to reach the reflective material and then travel back out through the glass, which results in blurred images.
First surface mirrors have the reflective surface applied to the top of the glass resulting in a much cleaner image.
There are different coatings and materials that can produce better mirrors... but any first surface mirror is better then a regular cheapo piece.
Many people think mirrors degrade quality... this is simply not true. As long as your using a high grade mirror you wont notice a difference between direct projection and a unit using mirrors. |
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| ace3000_1 |
ill vouch for that, very true with a very good coated front surface mirror u shouldnt see any difference from a mirrorised setup to a non mirrorised setup, why? cos ive tried it and its true.
Trev |
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| jcbklyny |
| OMG... me and ace actually agree on something! :) What IS this board coming to! |
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| cruser |
| quote: | Originally posted by mhelin
Sciplus 160 x 183 mm $3.50
Anchor optical
AX31025 149 X 171/260 X 6.4 FS MIRROR $12.00 is their largest one. You don't need 2' x 4' (600 x 1200 mm is huge) FS for pj. |
the reason i needed that 2'x4' mirror was to fold the optics after the pj |
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| cruser |
just when everyone is happy and agreeing on things .... here comes cruser every surface you put infront of the light path degrades the quality of the out put be it a lens ,mirror or what ever ,maby not to an extent that you can notice but it does degrade the image "every surface absorbs light" period.
just thaught i would fire things up a bit :D |
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| jcbklyny |
Hey Cruser... Your right... but your setups use the split fresnel design. A fresnel lens in front of the LCD degrades the image quality more then any high grade FS mirror will.
So when using large format fresnels that can fit the entire 15" image you dont have to split them. I bought large singles and have used then both ways. I currently went back to the double behind the LCD with a FS mirror above the screen. My results are MUCH better! You just need large format fresnel lenses.
My point is I'll get a better image with mirrors then you will splitting fresnels and direct projecting :) |
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| m00p_d0gg |
| About 45 min ago, I remembered that my broken OHP has a big mirror inside of it (not broken, fortunately). I was thinking about whether or not it was a regular or FS, being too lazy to take a look. It escaped my mind, then I read here that it is! I checked, and wahoo! :D I no longer need to research FS mirrors or buy anything. |
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| jcbklyny |
I spoke to Bill (from the att.worldnet site given somewhere in this thread). His mirrors would be fine for this project. He gets 10x10" pieces from www.ocli.com and cuts them to size. OCLI makes optics for rear projection mainly. His prices arent bad at all... so for anyone looking for a supplier... check him out.
And NO you dont need a 12x9" piece... so his 10's will do fine. |
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| cruser |
my coment about the mirror degrading the picture was a joke
i have nothing against fs mirrors i just dont see a need for them |
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| jcbklyny |
| I know cruser... I didnt mean anything by that. |
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