Does eye dominance matter if you're using a scope?

[doofus47]

Just saw a guy on a hunting show shooting a right-handed bolt action rifle left handed and using his left eye to sight.
My initial reaction was "Well, that ain't right!" Then I thought about it and I'm not sure that eye dominance matters if the shooter is using a scope. Sure cycling the bolt will use the (probably) non-dominant hand, but on reflection, I don't see any issues.
Who here shoots ambidextrous?
Thoughts?

[10-96]

For practical shooting such as yote control- it didn't bother me much. Granted, the first couple of times seemed all sick and wrong- but it doesn't take all that long to get used to being able to take a snap wrong-eyed shot. As for mechanics of the whole affair- the scope is looking where the muzzle is, so it doesn't care which eye is peeping through it.

[Sharkbite]

I do a lot of bi-lateral shooting. The gun doesn't care which eye is behind the scope

Now of long range/precision shooting i would get the rifle into my dominant shoulder for comfort

[Quentin2]

It's different for each individual and depends on the eyesight in each eye. I'm cross dominant and operate a camera or pistol right handed but use my dominant left eye. For a rifle with irons or scope I also shoot right handed and use my non-dominant right eye. It just seems natural to me, to another individual it may not work. Each person has to try for himself and do what works best.

[jmr40]

My brother is right handed, left eye dominate. He has found it far easier to learn to shoot left handed than try to retrain his eyes. Even with a scope you need to use the correct eye behind the glass. It is possible to close an eye with optics and get by, but that is a poor practice. Both eyes should always be open when shooting.

[Sharkbite]

It is possible to close an eye with optics and get by, but that is a poor practice. Both eyes should always be open when shooting.

I know A LOT of precision rifle shooters that would disagree with this

[YARDDOG(1)]

I'm by no meens a BR shooter though I close a eye for shooting scopes,,except for snap shots ; )
Y/D

[Bart B.]

I agree with Sharkbite, sometimes, but there's less eye strain with the aiming eye when the other one's also open. Which is why some competitive shooters put a blinder over their off-sight eye that stays open using both scope and metallic sights.

Some dangerous game hunters using 1X scopes do well keeping both eyes open; the target appears the same size in both.

When one eye sees a magnified target image overlayed with a natural one from the other eye, visual confusion happens and that's not good for accurate shooting for most people.

[thekyrifleman]

I was taught to shoot both eyes open, beginning in small bore in high school. Same advice from the collegiate coaches, SSgt attached to the ROTC insisted on it. Key was to "ignore" what the non aiming eye was viewing. Same applies to scope rifle shooting, the off eye, just doesn't see!! I have shot scoped rifles for over 50 yrs this way, any power range, and am considered to be an excellent shot. Has thinking changed over the years??....not that it would matter, this dog is far too old and has too many habits to change now!!

[iraiam]

Yes, it matters. For example, I am painfully left eye dominant, I shoot most scoped rifles right handed, If I shoulder one of my scoped hunting rifles and try to look through the scope with my right eye, I can't see through the scope at all until I close my left eye, A blocker on the left lens of my glasses also has this same effect without having to close my left eye.

I have fought this stubborn case of left eye dominance for 20 years and it always comes back, I have just learned to deal with it.

This was this reason I taught myself to shoot left handed, although due to a medical implant, the only rifles I can shoot left handed now are light recoiling ones, such as an AR15.

[Erno86]

The designated marksman rifle --- the Romanian PSL in 7.62x54 --- has an AK type, left side offset mount with a 4x Russian rangefinder scope. With my Tabuk {designated marksman rifle} AK --- in 7.62x39 --- which also has a left side offset scope mount...I can use my right hand dominant eye for right hand shooting, while also getting a good cheek weld.

The problem with that Russian rangefinder scope, is that you can't adjust the focus for the reticle --- so my farsighted right eye has the reticle looking a little bit blurry.

But my left eye is nearsighted, so I can see the reticle in perfect focus. But the PSL has more of a scope offset than the Tabuk, and you can't get a good cheek weld {shooting right handed} while using the right eye. So I use my left eye for my scoped PSL --- probably do the same for the Tabuk --- while also getting a good cheek weld.

[Creek Henry]

There are people that learn to walk tightropes over flaming pits, juggle 8 balls at once, memorize encyclopedias, and multiply 12 digit numbers. Eye dominance can be trained, it just takes consistant practice.

