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Old November 30, 2016, 11:31 AM   #51
xcc_rider
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Being left eye dominant, right handed and having double vision from birth I think I've found what works best for me and has given me a bit more understanding of how it all works than most people.

Handgun- I shoot right handed using my left eye with both eyes open
Rifle- I shoot right handed using my right eye and if the left eye image causes any problems I then close my left eye. (I found early on that shooting a rifle right handed using the left eye just wasn't a good idea and I didn't like shooting one left handed.)

Doing the above I shoot pretty well using both handguns and my varmint rifles.

I endured a childhood of patches, prisms and opaque lenses over the left eye to make the right eye stronger. It didn't work. Also had three eye surgeries to try to align the two "images". These improved the image alignment but the double vision persists.

Over the years I've learned to control which eye I use (I can switch eye "images" easily) and I use whichever eye image I need for shooting in different situations.
However, I can tell you from 63 years of experience (over 44 shooting) that when using your non dominant eye you will never have the same spacial perception (or balance?) or (for lack of another description) focal perspective as when you use your dominant eye.

The "you have to do it this way because it's right" theory doesn't apply to everyone.
Your brain chose the dominant eye. It's natural, instinctive and it likes to use it and as much as you can learn to use the non dominant eye, it will never serve you as well as your dominant eye.

When shooting a handgun (which could possibly be used in a SD situation) wouldn't you want to use the best aiming tool you were born with?
Besides, why make it harder on a newbie than it has to be. That's a great way to turn them off shooting.
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Old November 30, 2016, 12:20 PM   #52
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Just as I did - and probably most left-eye dominant and left-handed shooters - prior to the availability of left-handed bolt action rifles EXCEPT I prefer the left-hand bolt action rifles I have now.
Yeah being left handed and left eye dominant isn't the subject of this thread. Same as being right handed and right eye dominant isn't the subject. Most consider those situations "normal". The subject here has been cross dominance.

xcc_rider and others have said it well, it ain't a problem, just adapt.

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Old November 30, 2016, 03:25 PM   #53
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Yeah being left handed and left eye dominant isn't the subject of this thread. Same as being right handed and right eye dominant isn't the subject. Most consider those situations "normal". The subject here has been cross dominance.
Actually the OP raised the subject of cross dominance shooting a handgun. The thread quickly included the subject of cross dominance using long guns, scopes and iron sights. Obviously, cross dominance is relatively minor issue with respect to handguns. I am left eye dominant but I am right handed as I stated previously.
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Old November 30, 2016, 05:47 PM   #54
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Actually the OP raised the subject of cross dominance shooting a handgun. The thread quickly included the subject of cross dominance using long guns, scopes and iron sights. Obviously, cross dominance is relatively minor issue with respect to handguns.
That's been the discussion. It's also "relatively minor" regarding long guns as well, as has been explained here.

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Old November 30, 2016, 06:27 PM   #55
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It is your opinion that cross dominance is a relatively minor issue with long guns. My opinion is the opposite based on my experience. I am left eye dominant and my first shots left-handed with a single shot bolt action .22 were dramatically better than shots taken just minutes earlier shooting right-handed. A cover over the dominant eye may be fine for shooting paper targets but not when hunting with a shotgun or rifle.
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Old November 30, 2016, 06:52 PM   #56
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It's also "relatively minor" regarding long guns as well,
Your opinion and not supported by those who understand the issues; not by those who try to improperly adapt themselves to the gun instead of the other way around.
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Old December 1, 2016, 02:51 AM   #57
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I explained, as did others, exactly how cross dominant shooters can and do shoot long guns and shotguns with no real problems. Please explain why we are wrong, or specifically if you want, why what I said was wrong.

Quote:
My opinion is the opposite based on my experience. I am left eye dominant and my first shots left-handed with a single shot bolt action .22 were dramatically better than shots taken just minutes earlier shooting right-handed.
Seems you did not read what was said earlier. OK, so you are saying that you can shoot a rifle well even though you have a dominant left eye and a strong right hand. So you have no issue with it. What's the problem?

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Old December 2, 2016, 03:16 PM   #58
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I have carefully read what you have written in this thread. I wrote that I had the opposite opinion based on my own actual experience beginning over 60 years ago. I also believe hunting with a long gun and a patch over the dominant eye would be a serious handicap. I have also stated that the degree of dominance is an important factor, i.e., very minor cross dominance may not even affect the shooter's accuracy with long guns. In short, the issue is a matter of opinion based on the facts about the shooter.
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Old December 2, 2016, 03:38 PM   #59
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I also believe hunting with a long gun and a patch over the dominant eye would be a serious handicap.
Not to drag this out but I said earlier that hunting with one eye covered is not a good idea. I very clearly said that.I never advised it.

