I'm looking for some advice. I am left handed, but I shoot EVERYTHING right handed, yet I am Left EYE Dominant...lol
I don’t know why, I just am.
I CAN shoot left handed, but it just does not feel right…
So, I guess I’m asking what advice you have… My AR is ready for pick up and I will need to start training with it. If shooting right handed what aiming methods/stances, etc would you recommend?
Also would this have a profound affect on what optics I should be looking for…?
The amount of eye dominance varies in people. I’m left eye dominant and shoot just fine with long guns right handed. I shoot precision guns better left handed when prone due to less eye strain. But for using an Aimpoint, EOTech or ACOG I don’t have any difficulty right handed. I know some left eye dominant people who can use their right eye for anything.
Im left eye dom, and I don’t think I could shoot rifles right handed to save my life. I am also right handed, but a long gun and a bow naturally come up in a left handed stance.
I would say if your used to and comfortable with your right eye and right hand stance, do not change a thing. Go with it.
If you’re comfortable shooting right-handed, an Aimpoint or EOTech-equipped AR is incredibly transparent to cross-eye dominant shooters, of which I am too. In that regard alone, they are a godsend.
From my experience, eye dominance is really only an issue if you shoot with both eyes open. This usually refers to shotgunners (bird & trap shooting) and optics like ACOGs, Aimpoints and EOtechs. Also combat pistol shooting. Closing one eye takes more time and reduces peripheral vision.
Shooting SMGs/rifles and pistols both eyes open has not been an issue, atleast I have not seen it as something that would hinder my performance with long guns.
In the Army I shot well in the range quals and due to my civilian shooting background, our instructor was pushing me for a slot in the sniper NCO course, but I declined that offer to go to a another unit. Also shot well in our applied training shoots later on.
I shoot both pistol and rifle IPSC at a national level and like said above, have not noticed any limitation to my performance from cross eye dominance. Just finished second, two weekends in a row at national IPSC rifle and pistol competitions.
Many instructors teach to close the non sight seeing eye. When I was @ Marine Corps boot camp, they gave out eye patches to recruits who couldn’t blink one eye. I remember sighting in my M16A2 and getting hassled for not closing my eye. My instructor had no clue about eye dominance. Some people, like yourself, are unaffected by eye dominance though they have a dominant eye.
I’m right handed and left eye dominant. I shoot right handed with pistol and rifle. I can shoot both eyes open with my pistol, I just had to train myself to cant my head slightly to pick up the sights with my left eye. After years of training, I don’t even realize that I do it now. As far as rifles are concerned I can easily shoot with my right eye on irons but I have to close or squint with my left eye. A RDS actually makes my eye dominance a non issue. I can easily shoot both eyes open (using my right eye) with my aimpoint. I guess the level of eye dominance will vary from person to person so YMMV.
I bought my first AR a month ago and with a thousand rounds through it I have zero credibility for tactical shooting but . . . .
I’m right handed and left eye dominant, a few years ago I moved to left handed shot gun shooting for hunting and saw myself go from shooting around 40% on clays to shooting around 90%. Switched my safeties around and off I go shooting a shotgun like i know what i’m doing.
My pistol I don’t have nearly the gun control and don’t like the way it feels but have noticed that when i want to shoot with both eyes open i have a tendancy to swing the gun to the left side of my body over my left eye and shoot fine . . . . no need to change.
Bow same from a strength standpoint and after years of fiddling I’ve found a combination of peep, single pin sight, anchors and the fact that the deer won’t attack me I’m not worried if it takes a bit more to close one eye and focus on the spot I’m gonna hit. So no need to change to dominant eye.
After two sessions at the range I read about tactical training teaching you to shoot from both sides in the event of a problem I decided to try and candidly I shoot my AR at least twice as well from the left side. Very easy to throw an ambi safety on so since this is a new shooting world for me I’m going lefty. With my eotech and my iron sights I can throw the gun up focus on target and find i’m almost always on target. On the right if i simply throw the gun up I find I’m way off target and depending where I’m aiming might not be in a hit area at all.
These guns kick so little that for me it was far easier to rationalize that if I needed this gun . . . . meaning bad guy in front I would be far more confident not wondering if I was really pointing at a spot that would make him go owww. I’d suggest putting on some glasses and shooting the gun on the left. I think from an instinctive standpoint it’s going to make a difference. I like the idea of keeping both eyes open in a pressure situation. I didn’t buy this gun just to plink cans but in the off chance that I was required to use it.
My advice…go with your dominant eye. Shoot left side until it becomes your “natural” strong side. Sounds like it’s more of a mental obstical than a physical one in your case.
I made the transition with less than 1000 rounds for handgun work.
I am Curse-Eye Dominant and shot for years with a squint eye and the Aimpoint changed all of that I can now shoot both eyes open and it is wonderful. I have found that the Eotech does not work nearly as well at allowing me to keep both eyes open. Go to a store and play with them. I can leave the cap on my Aimpoint and use as an occluded sight and it still works fine for me. Good Luck!
I shoot pistol right-hand, rifle and shotgun left-hand (regardless of type of sights/optic).
I bend my wrist slightly when shooting pistol…was told that certain light-weight guns might no cycle without a firm grip, but this has never been an issue in >20 years.
I shot pistol for many years before rifle/shotgun, so I didn’t have any muscle-memory to unlearn (foot-placement, body-orientation, etc.). Shooting rifle/shotgun LH came to me very quickly. Being strongly right-handed, I can easily swap sides and do rifle/shotgun RH if need be.
FYI, I haven’t modified any of my long-arms to add LH-friendly accessories…my philosophy is “it’s a RH-world, and I need to deal with it”. Shooting ARs and 870s, this hasn’t been an issue. Bolt-guns are a bit of a PITA though!
