DirkD Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) Good day to all I'm new to the sport of practical shooting and I had a blast the past couple of months I was practicing I'm really curious on how most of as acquire a target? I myself used to close one eye and open only the dominant eye. But when I asked a class A shooter he told me he opens both eyes when shooting paper or steel I tried it on ipsc classic targets and it made a huge difference, I mean I can see where the bullets are punching a hole but when i tried it on a steel plates I have a hard time acquiring the target, that's why both eyes are open on paper targets and only the dominant eye on steel plates. Im just curious how do you guys do it? any reply and tips would really be a big help BTW i use a Para Ord Hi cap .40 with fiber optic front sight and a Dawson adjustable rear Edited December 12, 2012 by DirkDiggler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revomodel10 Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) I started opening both eyes pretty soon after starting in USPSA, for me it just came natural. It seems to allow me to aquire targets faster, and make shots without thought of trying to close my weak eye. Edited December 12, 2012 by revomodel10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphamikefoxtrot Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I still do the one eye thing. I have several moments in a match when I realize that I have both open and that I can see a whole lot more, but it is usually at the expense of a sight picture. I have done extensive dryfire and practice with both open and as soon as that buzzer goes off in a match, there goes ole lefty, straight back to sleep. Do what is natural for you. Both open s better, but not necessary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewColonial Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I still do the one eye thing. I have several moments in a match when I realize that I have both open and that I can see a whole lot more, but it is usually at the expense of a sight picture. I have done extensive dryfire and practice with both open and as soon as that buzzer goes off in a match, there goes ole lefty, straight back to sleep. I tended to revert to single-eye as soon as the buzzer went off, despite practicing with both eyes open extensively. Several things are helping to get me to mostly get past that. First, I gave up on tinted shooting glasses, and went to clear only. My old eyes need all the light they can get. Then I started practicing with a timer. Steve Anderson gave me that hint, and it seems to help in the conditioning process. I still "see" a double target but my mind is getting trained to knowing what is "real." Thirdly, during dry fire practice I often freeze and close the weak eye and confirm to my mind that I am indeed aiming correctly. I've come to the conclusion that closing the weak eye is a mental thing more than a physical issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xander Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Anything beyond 15m I close my weak eye Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thrillhammer Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 When you are shooting with both eyes open, what do you focus on? I have heard from some people who say focus on the front sight which leaves the target blurry and others have said focus on the target which leaves the front sight blurry. Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psynapse Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I've only been shooting in competitions for about a year... my experience is in the beginning I was closing my weak eye. This lead to a sore face/eyes from trying to squint so much. And I also flinched/blinked a lot because when I close my left eye, my right eye is half closed too. It's just the way I work. So I'm trying the two eye thing. That's how I shoot a scoped rifle. But my problem is that both my eyes are pretty much equal in strength. For the life of me I cannot shoot with both eyes open. So I do the tape trick on the left side of my glasses. Works great. No more eye strain. No more half-closed strong eye. I still am trying to train my eyes for no tape. I can do it occasionally with some pretty hardcore concentration but right now... I have to use tape competing or I'll revert back to one eye in a heartbeat just to make it though the stages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dwight Stearns Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 When you are shooting with both eyes open, what do you focus on? I have heard from some people who say focus on the front sight which leaves the target blurry and others have said focus on the target which leaves the front sight blurry. Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toothguy Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) When you are shooting with both eyes open, what do you focus on? I have heard from some people who say focus on the front sight which leaves the target blurry and others have said focus on the target which leaves the front sight blurry. Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions? Keep both eyes open acquiring targets. Pick the area in the center of the target or plate you want to shoot. Keep your head and body aligned with that position as you bring the sights into that existing focal plane (bring the gun to your eye). Transition your visions attention to the front sight within the slightly blurry rear sight (blurry target). At this point some like to keep both eyes open, some get a double vision front sight so they close the non dominate eye. Watch and wait for the front sight to lift, call the shot with a mental snapshot. Now your back in target acquisition mode. http://bullseyepistol.com/steinbrecher.htm Edited December 12, 2012 by toothguy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dwight Stearns Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 When you are shooting with both eyes open, what do you focus on? I have heard from some people who say focus on the front sight which leaves the target blurry and others have said focus on the target which leaves the front sight blurry. Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions? Most really good shooters focus on the front sight whether they are using one or both eyes but there are a number that use target focus as well. Either way you have to be mentally focused on seeing a good enough sight picture to shoot A's. I am kind of an old guy in shooting and I went through closing one eye to squinting my weak eye to finally both eyes open and target focus. For me though I found I need some kind of front sight enhancement such as fiber optic to be able to shoot A's quickly. Which ever way you visually focus, your concentration must be on the sight picture. Dwight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris iliff Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Shoot open. Just kidding. But, it does lend itself to both eyes open shooting easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blaster113 Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 i keep both eyes open for close stuff 15 yds and in; will close weak eye for far shit. two eyes open is faster but with my so/so vision its easier to focus on difficult targets. its a little easier with a 6" gun vs a 5" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daybreak Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 When I see my targets, I sometimes wonder if I was shooting both eyes closed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse Tischauser Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 two eyes are always better than one. It is harder on a longer sight like my shotgun but its attainable with enough dry fire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kneelingatlas Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 I use a small piece of masking tape which only blocks my left eye when I lower my head to shoot. It seems to be working well although the targets are pretty close in the local matches so I find myself mostly point shooting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirkD Posted December 13, 2012 Author Share Posted December 13, 2012 thanks for the quick replies how about the steel plates issue.. do most of you open both eyes when shooting 'em? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewColonial Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 thanks for the quick replies how about the steel plates issue.. do most of you open both eyes when shooting 'em? No difference. Just this weekend I realized I was hitting the steel with both eyes open. For some reason my mind felt steel was different. The bullet doesn't know what media it's hitting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daybreak Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 I shoot both eyes open but for 15 yards and further I might close a eye. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sin-ster Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 Keep both eyes open acquiring targets. Pick the area in the center of the target or plate you want to shoot. Keep your head and body aligned with that position as you bring the sights into that existing focal plane (bring the gun to your eye). Transition your visions attention to the front sight within the slightly blurry rear sight (blurry target). At this point some like to keep both eyes open, some get a double vision front sight so they close the non dominate eye. Watch and wait for the front sight to lift, call the shot with a mental snapshot. Now your back in target acquisition mode. Improve, and trust, your index and NPA. Stay neutral in your recoil management. Target; front post; called shot; front post; called shot (follow through); next target. Both eyes doing that sequence together on paper and steel alike. If you practice that and throw in transitions on different targets at different distances, you will find that you can bend that sequence at times. But that means paying attention to what you're seeing, while you're seeing it-- which is good all the way around. For now-- grab your pistol, triple check that it's empty. Start in the low ready. Pick a spot on your wall, visualize it in your head, and close your eyes; extend the pistol to that spot as if you were going to shoot it. Open your eyes and focus on the front post. If your sights are not perfectly aligned, slowly adjust your hold (WITHOUT breaking your grip) and remember how it feels. Replicate that final feeling on the next press out. Then do it a few thousand times until you can't look at a spot without the sights aligning over it. Step 1 complete. Having less unnecessary movement (head, shoulders, body, whatever) during your press out will dramatically shorten your learning curve. More movement = less consistency. Excess tension in this process will REALLY make things difficult. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlosa Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 (edited) It doesn't matter just learn to unlock your eyes.. As long as your eyes move independently of the gun you'll be fine.. Plenty of people squint or close one eye.. One particularly sunny days I will completely close one eye when focusing on the front sight...I don't do it in purpose.. It just happens Edited December 13, 2012 by carlosa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kneelingatlas Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 If your sights are not perfectly aligned, slowly adjust your hold (WITHOUT breaking your grip) and remember how it feels. Why not adjust the equipment to point better with your grip? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cajunautoxer Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 Glad I found this thread I'm in the same boat as the OP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig N Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 When I put a RMR on my G34 for carry it really "opened" my eyes, literally! Learning to use the dot on it let me open both eyes and do the superimpose trick with irons. You could probably fab up a cheap dot on a stick gun and get the same training aid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig N Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 If your sights are not perfectly aligned, slowly adjust your hold (WITHOUT breaking your grip) and remember how it feels. Why not adjust the equipment to point better with your grip? This is why they make Adjustable Sights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kneelingatlas Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 This is why they make Adjustable Sights. But I'm not just talking about the sights, I used to compete with a pistol that looked like this: and I learned how to remove material from this area, add it to that, and change the way it pointed for me. I too would use the "close your eyes and engage the target" method, but if the pistol was pointed to the left I wouldn't move my hand, I would shave wood from the wrap and move the gun. I'm new to USPSA, so I'm not sure if all the principles I learned in my Olympic days translate, but I hear more people talking about "training your grip" to fit the gun than training the gun to fit your grip? When I do this exercise with my Limited gun, I always open my eyes to find the front sight a little high, so I'm getting ready to break out the files and undercut the trigger guard until it comes down into alignment. I know I'm taking what could be an expensive gamble, but hey, that's me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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