Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

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stretch
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Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by stretch »

Good Morning, All!

A beautiful Maine spring morning with about 2 inches of heavy, wet snow, and a
nice, raw breeze out of the north-west. Still coming down at a pretty fair clip.

My youngest kid is right-handed and left-eye dominant. Anybody have experience
with that situation? Do we have him shoot rifle right-handed or lefty? Pros and cons?
I assume we'll have him pick up a pistol and shoot it anyway he wants.

Whaddya think?

-Stretch
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JimT
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by JimT »

It's not uncommon. I have seen people who re-trained their eyes. Others who learned to shoot with the left hand. Some who just shot with both eyes open and learned to do just fine. I have no idea if there is a "best" ... but I bet if he likes to shoot you can come up with something. More than likely there is someone on this forum who either works with vision issues or knows someone who does.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by gamekeeper »

A trick I learned a long time ago was wear a cheap pair of sunglasses with the right lens removed, sometimes the slight loss of vision in the left eye is enough to make the right eye dominant. It worked for a girl I was teaching to shoot. You can also experiment with a piece of tape on shooting glasses.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by marlinman93 »

I am the same, and have always shot right handed. I can also shoot left handed almost butt well, and I practice both just for fun. But I've learned it's easier to teach my right eye than my left hand.
I shot bullseye matches and used a blinder on my left lens of my shooting glasses just to help keep me from shooting with my dominant eye. It would help a young shooter to temporarily block off his left lens on shooting glasses while he's learning to train his eye and mind to use the right eye.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by AJMD429 »

Use tape, or just a folded piece of paper, over the left glasses lens (if he isn't wearing glasses while shooting you failed a basic safety principle and need to start over again anyway).
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by 44shooter »

Maybe have him heft an appropriate sized long gun and see what his inclination is. I am heavily right handed and right eye dominant. My left eye looks several inches to the right of what my right does so I can't hit anything from my left shoulder. I can shoot handguns reasonably well with my left hand using both eyes or just my right. My dad is left handed with a some ambidextry and right eye dominant. He shoots long guns on the right shoulder and can run a bolt gun pretty fast.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Shasta »

My youngest daughter is left handed like her dad, but was born with such poor vision in her left eye that the doctor said she was legally blind in that eye. I started her off shooting a BB gun right handed at age four, and since she has never shot any other way, she is naturally a right handed shooter. (She is now 41 years old)

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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Old Savage »

I have that situation. I hold a pistol right handed in front of the left eye. I shoot shotguns left handed as well as open sighted rifles. I shoot scoped rifles right handed. I would say learn to work with what your eyes naturally do. Qualified expert in the army with the M14 and M16 and the 1911 45. I don't see it as a problem.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Sixgun »

Lot more common than what I thought.

Im right handed but shoot long guns left handed......handguns right handed........extreme left eye dominate/uncorrectable right eye........I even write left handed..........swing a baseball bat and arm wrestle right handed.

Like Jim T, I began shooting as soon as I was able to hold a gun, I thought it was normal to hold the long gun left handed and my dad never picked up on it that my right eye just wasn't up to par with my left. Worked out great because no brag, fact, I've got a lot of shooting trophys and awards with long guns and revolvers.

The brain adapts to what YOU want it to so Stretch, let your boy do what feels normal. It's good you caught this when he is young as he may need a little coaxing and support from you as bad habits are HARD to break. -----6
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Beaker
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Beaker »

I am strongly left handed and right eye dominant. Most "experts" I have heard say to shoot according to your dominant eye. I have tried but could never get used to it or be able to shoot well right handed. So I just go ahead and shoot left handed and use my left eye. That has served me well over the years.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by GunnyMack »

As someone else mentioned scotch tape on the strong side lens works. Heck even a pirate eye patch will do. Argh! :lol:
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by jeepnik »

Some folks think I'm right handed but left eye dominant as I write with my right hand. But in reality I'm left handed. When I was first in school I had a teacher with a yardstick. Pick up a pencil with your left hand and you were summarily wacked. The result is very poor penmanship. But dad had suffered the same fate so when he handed me my first BB gun and I put it to my left shoulder I kept right on shooting left.

