Cross-Dominance (and inconsistencies)

[ghentry]

My wife, who has not shot much, was at the range with me and was having a problem with most of her shots hitting around 3 o'clock. After being unable to correct this with several suggestions, I asked her which was her dominant eye. She is left-handed and said her left eye was dominant. We did several tests on the range with conflicting results.

Later at home, we did several more tests with conflicting results again. On one test she would favor her left eye, on another, her right.

We went outside with an airsoft gun and I had her keep both eyes open and focus on the front sight. She said it was difficult focusing on the sight with both eyes open, yet when she shot this way, she was able to hit very close to the X.

Has anyone here experiencing this or have any suggestions for her?

[TDDude]

This is another way to check:

Make sure she is actually focusing on the front sight. That means that she will see two targets but one may be "weaker" than the other. Once she is focused and sights are aligned, have her close one eye at a time. Whichever eye keeps the target on sights when the other is closed is the dominant eye.

Of course, she may just be shooting wrong.



For a left handed shooter, you'll need to invert this chart but check it out.

[C-dub]

I had a friend show me how to figure out which of my eye's was dominant this way. Hold your hands out at arms length with palms facing away from you. make a little triangle space by overlapping your thumbs and your fingers will basically be perpendicular to each other one hand behind the other. Anyway, with both eyes open focus on an object and then slowly, but not too slowly, pull your hands all the way to your face. Whichever, eye your hands end up going to is the dominant eye.

Knowing that I'm left eye dominant, but right handed has helped me. I have always shot a handgun with my left eye focusing on the sights and a rifle with my right eye. I have since been practicing with my handguns using my right eye and my accuracy has increased. Now, I just have to do it to develop the habit of using my right eye.

[Reloader]

My son, who shoots expert, is left eye dominant, fires right handed..no problem. rifle is shouldered on right, fires with left eye. He says it's easier..

[couzin]

...Hold your hands out at arms length with palms facing away from you. make a little triangle space by overlapping your thumbs and your fingers will basically be perpendicular to each other one hand behind the other. Anyway, with both eyes open focus on an object and then slowly, but not too slowly, pull your hands all the way to your face. Whichever, eye your hands end up going to is the dominant eye.

I recommend that you do as above, find an object/target in the distance, then close one then the other eye. The oject/target will still be visible in the dominant eye and gone in the non-dominant. Sometimes when folks pull their hands (toilet roll, whatever) back, there is a slight shift in their head or hands that gives false results.

[ghentry]

Thank you for the replies.

With her hands in front of her making the triangle window, then bringing her hands slowly to her face she goes to her left eye.
With her hands in front of her making the triangle window, then closing her right eye, the image disappears.

I just spoke to another person that is left handed and he said that he alternates eyes when he shoots. Maybe it is more common than I thought.

[TDDude]

My son is right handed/left eyed!! He shoots pistols right handed and rifles left handed.

Luckily I caught it early on so he never had to learn anything new but he shoots very well this way.

[C-dub]

Thank you for the replies.

With her hands in front of her making the triangle window, then bringing her hands slowly to her face she goes to her left eye.
With her hands in front of her making the triangle window, then closing her right eye, the image disappears.

I just spoke to another person that is left handed and he said that he alternates eyes when he shoots. Maybe it is more common than I thought.

The weird part for me now is that my right eye is actually better than my left eye. I had Dr. Booth fix them up several years ago and my left eye is still about 20/20 - 20/15, but my right eye is 20/15 - 20/10. I don't remember which was worse before.

[wharvey]

Right handed, left eye dominate. Always shoot with both eyes open. I sight with left eye as I tilt my head slightly when shooting handguns. Keeping both eyes open allows depth perception and easier tracking of moving targets.

I shoot rifles either right or left handed, whatever I feel like at the time. Same results, horrid rifle shot.

In spite of being right handed I do shoot bows left handed. While I can shoot right handed and do so when setting up bows for others, I shoot south paw much better, even when shooting bows with sights and training wheels, which is very rare.