Mirror Lok

This year at Progressive IMS Long Beach we had the opportunity to check out a new (to us) gadget that’s practical and functional. That phrase might sound funny at first, but walk through the vendor booths at most motorcycle trade shows, and you’ll find plenty of farkles and trinkets that are functional, but make no sense at all. (C’mon, cupholders on a motor-cycle?)

I think you can see why, out of the multitude of gloves, jackets and helmets, this particular item piqued my interest. It was very unique. It served multiple purposes on a motorcycle. It was also functional +. And the inventor was nice enough to send me a full press release prior to the show. 
I had to see this thing and find out more.

We headed over to the Adventure Out! space at this year’s show to find Al Jesse and Kris Flatt – the team from Moto Manufacturing. Adventure Out! is an area of the show that is dedicated to sharing the two-wheeled lifestyle by offering people a place to explore and learn more about motorcycles and accessories. It was the perfect setting for Moto Manufacturing and MirrorLok to make their debut.

The goal for this year was to get Mr. Jesse’s patent-pending invention out in front of the attendees and teach them about this unique little accessory. As mentioned in their press release, MirrorLok is all about “the MORE”. 

In the picture above, you can see how this nifty piece of kit works. It adds a lock to your bike to secure your helmet, jacket or even provides a leash stay for your doggo, according to Al. 
They are durable and constructed completely at his workshop in Arizona. Even the cables are sourced from an American company. The whole kit and kaboodle is made in the U.S.A. 

What the above picture fails to show you is the multiple other functions of MirrorLok. The “MORE” that the customer reviews talk about…
Let’s start with the main function of the unique design: Why not just have a helmet or gear lock somewhere else on the bike? It turns out, Al Jesse had a few things in mind when creating this gadget. 
He likes to invent tools with more than one use in them. MirrorLok’s mounting position pushes the mirrors on your bike out two inches from stock. This puts the ‘view’ in your ‘rear view mirror’ instead of giving you a nice picture of your shoulders or elbows like most stock mirrors do. 

Pushing your mirrors out a couple inches increases the likelihood of vibration. The unique poly-something-or-other (I’m not giving away his secrets here) inside the body isolates vibrations and keeps your new field of vision from looking like a blurry mess. 
The same feature also allows your mirrors to rotate out of the way in case of a fall. A distinct possibility if they now stick out past your bar ends. If you’re in California, you can rotate the mirrors in for tight lane splitting and rotate them back out again when things clear up. 

Remember my question: “Why not just have a helmet or gear lock somewhere else on the bike?”
Well, despite living in Arizona, Al had all sorts of riders and conditions in mind when he designed his product. Not only does it improve visibility and dampen vibrations – it also provides security while keeping the inside of your helmet dry! 
Most motorcycles have helmet locks available on the side of the frame. This basically holds your helmet in just the right position to plop a goldfish in if you happen to be caught in a rain storm. 
With MirrorLok’s aforementioned sturdy construction, it’s strong enough to support your helmet opening down, and provides a lock for it as well. 
The cable can also be threaded through your jacket arms and ALL of your gear is safe while you run in to the cafe for lunch on your next ride.

The MirrorLok comes with the right and left sides and will set you back about $135 USD for the pair. It’s machined aluminum and is only available in a black powder coated finish at this time. Al has other items on the way, but if you’d like to check out the website in the mean time, here it is:
https://motomanufacturing.com/
Facebook
Instagram

Thanks to Al Jesse and Kris ‘Kevin’ Flatt for meeting with us and making this possible. For an audio interview, click here.