I had my first experience early, during my lessons where I misjudged how I was going to deal with a lamp post. I was trying to stop smoothly and didn’t appreciating the weight/momentum of the vehicle when I lifted off to negotiate around it… Anyway, it didn’t end well for the instructor, as his side was now a bit windy and he seemed to be covered in shiny little crystals like an Angel! 
Since then though I’ve been clean, but how long is that likely to last? 
Once on a roadworks sign frame (without a sign on) which was pushed right up against the kerb and the other time was in one of Peters wagons on my C+E training, I spent too long looking where my trailer was going and clobbered the offside wide angle, sorry about that Peter! 
Hauling Beet around the back roads of Norfolk usually ended up loosing the plastic back cover on DAF’s. They just seemed to crack and pop out at the slightest touch of a branch.
However never seem to loose them on the Volvos.
msgyorkie:
Hauling Beet around the back roads of Norfolk usually ended up loosing the plastic back cover on DAF’s. They just seemed to crack and pop out at the slightest touch of a branch.
However never seem to loose them on the Volvos.
Those that runs on rural roads with hedges, where you’re almost using the constant brush of the hedge as a width gauge, are bound to score higher. I can’t deny that my time on class 1 is a lot easier than class 2, when it comes to mirror issues and pinch points.
As for why they have clip on backs that pop out, I can only assume they find the after markets sales too appealing over putting 2 or 4 screws in it.
DD999 has torn loads off the Tosco plobbers, they probably get em cheap enough through bulk buy though…
Only the once. A tree jumped out in front of me, nothing I could do about it. Mirror and window both survived, back cover didn’t!
hiding waiting for the day to end (10mins out yeah I know the day went perfect until this moment)a kin branch fell from the top o a tree and took the mirror and the arm of as well!! near new motor…was told to come back to yard (2 way radio)before mobile phones but told them I’m no moving till someone comes out and takes a photo /checks it out that I didn’t break it.to make it even worse when a foreman came out another branch hit his bonnet 
…ps “i stopped to water the wheels official story”. jimmy
First was funny … I was parked at the old Poplars transport café for the night and as you do after the evening meal I got quite drunk. I was sleeping in my Merc on the Fed Ex / Matchbox contract and during the night I heard some Scottish whispering and slight rocking of the cab but put it down to high winds, I woke up in the morning and opened the curtains to find not just the mirrors but the entire mirror mounts on both sides had been stolen LOL.
Second was quite funny also … I was heading north on I-87 in NY and the DOT site at Cifton Park with two other guys, I was driving the spare truck which was a very old Freightliner FLD because my Volvo was in the shop, ‘Follow us round the detour and up route 9 to avoid the check’ they said, so I turned off at exit 9 and skipped to US9 north. Now it’s common knowledge that most times there will be the one odd Sherriff or DOT officer sitting around the corner to stop the one who does this but a container hauler had tried first and had been stopped in front of us and as the lady DOT cop was getting out of her SUV the right side bottom / wide angle mirror dropped of right next to her, the look on her face was a picture LOL… I didn’t stop 
I find the poll a bit confusing: Ive ticked the 3 or 4 option as I assume its asking about weekly figures, if its daily figures I could get away with only one Id say.
On tapatalk so can’t see the poll but I’ve lost 2 mirrors.
First was years ago on a tipper. Met a morrisons wagon in the narrow section just above Lochearnhead. This was before the wide angle lens above the standard mirror, so was completely mirror less on the drivers side. I taped my shaving mirror onto what was left of the bracket. Then carried on upto Skye, tipped there before reloading out of the quarry near Corpach. I got a new mirror when I got back to Carlisle.
Second was in New Galloway. Met a white van coming towards me at mach 3 on the wrong side of the road. I swerved over and shattered the main lens on the nearside on a road sign. Try explaining that to the stobart fleet department. You’d have thought I’d just admitted ■■■■■■ a koala bear.
I also one smashed the plastic cover on the nearside mirror hitting one of those stupid over sized umbrellas outside the pub at Glen trool. Good job there was no one day at the table. In my defence I had to take evasive action as one dents timber wagons was coming towards me.
Those that said ‘Never’ in the poll.are either lying or have only been driving for all of 5 minutes, or both.
You know who you are
As for me …■■■■ numerous times. 
Used to break at least one a week in my first driving job on service buses round Ceredigion & Carmarthenshire but they are those metal backed ones held in by a rubber so cheap am easy to replace. I’ve noticed now with modern mirror housings they can take a very substantial clobbering without breaking.
Anyone remember those unbreakable ones that came out …in the 90s?
They never really caught on surprisingly, and phased out.
After a few months use they developed like a ‘glazing over’ type effect (a bit like a reaction to some of Carryfast’s posts ) and were difficult to see through, that was the main problem, but they could take a hell of a whack with little effect.
robroy:
Those that said ‘Never’ in the poll.are either lying or have only been driving for all of 5 minutes, or both.
You know who you areAs for me …[zb] numerous times.
That was my thinking as well Rob , plenty of billy bullers on here
I’ve had a side window in a Iveco smashed by the mirror as I had the widow half open and it was one of the plastic armed mirrors
caught a tree branch which swung mirror arm around smashing window but mirror was ok
robroy:
Anyone remember those unbreakable ones that came out …in the 90s?
They never really caught on surprisingly, and phased out.After a few months use they developed like a ‘glazing over’ type effect (a bit like a reaction to some of Carryfast’s posts
Its the same acrylic stuff as a horses stable mirror. This stuff is fine in the dry but when it gets wet it gets the glazed over effect as you describe.
.ebay.co.uk/itm/HORSE-STABLE- … 0982444951
5 for me so far, we do a lot of rural roads delivering pet food to kennels etc so plenty of places you really don’t want to send a van let alone a truck. 4 times tree branches on the nearside and once met a Tarmac tipper under a bridge and he took out the driver side and didn’t stop.
The plastic covers on Daf mirrors disintegrate on contact and despite suggestions of mirror protectors we have none so now I don’t bother having them replaced.
Aurri:
5 for me so far, we do a lot of rural roads delivering pet food to kennels etc so plenty of places you really don’t want to send a van let alone a truck. 4 times tree branches on the nearside and once met a Tarmac tipper under a bridge and he took out the driver side and didn’t stop.
The plastic covers on Daf mirrors disintegrate on contact and despite suggestions of mirror protectors we have none so now I don’t bother having them replaced.
The self coloured DAF mirror covers seem to be of a thinner more brittle material than the black type. They cost more too.
I’ve hit the mirrors plenty of times remember my first day out in a artic after passing I had about 10drops round Lydney forest of Dean and Worcester area I hit the mirror in several times on that day how I didn’t smash the n/s mirror or window I do not know but I can honestly say in the whole time I’ve been driving just coming up 2 years I’ve only ever broke one glass on a overhanging tree but I’ve hit the mirrors in I don’t know how many times lost count but the joys of driving big vechile on small roads it’s gonna happen even to the best drivers
Blimey, I have lost count of the number of mirrors broken! Always carried a spare glass with me anyway and moved the mirrors tight in to the cab, most of the local tipper hauliers fitted a metal shield to their nearside mirrors as they were always getting hit by tree branches between our quarry and the main A515. You had to run with the nearside mirror in the trees anyway to get past one another as incoming vehicles had to keep away from a shear drop on their nearside where the road had subsided but occasionally you encountered a large unseen branch in the dark which would take the mirror and possibly even its arm off! Strangely some visiting drivers refused to come back again!!
Pete.