One eye vs. two?

nanney1 · December 16, 2017, 04:06 PM

Grew up shooting BB and pellet rifles and a bb pistol shooting with my left eye closed.

Now that I'm shooting my Shield, I have been keeping my left eye closed, but I'm dry firing trying to use two eyes.

If I try to sight with both eyes, I can't get a clear fix on the sights or what I'm aiming at. However, if I move my left eye brow down, I can still get a good sight with my right eye. Kind of like The Rock but without raising my right eye brow up

I'm not sure this is really any better than one eye closed, but maybe.

Hawg · December 16, 2017, 04:10 PM

If I'm aiming I have to have the left eye shut. If I'm point shooting I keep them both open.

nanney1 · December 16, 2017, 04:14 PM

I'm only shooting in the 5-7 yard range, 10 max.

BigJimP · December 16, 2017, 11:46 PM

Do whatever works best for you !

....for me its 2 eyes open, but I have been at this for about 60 yrs...

NoSecondBest · December 17, 2017, 04:09 AM

You can "train your brain" to use two eyes open if you stick with it for a while. It doesn't take long. It's called neuro-adaptation. As long as your dominant eye is on the same side as your dominant hand you'll adapt fairly quickly. The real problem arises when your dominant eye and dominant hand are different. That won't work very well.

jmr40 · December 17, 2017, 05:36 AM

Two eyes open are always best with any firearm, any type of sights. But some people struggle with it. Old habits can be hard to break.

If you are struggling your eyes might be cross dominate. Most right handed peoples right eye is the dominate eye. But a few people will be right handed, but left eye dominate. It makes it pretty hard to shoot a rifle or shotgun without closing the off side eye if they are. But since most handguns are more centered it shouldn't be too hard to learn how to shoot a handgun with both open for anyone. Keep practicing with the dry firing.

1stmar · December 17, 2017, 05:59 AM

Two eyes open is better for specific reasons but not necessarily target shooting. Though it will make going back and forth from one eye to two more difficult. The reasons it is better are two fold, it gives you a better field of view for action shooting where you are swinging from target to target or where the vision in your dominant eye is not superior to that of having both eyes open.

jmhyer · December 17, 2017, 04:39 PM

Sure sounds like you are left-eye-dominant.

**JohnKSa** · December 17, 2017, 04:46 PM

If you can shoot with both eyes open, there are a number of benefits to doing so. If it doesn't work for you (probably due to your dominant eye being on the wrong side compared to your dominant hand or, perhaps due to having eye dominance that is weak) then stick with what works.

My eye dominance is weak and when I get tired, or lighting conditions are poor, I notice that I start to have trouble shooting with both eyes open. When that happens, I just switch to shooting with only one eye open.

Fjblair · December 17, 2017, 04:49 PM

I only use both eyes with shotguns, clays and birds.

Lohman446 · December 17, 2017, 05:25 PM

Cross eye dominant and I struggle if I do not keep both open. I have never been a bullseye shooter but as I get older the more I find trying to get the "perfect" sight picture the less accurate I am

cw308 · December 18, 2017, 09:22 AM

I'm right handed my right eye has poor vision , I shoot with both eyes open . Handgun I shoot right handed , rifle I shoot left .Not a problem for me. I could see if both eyes are good and your left eye dominant being a right hand shooter , it would be hard to adjust . Wouldn't the dominant eye always be the aimer.

T. O'Heir · December 18, 2017, 02:00 PM

"...clear fix on the sights or..." Should be the front sight. However, the fact that moving an eye brow changes the focus, you might be having some vision issues. When was your last eye test?
"...Handgun I shoot right handed, rifle I shoot left..." The way big, hairy, men were intended to shoot from horseback. But it's your sabre in your right hand and either your carbine or revolver in the left. snicker.
"...the dominant eye always be..." Nope. It's really a depth perception thing.
"...swinging from target to target..." That's eyes on the target and trusting your eye/hand coordination.

