Which eye do you use?
- Thread starter Alex45ACP
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_N4Z_
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the eyes have it
i am a lefty and in 30+ years of shooting, rifle or handgun i've used my left eye. exception was the m60 back when i was playing army.
still rifle with the left, but i recently discovered i shoot a revolver far better using my right eye! and yes, i keep them both open. cross dominance i believe is the term.
i am a lefty and in 30+ years of shooting, rifle or handgun i've used my left eye. exception was the m60 back when i was playing army.
still rifle with the left, but i recently discovered i shoot a revolver far better using my right eye! and yes, i keep them both open. cross dominance i believe is the term.
First, are you sure you are right eye dominant? Focus at a spot on the wall or something. Hold your thumb out at arms length with both eyes open and align the tip of your thumb with the spot. Close one eye at a time. When your thumb moves you just closed your dominant eye.
As for one or two, use both, it is the only way to go. If you are shooting in a defensive/combat/ action sport manner try using more of an isosceles upper body index if you don't and rotate your head so that your dominant eye is closer to the gun, straight behind the sights. For example, I am left handed and eyed. If I rotate my head about 15deg. to the right it puts myleft eye directly behind the gun and occludes my right eye just enough so that my brain sees my left eye picture only rather than two bullseyes. another option is to put a piece of scotch tape on your glasses over your non-dominant eye. I usually don't have to do much of either, if I get the two bullseye syndrome I just blink my non-dominant eye once and I then regain the right picture. My one weakness is rifle scopes, if I look through one with my right eye while keeping my left eye open I see black in the scope.
The advantages of two eye are more visual input of what the gun is doing, depth perception for movement and ranging, as well as peripheral input for moving and finding things to shoot. Even for static paper punching, closing one eye will fatigue the muscles in the open eye causing lack of focus and fatigue. One last thing is to trust your inputs. Close range I see the target very clearly and vaguely see a gun. Farther out I see a pretty front sight and a vague target. Your eye can focus on one thing at a time. Best to try not to focus at all, let your face relax, recieve peripheral/secondary vision inputs and just shoot. Experience will tell you what you need to see and how much. The cool thing about shooting fast(which I obviously like) is first you have to be accurate before fast to succeed. After that,you go through stages where what used to look fast to you looks slow. I think that the limiting factor in shooting accurately quickly is how fast we have taught our brain to recognize visual inputs.
As for one or two, use both, it is the only way to go. If you are shooting in a defensive/combat/ action sport manner try using more of an isosceles upper body index if you don't and rotate your head so that your dominant eye is closer to the gun, straight behind the sights. For example, I am left handed and eyed. If I rotate my head about 15deg. to the right it puts myleft eye directly behind the gun and occludes my right eye just enough so that my brain sees my left eye picture only rather than two bullseyes. another option is to put a piece of scotch tape on your glasses over your non-dominant eye. I usually don't have to do much of either, if I get the two bullseye syndrome I just blink my non-dominant eye once and I then regain the right picture. My one weakness is rifle scopes, if I look through one with my right eye while keeping my left eye open I see black in the scope.
The advantages of two eye are more visual input of what the gun is doing, depth perception for movement and ranging, as well as peripheral input for moving and finding things to shoot. Even for static paper punching, closing one eye will fatigue the muscles in the open eye causing lack of focus and fatigue. One last thing is to trust your inputs. Close range I see the target very clearly and vaguely see a gun. Farther out I see a pretty front sight and a vague target. Your eye can focus on one thing at a time. Best to try not to focus at all, let your face relax, recieve peripheral/secondary vision inputs and just shoot. Experience will tell you what you need to see and how much. The cool thing about shooting fast(which I obviously like) is first you have to be accurate before fast to succeed. After that,you go through stages where what used to look fast to you looks slow. I think that the limiting factor in shooting accurately quickly is how fast we have taught our brain to recognize visual inputs.
M2 Carbine
member
Right handed, right eye.
Sometimes I'll practice left hand, left eye.
Sometimes I'll practice left hand, left eye.
Sunray
Member
Both of 'em open with a left master eye. It does take a bit of practice and self-training. Long guns get shot from the left, handguns in the right hand for me. I turn my stance to bring the sights closer to my left eye with a handgun, but both eyes are open.
"...everything gets blurry..." Are you trying to see the front and rear sight plus the target at the same time? If so, don't. You can't anyway. Focus on the front sight only. As daft as it sounds, your eyes will deal with the rear sight(you sort of look through it without looking at it) and the target should be a bit blurry. Then sit the black on top of the front sight.
Mind you, all this assumes both of your eyes are ok. If one is considerably weaker than the other, you need glasses. No big deal. All prescription lenses are impact resistant and aviator style frames(like Ray-Ban sunglasses) can be had.
"...everything gets blurry..." Are you trying to see the front and rear sight plus the target at the same time? If so, don't. You can't anyway. Focus on the front sight only. As daft as it sounds, your eyes will deal with the rear sight(you sort of look through it without looking at it) and the target should be a bit blurry. Then sit the black on top of the front sight.
