Shooting With Both Eyes Open

[benschne]

are you positive that what you are calling your 'weak' eye, your left eye, is not your dominate eye?

You should be a detective!

I am actually left eye dominant but trained myself to use my right eye (While shooting right handed) a couple of years ago. That is a good point that I totally forgot about. Maybe that is why the both eyes open stuff is more challenging for me to get used to.

 

[Burk Cornelius]

I have a differnt problem. My eye doctor prescribed TWO DIFFERENT prescriptions for each eye. My left eye is corrected to see far and my right eye is corrected to see close up. I shoot right handed. Does this change anything?

BC

 

[xSMOKExLESSxCRACKx]

I am actually left eye dominant but trained myself to use my right eye (While shooting right handed) a couple of years ago. That is a good point that I totally forgot about. Maybe that is why the both eyes open stuff is more challenging for me to get used to.

You shouldn't have to do that. I'm also right-handed but left-eye dominant.

If you concentrate ON the sights you'll get double and blurred vision of everything in front of you, not good.

If you look THROUGH your sights and concentrate on the target, you'll see a clear target and double guns.

One of the two guns floating in your vision will naturally bring itself into alignment to your dominant eye.(Most of the time you don't even have to try and line up a proper sight picture, it's just there.)

The other gun in your vision will look "off", like your looking at it from the side almost.

If you're bringing the gun into alignment with your right eye, the left most gun in your vision should properly present a correct sight picture.

Or, if your like me. You will naturally bring the pistol up in alignment with your left eye and the right most of the two guns in your vision will be properly aligned.

 

[ProBusiness]

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I have a differnt problem. My eye doctor prescribed TWO DIFFERENT prescriptions for each eye. My left eye is corrected to see far and my right eye is corrected to see close up. I shoot right handed. Does this change anything?

i take it you are older and have lost the ability to see up close.

You and/or your dr. choose to have what is called 'mono' vision. instead of both eyes focusing up close and both eyes focusing far awary, you have one eye focusing close and one eye focusing far away - thus 'mono' vision. this is not natural but we can adjust to this and it works good for some people when they get old and their up close vision.

1st determine which eye is dominate. Since the dr choose your left eye for the distance contact, it is probably the left eye.

if the left if dominate:

simply shoot right handed but use your left eye on the sights, this will mean you will move the gun a little towards center of your chest to see the sights with the left eye. This does not work with shotguns or rifles.​

If your right is dominate, and your Dr. has the "close up" contact in this eye, then:

1. you cannot use you right eye to shoot a pistol (well you can but you can't see far out of it)
2. close your right eye and use your left eye (i know two eyes are better)
3. ask your dr to change eye has the distance vs close contact. he probably won't want to to this is your left eye is dominate.

Bottom line, if you do not shoot shotgun and/or rifle, no problem, use your left eye and right handed. if you do shoot shotgun and/or rifle you have some work to do.

 

[Burk Cornelius]

i take it you are older and have lost the ability to see up close.

...... it works good for some people when they get old and their up close vision.

Dude, that is just cold. You just called me old twice. If I was a girl I would slap your face.

Anyway, your are right about handguns. I shoot right handed through my left eye. I shoot shotguns and really don't know how I do it but I am pretty decent at sporting clays.

BC

 

[mmcbeat]

The scotch tape trick works. If it has been a while since I have shot, I still put a piece over my left eye for the few minutes.

I have talked to some people who simply cannot shoot with both eyes open. What ever works for you, use it.

 

[ttown]

tried that for yeears it's just not practical in the field. I took a BB gun and switched to shooting left handed about 15 years ago. Really shooting rights was never an issue with me it just changed my percieved lead. Now when I get tried I can really shoot either way but for shooting sports that your going though a few hunderd rounds I ended up with a fat lip and that's the real reason I switched.

I've never had an issue with a pistol I just move the gun where my left domiate eye take control of sighting. You really need to be able to shoot off-hand anyway. I practice both ways, hard at first but a good BB gun practicing mounting and shooting did the trick in no time. I may have killed the honey bees out of my neck of the woods

 

[benschne]

I have an update on my progress. I ended up shooting an IDPA classifier this weekend. I have tried to train myself to use the eye of the shooting hand that I am shooting with.

When I was to shoot the string that involves off hand (my left) only I attempted to keep both eyes open and line up the sights with my left eye. I'm not really sure what happened with my focus, but my sights were on target but the hits were far left. I think my left eye focused on the front and right on the rear, canting the gun to the left by a couple of inches.

Since I am still training on the both eyes open stuff, I CAN shoot more accurately with one eye closed but I am trying to stop this completely. To someone's point, the front sight is what I focus on.

 

[noslogto]

What are the downsides to shooting with the weak eye? I have always shot a long gun left handed, but my strong eye is my right.

Should I re-train to shoot long guns right handed so that I can use my dominant eye? Or is it just a very minor accuracy loss.

Handguns are no problem as I shoot right handed.

 

[Survival Tactics, LLC]

What are the downsides to shooting with the weak eye? I have always shot a long gun left handed, but my strong eye is my right.

Should I re-train to shoot long guns right handed so that I can use my dominant eye? Or is it just a very minor accuracy loss.

Handguns are no problem as I shoot right handed.

There are many cross dominant shooters out there that shoot rifles left and pistols right or reversed respectively. If you have no issues shooting with both eyes open then continue practicing good fundamentals and keep on keepin on.

The only major issue would come with shooting rifles with both eyes open. If you are using your strong hand and weak eye it causes a sight alignment problem due to the impossibility of establishing a cheek weld while using the cross dominant eye and will force you to close your dominant eye to establish a sight picture.

As far as pistols it just creates a unnatural head position just as if you were shooting with your weak hand.

As far a retaining yourself... I'd say no, but it is always a good idea to be proficient with your weak hand as well. My point is Train instead of Retaining and add another tool to your toolbox