2damnold4this · December 18, 2017, 04:58 PM

Quote:

If you are struggling your eyes might be cross dominate. Most right handed peoples right eye is the dominate eye. But a few people will be right handed, but left eye dominate.

I was thinking the same thing.

**JohnKSa** · December 19, 2017, 03:39 AM

Quote:

Wouldn't the dominant eye always be the aimer.

Yes, ultimately, if you want things to work properly with both eyes open, the dominant eye needs to be the eye that is aligned with the sights and the target.

Otherwise you'll see two sets of sights, and/or two sets of targets and that doesn't work very well.

1stmar · December 19, 2017, 03:50 AM

T oheir - swinging from target to target is more than trusting eye hand coordination. Its having better peripheral vision which you get w two eyes open.

arquebus357 · December 20, 2017, 09:09 AM

I find shooting skeery, so I keep both eyes closed.

JJ45 · December 23, 2017, 12:43 PM

I am cross eye dominant, right handed, left eyed. I shoot handguns with both eyes open but usually hafta drift a rear sight to the right to hit center of what I am aiming at...

this is also true with tangent or post front, notch rear, iron sights with rifles...with a peep sighted rifle I generally squint my dominant left eye and peer through the rear aperture with my right eye.

Works for me and I shoot well, I shot an awful long time before I was "educated" on the evils of shooting left eyed and right handed and it had never been a handicap. I guess you could say I was blissfully ignorant

I don't pay any attention to the experts who say I'm doing it wrong, etc....but as usual, opinions vary.

RUT · December 23, 2017, 05:02 PM

>>I only use both eyes with shotguns, clays and birds.<<

Same here, but I can't seem to carry that over to pistol shooting.

Oldman11 · January 1, 2018, 08:07 AM

My grandfather taught me both eyes were better and it’s been that way for over 70 years. Pistols,revolvers or shotguns,all three,both eyes open.

chaim · January 1, 2018, 12:42 PM

I used to aim with just one eye open. While I shoot for fun, it is nearly always in the back of my mind that I might someday need to use a gun for self-defense. So, some years ago I decided to train to shoot with both eyes open. It doesn't make aiming easier, it is to provide the full field of vision in case the attacker isn't alone and someone is coming at me from my left. I want to be able to see them coming. That said, I do sometimes revert to old habits and while I'm shooting, sometimes my left eye ends up closing. I find it has little to no effect on my aim (only my peripheral vision). Like JohnKSa said, even when you aim with both eyes open, you are still primarily relying on your dominant eye to do the actual aiming. Line the sights up with your dominant eye, have the other open in order to provide a full field of view.

rodfac · January 1, 2018, 07:02 PM

Front Sight, the Nevada based small arms training school, teaches to close one eye. The idea being, this allows concentration on the front sight post. Can't say if it does or not, as I've been watching the 'front sight post' for over 50 years now, so I'm accustomed to that level of concentration.

When I shoot, at least slow fire, I do close one eye, per the instruction out there in Nevada; but on our family farm, we have pics of me shooting at speed drawing from the holster, and both eyes are open. Rod

RETG · January 3, 2018, 07:48 PM

Both eyes open to allow for peripheral vision on both sides. That's what I was taught; that what I still do.

jimbob86 · January 3, 2018, 08:24 PM

I came to handguns late in life ..... I started long guns first, as a little kid first BB guns then .22's and shotguns .... I was taught by my father and maternal grandfather and family friends .... and all of them taught using just one eye .... whichever eye felt better .... I'm pretty sure they knew nothing of eye dominance per se ..... but they told you to shoot however you felt comfortable, do whatever worked , and keep shooting until you got good ..... my own father is left handed, but shoots rifles and shotguns right handed ..... bats left, etc.... shooting right handed works better, because that's the way he learned .... maybe by emulation .... later, I learned that shotgunners are supposed to keep both eyes open ... worked on doing that .... but old habits are hard to break (muscle memory is as expensive to uninstall as to install in the first place) .... sometimes i do, sometimes I don't .... but I really don't shoot enough shotgun to worry about it anymore ....