[Mobuck]

My Daughter went through an "eye dominance" stage before getting contacts. We ended up putting tape on her glasses. It worked well enough.

[hbhobby]

Eye dominance is developed before age 1. Hand dominance usually around age 5-7. And yes you can practice and overcome but it is easier to change hand dominance than eye dominanc. And you can almost never get 100% changed over with eye dominance the original will almost always be better (sometime s a little. Sometimes a lot)

[waveslayer]

Yes it does

[Pahoo]

You don't see this very often but I have a shooting/hunting buddy that has no dominant eye, or at least that is his claim. He shoots Bow, rifle, pistol and shot gun with both sides. Is right handed and again, says that his left arm stronger that his right. ....

During our classes, I do the exercise of determining eye dominance, with the students. It's surprising how many had no idea until we did the exercise. Then, we have had students that can't claim either eye. I'm really skeptical of this and recheck them. Sure enough, we could not tell. ....

Be Safe !!!

[alex0535]

Doesn't bother me. I shoot better left handed left eyed, but I put the rifle to the other shoulder, switch hand, and eye, and I don't worry about where the scope is. Focus is on using my non dominant eye to shoot and the other hand. I can keep both eyes open when using my dominant eye. Non-dominant eye shooting, I shoot better closing my left eye.

Just takes some practice. I am right handed for just about everything. But my left eye dominance makes me shoot guns and bows left handed. I learned to shoot left handed, it felt a lot more natural than right handed.

I wouldn't say I'm ambidextrous, but fairly capable with either hand or eye if need be.

[cw308]

My right is so bad I have to shoot from the left side, never caused a problem, it's second nature now.

[bamaranger]

My Dad, was cross dominant, and my boy is as well. Dad missed a ton of game, shooting off his strong right side, with a left dominant eye. I wasn't going to see my boy go through that struggle.

I caught bamaboys cross dominance pretty early, and started him with long guns from his left (off) shoulder, but using his dominant left eye, ,.... quite well I might add. He runs handguns off his right side,right handed, and just adjusts the pistol a bit over towards his left eye. The kids no slouch with a handgun either.

We have no left handed long guns in the house.

I believe that under controlled circumstances, deliberate if you will, that you can run long guns effectively opposite the dominant eye, either with a patch or by clamping the dominant eye shut. But in the field, as instinct and reaction take over, it is my firm belief that the dominant eye tries to "take over" and the ensuing hand-eye struggle will result in a higher percentage of bad shots than if the dominant eye were running things.

The other part of this is shooter age and experience. When I figured Dad out, he was in is late 60's and there was no changing a lifetime of habits (shooting off his strong, right side, with the off right eye). But the boy was easy to train off his off (left) side, with no habits to break.

[Rifletom]

Left eye dominant here also. Throw and bat a baseball right handed, write right handed and drink beer right handed. Handgun shooting is held and shot right handed but, I use left eye. All rifles are held left handed, using left eye. And all my rifles are right hand bolt[except levers]. Tried a left handed bolt rifle once, couldn't operate the damn thing! Down the road it went. Cheers.

[Creek Henry]

Also here is a technique that really works with shotguns. Shooting right handed, point your left finger at the target. Now lift your thumb up as you point. So, the front beads gets eclipsed by the thumb and it is only visible from the right eye. Bingo, problem solved.

[iraiam]

There are people that learn to walk tightropes over flaming pits, juggle 8 balls at once, memorize encyclopedias, and multiply 12 digit numbers. Eye dominance can be trained, it just takes consistant practice.

In many cases you are probably right, my left eye dominance is extremely persistent. At one point I left blockers on all my glasses for several months so my dominant (left) eye mostly saw a static nothingness.

Although I did not have any trouble using my right eye for almost everything for these months (including shooting 2X week), upon doing away with the blockers my left eye dominance returned like I never even tried to change it.

[Slamfire]

This might be of interest. The shooter is a gunsmith and an active small bore prone competitor. He is right handed but lost the sight in his right eye. I did not examine his rifle with the scope attached, so no idea how he did it.

[tahunua001]

not if you close your non sighting eye

[dakota.potts]

Slamfire, that is awesome! As an apprenticing machinist and aspiring gunsmith, I truly am blown away by that. As someone who is left eye dominant, I've wondered if you could do something like that. I usually just end up shooting left handed with rifles though. I've found with scopes I can shoot with either eye (although I get fatigue in the right eye after a while). After shooting rifles left handed for so long, that just feels better now.