Posted: 8/13/2002 7:53:32 PM EDT
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I’m teaching my 14 year old about firearms. When she shoulders a rifle, she holds it like a righty, but uses her left eye to aim. She says that it is easier to see and focus on the target. Is this going to be a problem? Is there a way to train her to use her right eye? Anyone here use their opposite eye with rifle or handgun? Thanks. |
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My 12 year old daughter has the same problem They say that it is better to teach them to shoot left handed.. However all my guns including her Anshutz are righty.. We solved the problem by painting the left lens of her shooting glasses with Black model paint. Not a problem at all since then. She shoots right handed with her right eye just fine. Some day perhaps her right eye will get strong enough to take over....but I doubt it. |
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I don't, but I've seen people do it, and some were damn good shots. Just have her point at something with both eyes open and then close each eye to see in which view she is still pointing at the item. If her right eye is dominant, I would try to get her to switch, but if her left eye is dominant, go for it. |
| My wife is cross-eye dominant. It is a major PITA. A large percentage of woman are similarly afflicted. With a handgun it is no problem. With a rifle, we devised a cheap/easy/effective method of dealing with it. We took a pair of flip-up clip-on sunglasses and removed the right lens (my wife shoots right-handed). We covered the left lens with an opaque material. She flips it down when shooting which blocks the sight of her left (dominant) eye. With practice it works fine. Shooting a shotgun is less successful. We have given up on her ever being better than crappy at that. She doesn't enjoy it, so she won't practice enough to develop skill. Okay, so she's not perfect! [:D] |
| I did that when i was younger using a Daisy air rifle with a 4x15 scope. Did good with it. But when the real thing came along, it seemed difficult. I adjusted over time. Funny thing is, I never realized I used my left eye for aiming until I held a shotgun for the first time. |
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I'm right handed and left eye dominant. I never really realized it until a couple of years ago. I grew up shooting rifles and always closed my left eye when aiming and thought it was natural. Some people want to switch and start shooting left handed, but I think that would put me at a bigger disadvantage than what I'm at now. So I stick with what I've got. You wouldn't even notice unless I told you..... [edited to add: I'm also the best shot with a shotgun that I know. I outshoot all of my friends during dove season. You just gotta deal with the hand that nature dealt ya] |
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I would think that if you are making a good cheek to thumb spot well with your rifle,using your right handed stance a left eye aimpoint would be very hard to do. Since we aren't talking black powder here,there is no reason to close any eye,do you close one eye when siteing a pistol? If you don't shut one eye while pointing a shotgun or pistol,why would you want to with a rifle(unscoped)? Both eyes open best for me, point your finger at the TV with your left eye closed,open it and you will still be right on target. Coarse if you only have one eye,do the best you can. Bob [8D] |
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Quoted: Both eyes open best for me, point your finger at the TV with your left eye closed,open it and you will still be right on target. Coarse if you only have one eye,do the best you can. Bob [8D] I'll remember that the next time I dust off my old 8-bit Nintendo system (NES) and play Duck Hunt with the Zapper light gun. Or Mad Dog McCree and Crime Patrol for the Sega CD. [8D] |
| You need to shoot with both eyes open.That means left handed.Both of my boys shoot left handed because there left eye dominant,but right handed.Luckily I'm left eyed left handed.If you continue to shoot right cover the eye instead of closing it.If you close your dominant eye you lose a percentage of clarity and depth perception in your weak eye. |
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Quoted: Since we aren't talking black powder here,there is no reason to close any eye,do you close one eye when siteing a pistol? If you don't shut one eye while pointing a shotgun or pistol,why would you want to with a rifle(unscoped)? I don't close one eye when shooting a pistol. I simply move it left until the sights line up with my left eye. It is a very small shift. I have to close one eye when shooting with a rifle and a shotgun, otherwise I can't see the sights because my left eye takes over. |
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Right handed left eyed here to...Never could catch a ball as a kid. I was just the spaz kid last to be picked for any team. It took til I started shooting to figure out the issue. Now I just squint w/my left eye. It evens up the dominance of my left eye. Try Squinting, it works for me. |
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I am the same. Right handed, left eye dominant. The first tiem I picked up a bb gun as a kid I started shooting left handed and my Dad never made me change. So I have always shot left handed with long guns. If it were me I would teach her to shoot left handed. That way she can shoot with both eyes open as has been stated above. Rusty |
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Please get the girl's eyes checked by an ophthalmologist, not just an optician. It's possible that she is right-handed and has normal vision but is left-eye dominant. Or she may have an eye condition that you are not aware of. She may need correction in the right eye, or it may be something else. I am right-handed but have a lazy right eye. I shoot long guns left-handed. It's only a problem on bolt-action rifles. I shoot pistol right-handed but crossed over to sight with the left eye. It works fine for me. |
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Thanks to all for the responses. I think that I am going to teach her to shoot right-eyed using a block for the left eye, for now. To use her left eye she has to position her head too awkwardly. Quoted: Please get the girl's eyes checked by an ophthalmologist, not just an optician. It's possible that she is right-handed and has normal vision but is left-eye dominant. Or she may have an eye condition that you are not aware of. She may need correction in the right eye, or it may be something else. I am right-handed but have a lazy right eye. I shoot long guns left-handed. It's only a problem on bolt-action rifles. I shoot pistol right-handed but crossed over to sight with the left eye. It works fine for me. Her eyes are checked about 2 times a year by an ophthalmologist. She wears prescription glasses, an astigmatism in both eyes (like me). Again, thanks to all. I love this site. |