Optometrist for Shooters?

[Protector]

I have reached that sad state in the aging proccess where I don't need to wear glasses ALL the time, but I do need to throw on the reading glasses for fine print. Well, now it has progressd to the point that I can't get my sights into the clear focus needed for consistent good shooting. My distance visoin is fine...but it doesn't help much if my sights are a blur.

I remember reading a couple of different articles in various gun mags about optometrists who specialize in glasses for us middle aged shooters with this problem. Of course, I have gone thru my entire 6 foot stack of back issues and can't find those articles again.

Anyone have experience, advice, information, connections, web sites to check, etc.??

 

[ClarkEMyers]

Try your current provider first but ....

Try your current provider first for a prescription and then get protective prescription glasses from a dispenser of choice - but Decot or the Post 4 folks in Lewiston Idaho might work if you want a shooting specialist to prescribe as well as dispense.

 

[CRUSHER]

Mt eye doc lets me bring my pistol in and he makes contacts for the excat distance i need to see the sights
You Might want to ask before bringing your gun in

 

[Standing Wolf]

http://www.championshooters.com/blinder.htm

http://www.meritcorporation.com

Even with good prescriptions, I find an iris helps increase my depth of field. I can't see rear sight, front sight, and target in clear focus, but can see front sight and target.

If your eye specialist is leery of your bringing in a gun, have a friend measure the distance between your glasses and the front sight.

 

[sctman800]

I had the same problem, even with bi-focals I got to a point where I had a dead space around the front sight. I was going to go with tri-focals but my optomerist suggested a progressive grind. This cured my front sight fuzzys, the progressive lets you focus on any distance by looking through a different area of the lens. You tilt your head to look through the bottom of the lens for near and the top of lens for far. They aren't a perfect solution as you do lose some perferial vision and take a little getting used to it. In fact my wife tried progressives and had to go back to bi-focals because she just couldnt get used to them. I have the progressives in both regular and safety lenses and love them. Jim.

 

[bogie]

Crown Optical, in the St. Louis metro area, doesn't want our business.

http://www.crownoptical.com/

[email protected] president

[email protected] marketing director

 

[dairycreek]

Dear Protector!

Get on the phone and contact the eye care specialists in your area. Ask them if they can help you with glasses for shooting. A long time ago my personal optomestrist was a shooting enthusiast and that was really helpful. Each time I had to change areas and thus eye care specialists I did what I am suggesting to you. That is, get on the phone and ask around. It has always worked for me.

 

[BobCat]

Try http://customsightpicture.com/ - he will send you a "kit" with frames, and lenses to try, and you send it all back noting the lenses that worked for you. He makes you glasses to that prescription.

I have no experience with this guy but a number of friends have suggested this route.

My progressive bifocals do not work well for me at the range. I wear my mid-range "computer" glasses to see the front sight. Been thinking about asking for the next new glasses, to have the "near" part go higher up the lens on the right (dominant eye) side. Might have to tip my head down to see far away, but sights would be in focus.

There is a good writeup about vision/glasses/shooting at the web page for Decot - I think it is sportglasses.com but if you search for Decot you will find it.

I hope this helps a little, anyway.

Purrrs,
BobCat

 

[entropy]

Some folks use Zeiss shooting glasses, (the ones you always see Ross Seyfried wearing in G&A articles) and put either an inverted 'D' segment in the top inside corner, or 'occupational' (also called 'welder's or double 'D') segments in them. The large "B" measurment (the largest measurement from the top to the bottom of the eyewire) allows for a good view of the 'sweet spot' in the segment. Unfortunately, it would be almost impossible to do with progressive lenes, as the blank size for such a lens (particularly in that frame) would be huge, and is not pruduced. (Plus it would put distortion in the very upper inside corner, and excessive distortion in the outside portion of the lens.) Doing this requires a good optometrist/opthamaligist who will take the time to work with you on this, as well as a good fitting optician to get the segments exactly where you need them to produce the correct powers. I have made several pairs like this, and I was gratifying to know I helped some avid shooters keep active in the sport. The down side to such glasses is that, except for the double 'D' segs, which can be used for some occupations, said glasses are expensive , and limited to use for shooting only. ( I do not work in the optical field anymore, so don't ask me who does them. But any lab worth it's salt should be able to make them. [don't expect them 'in about an hourâ„¢'] , even though that's where I worked)

HTH.