Mind you, all this assumes both of your eyes are ok. If one is considerably weaker than the other, you need glasses. No big deal. All prescription lenses are impact resistant and aviator style frames(like Ray-Ban sunglasses) can be had.
Bobo
Member
Right hand, right eye.
Same as you -- with both eyes it's blurry.
Same as you -- with both eyes it's blurry.
Yeah I have bad eyes and the left one is a little weaker than the right. I wear contacts though. When I try to use both eyes and focus on the front sight, the rear sights get blurry and it's hard for me to really tell where the gun is pointed. I'll try practicing a bit with both eyes open tomorrow at the range, see how it goes.
ChickenHawk
Member
Both eyes open
About six months ago I started shooting with both eyes open. I'm right handed, and right eye dominant. It took some getting used to, but I am a MUCH better shot now, and I can shoot longer without fatigue since I'm not squinting the left eye all the time.
ChickenHawk
About six months ago I started shooting with both eyes open. I'm right handed, and right eye dominant. It took some getting used to, but I am a MUCH better shot now, and I can shoot longer without fatigue since I'm not squinting the left eye all the time.
ChickenHawk
1911 guy
Member
Both
I'm right hand and eye dominant, but am also a firm believer that shooting with both eyes open is the ay to go. I have much less eye strain, better depth perception and don't lose nearly so much periferal vision, which can be a safety issue somtimes.
I'm right hand and eye dominant, but am also a firm believer that shooting with both eyes open is the ay to go. I have much less eye strain, better depth perception and don't lose nearly so much periferal vision, which can be a safety issue somtimes.
Pietro Beretta
Member
I am right handed and find myself aiming with either eye. Recently I have been shooting with both eyes open. As of right now I shoot the same all 3 ways.
Umm my thumb moves with both eyes
Umm my thumb moves with both eyes
WarMachine
Member
I am right-handed and right eye dominant; and all my shooting is done with both eyes open. However, on rifles I usually find myself closing my left eye.
Mulliga
Member
Both eyes for pistol, all the time. Sometimes close the left eye for target work with rifles with iron sights.
tbeb
Member
I use one eye. I am right handed. I am left eye dominant.
dk-corriveau
Member
Right handed using my left eye with both eyes open.
Just got back from the range, fired 200 rounds of .45 and 200 rounds of 9mm. Tried using both eyes for a while but it just doesn't work for me, everything gets too blurry. I was talking to the range owner and he's a really good shot and he said to use dominant eye only. I'm just going to stick with keeping one eye open.
dk-corriveau
Member
Keeping one eye closed is fine if you are only target shooting or if a threat is only going to approach from straight ahead, but that isn't reality. By closing with one eye closed you severely limit your side to side field of vision. I recently made the change, it takes some time but you will become accustom to it.
shermacman
Member
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I am right handed, right eye dominant.
I practice with left handed, left eye; left handed, right eye, both open.
Sometime I will try both eyes shut.
Can't do any worse...!
I practice with left handed, left eye; left handed, right eye, both open.
Sometime I will try both eyes shut.
Can't do any worse...!
Right handed, shoot pistol using two hands, right dominant eye. Due to age related problems, my right eye can no longer be corrected to 20/20 vision. In Jan I started using my left eye to aim with open pistol sights while still using right hand dominant, two hand hold. Looks weird to others I'm sure but it works and that is what counts. When shooting my scoped pistols, I still aim with right eye. Still works OK with scopes.
Good shooting and be safe.
LB
Good shooting and be safe.
LB
I am right handed,left eye dominate. I shoot all action type pistol shooting with both eyes open.
I sometimes close my right eye for close in slow,target shooting.
I do a lot of dry firing to get my left dominant eye to know it is doing all the work.
I sometimes close my right eye for close in slow,target shooting.
I do a lot of dry firing to get my left dominant eye to know it is doing all the work.
GI Jane
member
left as I am left handed and my gun is also holstered on the left side and yes I shoot left handed too..
Darn lefties...
Darn lefties...
Sunray
Member
I should have mentioned that good lighting is important too. No fluorescents though. They'll wash out the front sight entirely.
Zach S
Member
Both eyes open. Left eye dominate, right handed for almost everything. Left handed for longarms.
When firing longarms weakhand, I have to close my left eye.
Some scopes give me problems with leaving both eyes open, others dont. Since I dont have a scope on anything (yet), I dont worry about it. Got to get to the bridge before I can cross it.
When firing longarms weakhand, I have to close my left eye.
Some scopes give me problems with leaving both eyes open, others dont. Since I dont have a scope on anything (yet), I dont worry about it. Got to get to the bridge before I can cross it.
Peter M. Eick
Member
Both, it gives you depth perception. I think it is really critical at long ranges.
Lennyjoe
Member
I'm with Zach S on this one.
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