.... anyhoo, when I started with handguns, I was taught correctly- both eyes open, Front Sight, Press ..... and again .... old habits made it difficult, .... but I got it down .... and then I started in with "Scout" rifles and .... both eyes open is faster, and precise enough for any shot that demands utmost speed, IME .... in the last year, though ...... astigmatism in my left eye has reared it's ugly head .... it may not be many years before the question is moot .....

bassJAM1 · January 5, 2018, 12:30 PM

nanney1 do you know which of your eyes is dominant? I grew up shooting left handed, and found I always needed to close my right eye to be focus on my sights. When I bought my first bow in my teens, I learned about eye dominance and that I was right eye dominant. I slowly forced myself to learn to shoot right handed, and now it's completely natural for me, and I find it's actually easier to shoot with both eyes open than to shut one eye.

December 16, 2017, 04:06 PM	#1
nanney1 Senior Member Join Date: November 24, 2017 Posts: 239	One eye vs. two? Grew up shooting BB and pellet rifles and a bb pistol shooting with my left eye closed. Now that I'm shooting my Shield, I have been keeping my left eye closed, but I'm dry firing trying to use two eyes. If I try to sight with both eyes, I can't get a clear fix on the sights or what I'm aiming at. However, if I move my left eye brow down, I can still get a good sight with my right eye. Kind of like The Rock but without raising my right eye brow up I'm not sure this is really any better than one eye closed, but maybe.

December 17, 2017, 05:36 AM	#6
jmr40 Senior Member Join Date: June 15, 2008 Location: Georgia Posts: 10,808	Two eyes open are always best with any firearm, any type of sights. But some people struggle with it. Old habits can be hard to break. If you are struggling your eyes might be cross dominate. Most right handed peoples right eye is the dominate eye. But a few people will be right handed, but left eye dominate. It makes it pretty hard to shoot a rifle or shotgun without closing the off side eye if they are. But since most handguns are more centered it shouldn't be too hard to learn how to shoot a handgun with both open for anyone. Keep practicing with the dry firing. __________________ "If you're still doing things the same way you were doing them 10 years ago, you're doing it wrong" Winston Churchill

December 17, 2017, 04:46 PM	#9
JohnKSa Staff Join Date: February 12, 2001 Location: DFW Area Posts: 24,986	If you can shoot with both eyes open, there are a number of benefits to doing so. If it doesn't work for you (probably due to your dominant eye being on the wrong side compared to your dominant hand or, perhaps due to having eye dominance that is weak) then stick with what works. My eye dominance is weak and when I get tired, or lighting conditions are poor, I notice that I start to have trouble shooting with both eyes open. When that happens, I just switch to shooting with only one eye open. __________________ Do you know about the TEXAS State Rifle Association?

December 18, 2017, 02:00 PM	#13
T. O'Heir Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 12,453	"...clear fix on the sights or..." Should be the front sight. However, the fact that moving an eye brow changes the focus, you might be having some vision issues. When was your last eye test? "...Handgun I shoot right handed, rifle I shoot left..." The way big, hairy, men were intended to shoot from horseback. But it's your sabre in your right hand and either your carbine or revolver in the left. snicker. "...the dominant eye always be..." Nope. It's really a depth perception thing. "...swinging from target to target..." That's eyes on the target and trusting your eye/hand coordination. __________________ Spelling and grammar count!

December 23, 2017, 05:02 PM	#19
RUT Senior Member Join Date: November 17, 2004 Location: NH, USA Posts: 812	>>I only use both eyes with shotguns, clays and birds.<< Same here, but I can't seem to carry that over to pistol shooting. __________________ Liberals don't care what you do... as long as it's mandated.

