Newbie question: Eye dominance vs hand dominance

[Nut3lla]

Hello,

I've had my license for awhile but was never in position to purchase one but I am finally getting ready to! Still need to find crown land to shoot on but that's another issue.

I was wondering what the general recommendation for beginners with a rifle (looking at Tikka t1x or CZ 475 varmit ).

My issue is I am left eye dominate but right handed. Never shot a gun before so bad habits aren't here yet but for someone 100% fresh would you recommend going eye dominate or hand dominant?

So far I am personally leaning towards eye due to research but I appreciate all the opinions.

Thanks in advance

[vagrantviking]

If you are comfortable being ambidextrous and shooing left-hand go for it.

If that doesn't come easily just put a piece of tape on the left lens of your safety glasses and shoot right-hand. Amazon or Buffalo Arms have eye patches that clip onto glasses or anything that obscures vision a bit will force the other eye to take over.

[Potashminer]

If you are comfortable being ambidextrous and shooing left-hand go for it.

If that doesn't come easily just put a piece of tape on the left lens of your safety glasses and shoot right-hand. Amazon or Buffalo Arms have eye patches that clip onto glasses or anything that obscures vision a bit will force the other eye to take over.

If you only learn to shoot from left shoulder and do not learn to shoot from right shoulder, I do not think that is "ambidextrous". Was an article by Phil Shoemaker - he practises to shoot from both shoulders - worst he says - during Vietnam War in jungle or in Alaska bush after client wounded Kodiak bear - holding rifle in right hand grip - right handed shooter - step forward with right foot - and threat emerges or becomes visible to the right - he says is by far faster to get shot from left shoulder, than it is to shuffle your feet around to get lined up for a shot from your right shoulder. But most of us would have to practise that move - uses left hand to fire rifle, does comb actually fit?, and so on.

[calalta]

Hello,

I've had my license for awhile but was never in position to purchase one but I am finally getting ready to! Still need to find crown land to shoot on but that's another issue.

I was wondering what the general recommendation for beginners with a rifle (looking at Tikka t1x or CZ 475 varmit ).

My issue is I am left eye dominate but right handed. Never shot a gun before so bad habits aren't here yet but for someone 100% fresh would you recommend going eye dominate or hand dominant?

So far I am personally leaning towards eye due to research but I appreciate all the opinions.

Thanks in advance

I can't argue with your conclusion about eye dominance, but consider what kind of shooting you choose. If you are just shooting stationary targets decide which side feels more comfortable (likely right handed) and go with it.
If you are shooting trap or skeet or moving targets like birds it will be a lot easier to have a left handed stance where you can have both eyes open and unrestricted. I tried to shoot skeet left handed after a lifetime of right handed shooting and it was a sad display.

[Bah]

If you ever want to shoot shotgun sports, take it from someone who went through this, bite the bullet and shoot with your eye dominant side. I knew I was left dominant, but started shooting shotgun 2 years ago because I'm right handed; big mistake. Constant problems. I've finally bit the bullet and switched. Having never shot left handed before, I did a round of skeet LH with a right hand gun and scored a 21; my usual RH score is like 22-23...

[Suther]

If you ever want to shoot shotgun sports, take it from someone who went through this, bite the bullet and shoot with your eye dominant side. I knew I was left dominant, but started shooting shotgun 2 years ago because I'm right handed; big mistake. Constant problems. I've finally bit the bullet and switched. Having never shot left handed before, I did a round of skeet LH with a right hand gun and scored a 21; my usual RH score is like 22-23...

This. This all the way. I first made the switch with shotgun, as most pump and semi shotguns are pretty easy to use from either side. After a few years of that I eventually made the switch to left handed rifles too and its been a real game changer for me.

I'm also right handed, but left eye dominant. I started shooting right handed because I didn't know any better. Hitting a moving target with a shotgun was always difficult for me. I tried everything - closing one eye, tape on my glasses, an eye patch, nothing helped nearly as much as just holding the gun the other way.

Long sessions at the bench with my rifle were also a chore. At first closing one eye or focusing with my right eye was fine, but the longer the range session got the more fatiguing it got to fight my eyes. Using my left eye I can go all day staring through a scope without feeling exhausted or getting a headache.

And iron sights? With the wrong eye? Forget about it. My right eye has a bit of lazyness (hence the left eye dominance) and that really impacts my ability to shoot iron sights right handed. I'm not going to win any awards with my left-handed iron sight shooting, but at least I can hit something!

The only thing I shoot right handed these days is handgun, but I still use my left eye, I just raise the gun to that eye rather than my right.

I can't argue with your conclusion about eye dominance, but consider what kind of shooting you choose. If you are just shooting stationary targets decide which side feels more comfortable (likely right handed) and go with it.
If you are shooting trap or skeet or moving targets like birds it will be a lot easier to have a left handed stance where you can have both eyes open and unrestricted. I tried to shoot skeet left handed after a lifetime of right handed shooting and it was a sad display.

Respectfully I disagree completely. OP is in the perfect position to start on the correct eye and not look back. Even if he had 30 years of shooting I'd suggest switching, muscle memory can be re-trained a lot easier than eye dominance. IMO the only good reason to shoot from the non-dominant eye is a physical injury that makes it impossible, say a bad shoulder for instance.

[Bah]

This. This all the way. I first made the switch with shotgun, as most pump and semi shotguns are pretty easy to use from either side. After a few years of that I eventually made the switch to left handed rifles too and its been a real game changer for me.

I'm also right handed, but left eye dominant. I started shooting right handed because I didn't know any better. Hitting a moving target with a shotgun was always difficult for me. I tried everything - closing one eye, tape on my glasses, an eye patch, nothing helped nearly as much as just holding the gun the other way.

Long sessions at the bench with my rifle were also a chore. At first closing one eye or focusing with my right eye was fine, but the longer the range session got the more fatiguing it got to fight my eyes. Using my left eye I can go all day staring through a scope without feeling exhausted or getting a headache.

And iron sights? With the wrong eye? Forget about it. My right eye has a bit of lazyness (hence the left eye dominance) and that really impacts my ability to shoot iron sights right handed. I'm not going to win any awards with my left-handed iron sight shooting, but at least I can hit something!

The only thing I shoot right handed these days is handgun, but I still use my left eye, I just raise the gun to that eye rather than my right.




Respectfully I disagree completely. OP is in the perfect position to start on the correct eye and not look back. Even if he had 30 years of shooting I'd suggest switching, muscle memory can be re-trained a lot easier than eye dominance. IMO the only good reason to shoot from the non-dominant eye is a physical injury that makes it impossible, say a bad shoulder for instance.

There's only one problem, the only good left hand shotgun is a Krieghoff...
Blasers light strike, Brownings break pins and puncture primers and Beretta only has right hand top levers, so just commit yourself to spending 20k on a gun haha

[pdamorse]

Hi, I was in a similar boat - I just pushed on shooting with the right hand. Never had a problem, but I imagine there might be if I tried skeet. Many of my friends with a seriously dominant eye were basically told to keep their eye closed for a long time, and it helped them with their predicament.

[Bah]

Hi, I was in a similar boat - I just pushed on shooting with the right hand. Never had a problem, but I imagine there might be if I tried skeet. Many of my friends with a seriously dominant eye were basically told to keep their eye closed for a long time, and it helped them with their predicament.

Keeping an eye closed will basically guarantee you're an extremely low grade shooter. If you're at all competitive, you'll want to shoot with your dominant eye.