How to affix mirror to frame

[Bob Cooper]

I’ve built a frame for a mirror. The rails in the stiles are each about 3 inches wide by 3/4 of an inch thick and I have about a 5/8” inch rabbet on the inside edge.

My question is what’s the best way to affix the mirror so that it fits tightly up against the inside edge of that rabbet. I can tell you one way not to do it and that’s to try to use mastic. I’m thinking there should be some kind of clip because I’d rather not put a chunk of wood behind it as I want the mirror frame to sit flush against the wall.

Any suggestions are welcome thanks.

BTW Apple needs a woodworking lexicon else we have styles and rabbits I keep having to fix by hand.

[Doug Garson]

I think what you are looking for are glazing points.

[Bradley Gray]

I cut a stepped rabbet and add a 1/4" ply back.

[Mitch schiffer]

Rockler makes a clip for this. It is basically a rubber bumper that screws into the frame.

[Lee Schierer]

Place the frame on a flat surface with the back side up. Place the mirror in the frame. Apply short beads of silicone caulking every 3-4 inches all the way around the mirror between the glass and the frame. Make sure the beads are flush with the back of your frame. Let it set 12 hours or more so the sealant cures. The mirror will not fall out.

[Bob Cooper]

Lee....actually i think i need something to apply force to kind of pull the mirror and frame snug one to the other. Also i too thought silicone would be the right choice but the glass supplier said not to use silicone as it can eat away at the mirrored material somehow

[Bob Cooper]

stepped rabbet...hadn't thought of that but the frame is already cut and assembled. Cutting a second shallower but wider rabbet ...say 1/4" deep would work but seems tough now that everything's together.

[Bob Cooper]

Actually the glazing points seem like they would work quite well.

[Brian Tymchak]

How thick is the mirror? If you have a 1/4" or so of the rabbet left after installing the mirror, you could cut some stops and pin nail them into the frame.

[Bill Dufour]

Lee....actually i think i need something to apply force to kind of pull the mirror and frame snug one to the other. Also i too thought silicone would be the right choice but the glass supplier said not to use silicone as it can eat away at the mirrored material somehow
Gravity works well to pull things together. Put a can of paint on the glass if you need more gravity. Do not overload the glass and crack it.
Bill D

[Ole Anderson]

I like to use a very thin bead of clear silicone to bed glass. Apply it to the wood rabbit and it won't be contacting the mirror finish which is on the backside of the glass.

[Stan Calow]

How big is the mirror? For a large heavy mirror, I feel better with something more substantial than glazing points. I use the metal clips used for framing photos https://www.homedepot.com/p/OOK-1-8-in-Offset-Clip-with-Hardware-8-Piece-50227/202341145?MERCH=REC-_-pipsem-_-202341245-_-202341145-_-N, sometimes flattening them with a hammer to fit flatter. I do not trust mastic or any adhesive.


I do the stepped rabbet too. Eagle America makes stepped router bits for framing.

[Jim Becker]

Assuming you are mounting from behind, the rebate should be deep enough that you can use pin nails to affix wood strips to hold in the mirror. That's the method I use. Easy to pry out the strips if the mirror needs to be replaced but quite secure.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Given that this is going to sit flush on the wall - and not be something like a cabinet door that's subject to movement - I can't see any reason to use more than glazier's push points.

Heck, I bet duct tape would even work for this.

Next time around - the push points, deeper rabbet and wood pieces pinned in are the way to go.

[Jacques Gagnon]

Bob,

Part of the answer depends on the height/thickness of the lip you want to have. When the combination of lip/frame thickness allows, my approach mirrors :D Bradley's method. A stepped rabbet to which I add a thin (3/16 inch) wooden strip to hold the glass / mirror. That strip is held in place with two or three screws per side. I often rout key holes combined with a slot at the router table on the back so that the frame sits perfectly flat on the wall.

[Mike Kees]

I am on my way to my shop ,think I am going to put a blob of silicone on my mirror just to see if it eats the finish. I have used silicone to install mirrors directly to walls with great results but that is the backside. If you already have the rabbet cut just make a 1/4'' thick piece like one inch wide and overlay the mirror and pin in place. you will not notice the standoff from the wall, be kind of a shadow box effect.

[Michael Drew]

Place the frame on a flat surface with the back side up. Place the mirror in the frame. Apply short beads of silicone caulking every 3-4 inches all the way around the mirror between the glass and the frame. Make sure the beads are flush with the back of your frame. Let it set 12 hours or more so the sealant cures. The mirror will not fall out.


Lee....actually i think i need something to apply force to kind of pull the mirror and frame snug one to the other. Also i too thought silicone would be the right choice but the glass supplier said not to use silicone as it can eat away at the mirrored material somehow

I built two frames for mirrors for my home about 20 years ago. They are in two the bathrooms. I did pretty much what Lee describes, with the addition of adding small dabs of silicone between the mirror face and the rabbit. Sizes are 36X36 and 36X60. Twenty or so years later, and I do not see any defects on the mirrors that you describe.

I use this same method on some cabinet doors with glass panels.

[Edwin Santos]

Use one of these. $12.50 at Lee Valley.

For light items a few brads on each side will do. For heavy items you can use more of them.
Press in the brad at a slight downward angle and it will naturally push the mirror tight.

473158

[Darrell Bade]

I built a 3" wide 1 1/2" thick oak frame to go around a 32"x72" mirror that was 1/4" thick. Luckily is just leans in the corner, would have been a heavy mother to hang. I used glazier points and then ran a bead of slicone around it. Then just because that mirror was heavy I took some metal plates about 2" square and screwed to the frame in 4 places just as a "safety" since it was not hanging flat on a wall.

[Tom M King]

I have a couple of really old Red Devil point drivers. This is a ridiculously priced copy. The Red Devils look just like this one, but they're red. You can find them on ebay sometimes, but I expect they're all priced up there.

https://www.dkhardware.com/diamond-point-driver-for-1-points-pd9-product-41573.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping&utm_campaign=free_listings&gclid=Cj0KCQiAuvOPBhDXARIsAKzLQ8GnlSKo0STyHsAhXmvF 2bcCAFvkiR6NguK5rr1MnhMdhSP-RhWqF8caArEIEALw_wcB

[Bob Cooper]

ok...here's what worked for me and it was simple, cheap and helped pull the frame and mirror together. It was the cheap glazing point available for $2.50 at HD. Plus if i ever need to get the glass out they are removable. Thanks for all the help. Here's a couple pictures -- there are 2 mirrors and they are pretty heavy. The biggest one is about 40x60 i'd guess....hmmm may need to check my subscription as i don't see the manage attachments option

[Bob Cooper]

hmm...nope, still a contributor.