December 16, 2017, 04:10 PM	#2
Hawg Senior Member Join Date: September 8, 2007 Location: Mississippi Posts: 16,189	If I'm aiming I have to have the left eye shut. If I'm point shooting I keep them both open.

December 16, 2017, 04:14 PM	#3
nanney1 Senior Member Join Date: November 24, 2017 Posts: 239	I'm only shooting in the 5-7 yard range, 10 max.

December 16, 2017, 11:46 PM	#4
BigJimP Senior Member Join Date: February 23, 2005 Posts: 13,195	Do whatever works best for you ! ....for me its 2 eyes open, but I have been at this for about 60 yrs...

December 17, 2017, 04:09 AM	#5
NoSecondBest Senior Member Join Date: December 7, 2009 Location: Western New York Posts: 2,736	You can "train your brain" to use two eyes open if you stick with it for a while. It doesn't take long. It's called neuro-adaptation. As long as your dominant eye is on the same side as your dominant hand you'll adapt fairly quickly. The real problem arises when your dominant eye and dominant hand are different. That won't work very well.

December 17, 2017, 05:59 AM	#7
1stmar Senior Member Join Date: March 21, 2012 Location: Connecticut Posts: 2,378	Two eyes open is better for specific reasons but not necessarily target shooting. Though it will make going back and forth from one eye to two more difficult. The reasons it is better are two fold, it gives you a better field of view for action shooting where you are swinging from target to target or where the vision in your dominant eye is not superior to that of having both eyes open.

December 17, 2017, 04:39 PM	#8
jmhyer Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2012 Location: MS - USA Posts: 899	Sure sounds like you are left-eye-dominant.

December 17, 2017, 04:49 PM	#10
Fjblair Member Join Date: January 3, 2013 Posts: 53	I only use both eyes with shotguns, clays and birds.

December 17, 2017, 05:25 PM	#11
Lohman446 Senior Member Join Date: April 22, 2016 Posts: 2,192	Cross eye dominant and I struggle if I do not keep both open. I have never been a bullseye shooter but as I get older the more I find trying to get the "perfect" sight picture the less accurate I am

December 18, 2017, 09:22 AM	#12
cw308 Senior Member Join Date: September 2, 2010 Location: Plainview , Long Island NY Posts: 3,863	I'm right handed my right eye has poor vision , I shoot with both eyes open . Handgun I shoot right handed , rifle I shoot left .Not a problem for me. I could see if both eyes are good and your left eye dominant being a right hand shooter , it would be hard to adjust . Wouldn't the dominant eye always be the aimer.

December 19, 2017, 03:50 AM	#16
1stmar Senior Member Join Date: March 21, 2012 Location: Connecticut Posts: 2,378	T oheir - swinging from target to target is more than trusting eye hand coordination. Its having better peripheral vision which you get w two eyes open.

December 20, 2017, 09:09 AM	#17
arquebus357 Senior Member Join Date: December 19, 2016 Location: Atlanta, Georgia area Posts: 455	I find shooting skeery, so I keep both eyes closed.

December 23, 2017, 12:43 PM	#18
JJ45 Senior Member Join Date: June 8, 2015 Posts: 908	I am cross eye dominant, right handed, left eyed. I shoot handguns with both eyes open but usually hafta drift a rear sight to the right to hit center of what I am aiming at... this is also true with tangent or post front, notch rear, iron sights with rifles...with a peep sighted rifle I generally squint my dominant left eye and peer through the rear aperture with my right eye. Works for me and I shoot well, I shot an awful long time before I was "educated" on the evils of shooting left eyed and right handed and it had never been a handicap. I guess you could say I was blissfully ignorant I don't pay any attention to the experts who say I'm doing it wrong, etc....but as usual, opinions vary.

January 1, 2018, 08:07 AM	#20
Oldman11 Member Join Date: April 28, 2016 Posts: 77	My grandfather taught me both eyes were better and it’s been that way for over 70 years. Pistols,revolvers or shotguns,all three,both eyes open.