Earlier I said:

Quote:
For hunting, for sighting in a rifle or two at the range, and other situations whether with scope or iron sights it works to simply close the dominant eye and focus with the non dominant. Think of strong right hand and strong left eye, the rifle comes to the right shoulder. Close the dominant eye and look through the sights or scope with the weak. I know and have known members of SWAT teams (in Del Norte Co. and San Mateo Co. who use this method, one a police sniper.) It's older than dirt and works.

For extended sessions with rifle, as in bench rest competition or competitive accuracy matches, the "close the eye" method tires the eye too much and produces strain. A blinder on the shooting glasses or patch over the dominant eye works very well.

This is also possible in skeet. [Meaning that you can cover the dominant eye for long sessions of skeet or simply close that eye and use the bead front sight with the non dominant eye.]

It's difficult to stalk game through woods, or compete in 3 gun competition while wearing a patch or having the eye covered.
I also pointed out that when your looking through a rifle scope or iron sights over a rifle stereoscopic vision does not come into play.

So I'm still not sure what we disagree on except that my experience and the experience of others is that cross dominance is far from an unsolvable dilemma or a serious handicap to a shooter. Whether with handguns or long guns. We can adapt to it or adapt the gun to our needs. Left hand bolt actions as one form of that. I don't think of it as an "issue", maybe less trouble than a person being left handed. Maybe that's where we differ.

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Old December 2, 2016, 03:52 PM   #60
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Sorry - my mistake about the patch over the dominant eye when hunting. I agree the difference in our opinions may be much less than it has appeared. I can't do anything left-handed except shooting long guns and compound bows. I tried a right-handed bow before I bought my first. It didn't work so I shot a left-handed bow and bought it and four more over the years.
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Old December 4, 2016, 06:05 PM   #61
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Me too

I am right handed and left eye dominant. I have been able to train around it for the most part. I can shoot a handgun from either side and use the correct eye without trouble, All I can say is practice.

Where I run into trouble is optics, If I try to look through optics with my right eye, I cannot see through it until I blink my left eye. I have tried to train my eye dominance for years, but it always returns to my left eye. I have just had to learn to deal with it.
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Old December 7, 2016, 12:13 AM   #62
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Eye dominance is no big issue with a pistol... Just tilt/turn the head a little more, adjust left some with your arms, and use the dominate eye.

Some really well known darn good pistol shots are right handed and left eye dominate... They're easy to spot, if you look for them.

There is no reason at all to try to overcome wrong eye dominance for shooting open sighted pistols...

My wife and son are both "wrong eyed".

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Old December 27, 2016, 06:55 AM   #63
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I'm right handed and left eye dominate and have no problems shooting anything.
I do shoot rifles left handed
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Old December 27, 2016, 06:49 PM   #64
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I'm right handed and was right eye dominant , lost the sight in my right eye.
Now I'm right handed , left eye dominant.
Shoot handguns by holding in right hand and aiming with left eye , I may tilt my head a bit to the right but make no effort to do so. Have your daughter close her right eye while shooting , it helps. Some do much better NOT shooting with both eyes open....I always have done better with one eye closed or nearly closed. Now that one eye is blind....I can tell you that you don't HAVE to shoot with both eyes open , one eye will do the job.

Long arms I just shoot left handed. Trigger control with rifles and shotguns isn't hard to master , it's not like trying to write ! Haven't found any easier method than that .

Gary
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Old April 24, 2017, 04:06 AM   #65
Jeff22
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cross dominance

The issue of shooters with a cross dominant master eye is a frequent topic on this forum.

I'm right handed and have a left master eye.

I shoot handguns with an isosceles stance and I just slightly shift my head to the right to line the left eye up with the sights. Doesn't affect binocular sight or peripheral vision or any of that. It's not a big deal for most shooters.

I’ve instructed in firearms on and off at the local regional police academy since 1988 and in the ANG as a combat arms instructor for 10 years and as an LEO since 1982. It is my observation that about 20% of the population have a cross dominant master eye.

When shooting rifle, I fire from the right shoulder, close my left eye, and shoot with the right eye. Some people (10%?) can't independently close one eye or the other and leave the other eye open (often can't close the master eye) and I'm not sure what the solution is for those folks when they're shooting a long gun. Some people have a greater natural tendency toward bilateralism/ambidexterity than others, and some can fire off the weak shoulder with some ability, but most people can't do that.

I know a minority of instructors try to take a cross-dominant shooter (right handed -- left master eye, for example) and try to teach them to shoot left handed. That's worked well for some shooters and not at all for others . . .

I can't use occluded eye gunsights with my particular set of vision characteristics, and in my experience most cross-dominant shooters can't either, but I do know a few cross-dominant operators who can without significant difficulty. So, it's a little hard to come to a rule that's "carved in stone", particularly since a person's eye sight may significantly change over the course of their lifetime/shooting career.
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