My point is, make sure no one is forcing your left handed kit be be right handed.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Rockrat »

I shoot rifles and shotguns right handed but pistols left handed, but I can also shoot pistols right handed, just not as well, but close. Can shoot rifle and shotgun left handed also, just not as well. I am left handed, but mixed dominant. I can work on machinery left or right handed and sometime both at the same time. I bat right handed, but can also bat left handed, but not as well. Golf right handed, but can putt either way. My left eye is dominant

Sis and I both had our left arms tied to the body to make us write right handed. Sis could write cursive and print with either hand, teachers gave up on me eventually as I write left handed
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by yooper2 »

I am severely left eye dominant and right handed. As a kid I tried shooting right handed and had a bad time of it. Finally my grandad had me try shooting off the left shoulder when I was about 7 or 8 and it was like magic.

I can shoot handguns with either hand equally well but use the left eye regardless. Prefer left hand but will pocket carry in my right hand hip pocket as a backup.

I also found batting left handed easier. Write, throw, and use tools right handed. Think it is just something everyone needs to sort out for themselves.


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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by rossim92 »

i have a buddy who is right handed but shoots left handed. does just fine.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Marvin S »

Man what a bunch of defective people. I’m left handed right eye dominant as my right eye has slightly better vision. I shoot long guns left handed and close my right eye even for shotguns. Handguns are shot left handed using my right eye.

I would say if they are just starting out go with the dominant eye as it probably has better vision.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Old Savage »

Well let's see, is this good enough right handed left eye dominant offhand at 50'? ;-)
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Old No7
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Old No7 »

AJMD429 wrote: Sat May 09, 2020 10:23 am Use tape, or just a folded piece of paper, over the left glasses lens...
Even better are these cheap " See Through Removable Label" self-stick dots" from Staples, which block the left eye's vision enough when the gun is cheeked to allow the right eye to take over. My scores at trap went up from an 18 average to a 23 average after getting this tip from a shooting instructor. And it helped my shotgun shooting enough now that I enjoy shooting skeet and sporting clays. I don't have total left-eye dominance, but the left eye is better/stronger and tries to take over for targets coming from the left side. Best part is, when removed they don't leave any gum or residue on the lenses (I wear prescription glasses) and because they're placed high & left on the left lens, when I'm not shooting -- bingo, I'm back to having binocular vision with both eyes seeing out the focal point of each lens.

These work great!

Old No7

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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by piller »

I don't have a dominant eye. My Son is left eye dominant and right handed. He shoots that way.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by Tycer »

Rockrat wrote: Sat May 09, 2020 4:05 pm I shoot rifles and shotguns right handed but pistols left handed, but I can also shoot pistols right handed, just not as well, but close. Can shoot rifle and shotgun left handed also, just not as well. I am left handed, but mixed dominant. I can work on machinery left or right handed and sometime both at the same time. I bat right handed, but can also bat left handed, but not as well. Golf right handed, but can putt either way. My left eye is dominant

Sis and I both had our left arms tied to the body to make us write right handed. Sis could write cursive and print with either hand, teachers gave up on me eventually as I write left handed
Perfect description of my scenario. Mostly left eye dominant, left handed. Have to use nose oil on right lens to shoot shotgun.
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OldWin
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by OldWin »

I am right handed and was always right eye dominant. I always had excellent vision but my left eye was a little better. Now that I'm older the gap has widened and I see close with my right, far with my left. I have sort of trained myself to use this to continue shooting right handed by leaving both eyes open or being able control dominance.
For rifles, a scout setup works well also.
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by RIHMFIRE »

+1 on the tape idea
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by stretch »

Hey, thanks for all the replies!

(I never really realized how many badly mismatched, screwed up folks were on this forum...... :o :lol: :lol: :D )

But seriously, I think I'll just hand him a couple of 22s and point him in the right direction and see
what's comfortable for him. There seems to be no real convention - except to see what he's
comfortable with.

Thanks again!

-Stretch
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by jeepnik »

I have to agree. We have quite a few screwed up folks. The rest of us are in our right minds. Poor right handed folks are just not. :roll:
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Re: Right Handed Kid with Dominant Left Eye

Post by buckeyeshooter »

I am left handed and right eye dominant. I shoot right handed. It is actually a benefit as there are many right handed products and few left handed.
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