Cross eye dominance, help a guy out

[Rustle in the bushes]

So i just did the eye dominance test and failed. . heheh it seems Im left eye dominant, right handed. Ive only been shooting for about two years but I hold the gun as a right handed person would. Usually close my left eye to get a decent sight picture- not sure if thats right though.


Anyone have any tips for wacky folks like me?

 

[Bobson]

My wife has the same issue. Interested to hear what the proper way to handle this is.

 

[LeonCarr]

I am right handed and left eye dominant and learning to shoot with both eyes open helps a bunch. I know I know it is hard and a pain in the butt, but much easier than learning to shoot left handed.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[Skribs]

100% of me has the same issue, so it's not as uncommon as one might initially think.

 

[mavracer]

Most shooters I know that are right handed and left eye dominate shoot handguns right handed and just tilt their head slightly. as for long guns most I know shoot left handed.

 

[56hawk]

What kind of shooting are you doing? For rifle shooting closing your left eye is probably the easiest thing to do but with practice you should be able to tune out the image from your left eye. With shotguns and pistol shooting competitions like USPSA, both eyes open and focused on the target will be the fastest. I would suggest practicing looking at the sights with both eyes open but only concentrating on the right eye vision. As long as it's just eye dominance and not a vision problem you should pick it up pretty fast.

 

[BRE346]

I've been shooting a handgun just over two years and during that time my dominate right eye has begun to get fuzzy so I've been training me left eye to do the aiming. I just turn my head a little and it works with either hand.

 

[fanchisimo]

I'm in the same left eye, right handed boat. For longer shots with a scope I just close my left eye, but when I'm shooting tacticool-like with my AR with Red Dot, I close my left eye about half ways. That lets my right eye take over, but I can still see mostly with my left, but I can't seem to get it to where I can keep my left eye fully open. That's just what works for me, YMMV.

 

[tarakian]

Same boat, for pistol I was taught to turn my head to the right until the sights line up. Simple, yet effective. For rifle, with my Eotech, it doesn't matter; with a magnified scope, I keep the left eye closed. Shotgun, no choice but to keep the left eye closed.

 

[1KPerDay]

I shoot handguns righty, long guns lefty. No problems.

 

[theautobahn]

I'm right handed and left eye dominant but shoot "right-eyed". I used to have problems when shooting pistol with two eyes open (and everyone once in a great while still do), but lots and lots of practice helped and I've pretty much "trained" myself to shoot right-eyed. It also helps that I have some scarring on my left eye so that even with corrective lenses, things are still slightly blurry when viewed with my left eye.

I shoot rifles right handed, although as a kid I shot both righty and lefty and can now shoot rifles relatively well on either side (this helps when shooting my buddy's Stag left-handed model as well as when taking shots at small game animals that are to my right while seated).

 

[highorder]

Most shooters I know that are right handed and left eye dominate shoot handguns right handed and just tilt their head slightly.

Same here. I actually keep my head up, and tilt the pistol 10 degrees to the left to align the sights with my left eye. Works fine.

 

[waktasz]

Don't turn your head, move the gun an inch to the left so it's in front of your left eye. So easy a caveman can do it.

 

[Rustle in the bushes]

hey good suggestions. I was reading on the net somewhere about learning to shoot left handed, no way. Theres only one task that I leave to my left hand and it isnt brushing my teeth.

SRSLY though, a wierd thing to realize after youve been shooting guns a fair amount over the last 2 years. Just did the test yesterday.

TBH when I started shooting it was actually much more noticable, only I had no idea what my problem was. Over time, as I shot more it seems ive either learned to close the left eye a bit to give it over to the right eye, or the right eye has trained up a bit.

 

[bomberbill357]

Try keeping both eyes open and tilt the gun slightly inboard (favoring your left eye). I've seen so very successful pistol shooters do this.

 

[SDC]

A common way for shotgunners to deal with this (since they can't twist their head because that would take their cheek off the stock) is to place a strip of mainly-clear tape over the lens of their shooting glasses on the dominant side, FORCING them to use the eye behind the gun; they'll still get a 3D view, but the body tries to adapt to the clearer view from the non-dominant side.

 

[jon_in_wv]

I think this issue is largely overblown for pistol shooters. I shot in a weaver stance most of my life but i've switched to isosceles the past few years. Either way take your normal shooting stance then turn your head a few degrees to your right so you are lining up your dominant eye instead of your weaker one. It only takes a little bit and the problem is solved.
Rifle shooting is something else. You can use the same technique but it tends to mess up your cheek weld. I just use my right eye and close my left . Most of my weapons are scoped now anyhow.

Sent from my MB855 using Tapatalk 2

 

[wkumatt]

I'm working through the same issues. Plus I've had damage to both corneas over the years, resulting in scars on both sides. I'm a walking public service announcement for safety glasses these days but its too late for me.

For pistols I move it over a little like has been pointed out already.

With scoped rifles I've been shooting with my left eye closed. However, as I get older I find that my right eye tires easily and gets blurry and weepy after a while. So this year I've been taking a lot of practice shooting rifles left handed. It works well I'm almost as accurate left handed as right handed now. I'm considering picking up a left handed rifle to see if I can fully convert my shooting to that side.

Sent from my PB99400 using Tapatalk 2

 

[jon_in_wv]

I tried tilting the weapon like some suggested. No thanks. I think it really messes up my grip unnecessarily when simply tilting my head accomplishes the mission.

 

[Soupy44]

What disciplines are you trying to shoot?

 

[murf]

in one of hickock45's youtube videos he addresses the problem of his left-eye dominance. from what i recall, he tilts his head to the right.

murf

 

[limpingbear]

Im right handed and extremely left eye dominant. Pistols I shoot righty and rifles I shoot lefty. Shotguns I can shoot either. The pain in the behing is finding a left haned rifle on the shelf. Gonna have to order one....

 

[waktasz]

in one of hickock45's youtube videos he addresses the problem of his left-eye dominance. from what i recall, he tilts his head to the right.

murf

He also looks like a goofball when he's doing it. I don't know why someone with this issue wouldn't do everything exactly like a "normal" person would, just with holding the gun moved two inches to the left

 

[jon_in_wv]

Yeah. Why just turn your head slightly when you can just screw up your whole stance.

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[waktasz]

Screw up your whole stance? Everything is exactly the same but you move the gun a little to the left of your face instead of holding it centered behind your right eye.