January 1, 2018, 12:42 PM	#21
chaim Senior Member Join Date: December 11, 2001 Location: Maryland Posts: 2,095	I used to aim with just one eye open. While I shoot for fun, it is nearly always in the back of my mind that I might someday need to use a gun for self-defense. So, some years ago I decided to train to shoot with both eyes open. It doesn't make aiming easier, it is to provide the full field of vision in case the attacker isn't alone and someone is coming at me from my left. I want to be able to see them coming. That said, I do sometimes revert to old habits and while I'm shooting, sometimes my left eye ends up closing. I find it has little to no effect on my aim (only my peripheral vision). Like JohnKSa said, even when you aim with both eyes open, you are still primarily relying on your dominant eye to do the actual aiming. Line the sights up with your dominant eye, have the other open in order to provide a full field of view.

January 1, 2018, 07:02 PM	#22
rodfac Senior Member Join Date: January 22, 2005 Location: Kentucky Posts: 3,623	Front Sight, the Nevada based small arms training school, teaches to close one eye. The idea being, this allows concentration on the front sight post. Can't say if it does or not, as I've been watching the 'front sight post' for over 50 years now, so I'm accustomed to that level of concentration. When I shoot, at least slow fire, I do close one eye, per the instruction out there in Nevada; but on our family farm, we have pics of me shooting at speed drawing from the holster, and both eyes are open. Rod __________________ Cherish our flag, honor it, defend it in word and deed, or get the hell out. Our Bill of Rights has been paid for by heros in uniform and shall not be diluted by misguided governmental social experiments. We owe this to our children, anything less is cowardice. USAF FAC, 5th Spl Forces, Vietnam Vet '69-'73.

January 3, 2018, 07:48 PM	#23
RETG Senior Member Join Date: September 22, 2009 Location: Somewhere in Idaho, near WY Posts: 507	Both eyes open to allow for peripheral vision on both sides. That's what I was taught; that what I still do.

January 3, 2018, 08:24 PM	#24
jimbob86 Junior member Join Date: October 4, 2007 Location: All the way to NEBRASKA Posts: 8,722	I came to handguns late in life ..... I started long guns first, as a little kid first BB guns then .22's and shotguns .... I was taught by my father and maternal grandfather and family friends .... and all of them taught using just one eye .... whichever eye felt better .... I'm pretty sure they knew nothing of eye dominance per se ..... but they told you to shoot however you felt comfortable, do whatever worked , and keep shooting until you got good ..... my own father is left handed, but shoots rifles and shotguns right handed ..... bats left, etc.... shooting right handed works better, because that's the way he learned .... maybe by emulation .... later, I learned that shotgunners are supposed to keep both eyes open ... worked on doing that .... but old habits are hard to break (muscle memory is as expensive to uninstall as to install in the first place) .... sometimes i do, sometimes I don't .... but I really don't shoot enough shotgun to worry about it anymore .... .... anyhoo, when I started with handguns, I was taught correctly- both eyes open, Front Sight, Press ..... and again .... old habits made it difficult, .... but I got it down .... and then I started in with "Scout" rifles and .... both eyes open is faster, and precise enough for any shot that demands utmost speed, IME .... in the last year, though ...... astigmatism in my left eye has reared it's ugly head .... it may not be many years before the question is moot .....

January 5, 2018, 12:30 PM	#25
bassJAM1 Senior Member Join Date: March 31, 2017 Location: Cincinnati Posts: 147	nanney1 do you know which of your eyes is dominant? I grew up shooting left handed, and found I always needed to close my right eye to be focus on my sights. When I bought my first bow in my teens, I learned about eye dominance and that I was right eye dominant. I slowly forced myself to learn to shoot right handed, and now it's completely natural for me, and I find it's actually easier to shoot with both eyes open than to shut one eye.