the more i learn, the more i learn i don't know

[jaredr]

long-time recreational shooter but never a diligent competitor, best i ever got was a b class way back when.

 

my eyes are going a bit so borrowed a slide-mounted RMR from a friend, discovered it made life way easier. definitely a learning curve picking up the dot on presentation but motivated for the first time in a long while to keep a regular dry-fire regimen and presentation improved steadily.

 

returned my loaner carry-optics pistol and sent my own off to be milled. in the interim, went back to irons. bummed to find that they were not quite so easy as the dot but prompted me to slow waay down, start over and go back to basics - press out, sight alignment, trigger pull straight to the rear.

 

with the rmr, had gotten used to always keeping a focus on the target (no finding the target, then bringing focus back to front sight). falling back to irons and realizing i'd either lost those fundamentals or really never had them down all that well to begin with maybe. figuring out all over again just how far out the target can be (or how big it needs to be) in order to get good hits with a flash sight picture or a hard target focus (fuzzy front sight) vs. at what point do i need to pick up the target and then bring focus back to front sight for nice crisp front sight and fuzzy target.

 

how close does a target need to be (or how big) to easily get good hits with both eyes open vs. when do i need to close one eye or squint? Starting out target transition drills working for time and gradually just slowing down and paying attention to when I pick up the target, when I pick up the sights, what I’m actually looking at when the shot breaks. did I call that shot, was I actually aiming when I pulled the trigger or just using the force…

 

on the timer, I’m not sure I’ve really improved any but I’m thinking I have developed a better idea of what I’m actually doing, what I should be paying attention to and what I am (or was) missing in my hurry to beat the clock. my milled slide comes back from jagerwerks this week, will be interesting to take it out and compare irons technique (and time/accuracy) vs. carry optics. 

[Hi-Power Jack]

5 hours ago, jaredr said:

 

how close does a target need to be (or how big) to easily get good hits with both eyes open vs. when do i need to close one eye or squint? 

 

I shoot with BOTH eyes OPEN, all the time.     No reason to "close one eye or squint".     

[Jman]

Use every eyeball you have.

 

[10ring]

I'm an old guy and found that the dot sight on an open gun was much more easy to see.

 

I always shoot with both eyes open but when I was shooting with iron sights I needed to close one eye when dealing with a plate rack.

[elguapo]

Ben Stoeger said in his last book that he shoots every single target with target focus and a set of fuzzy sights.  That's the sight picture I naturally have due to presbyopia.

 

When I read that, I decided to keep shooting production and get better at shooting with the same type of focus.

[SlvrDragon50]

I will sometimes shoot with one eye closed when standing in a static position shooting lots of small steel. I already cover up my left eye when I shoot both eyes open and I'm right eye dominant and right handed  but otherwise I'll see two front dots when I shoot. I think it has to do with my right contact being in between two prescriptions while my left eye prescription is good.

[Blackstone45]

I have a lot of difficulty focusing on the front sight with two eyes open, so I do the Stoeger-esque target focus on everything as well. If I'm shooting precision disciplines, I'll just use an occluder.

[Muddawg900]

For what it's worth in regards to training both eyes open, I used to close my left eye. One day I decided to train my right eye to be more dominant that my left (ambidextrous eyes according to eye dr). To do this I took a pair of clear safety glasses and put a small piece of opaque tape (scotch tape) over my left eye direct vision. This allowed for all of my peripheral to stay available, but blocked my direct vision so my right eye could take over. 20 minutes of dry fire and my right eye has learned to pick up my front sight and maintain that sight picture. 

 

That being said, I'm no professional, just a shooter with a deep passion for guns and an addiction to the sport (currently a mid C class in Ltd). I also have 20/20 vision according to the dr as of 2 yrs ago. This is just a method that worked for me quickly and easily. As for the dryfire routine, well that needs a LOT of work

[chrisa006]

The only time I don’t have both eyes open is for a long (20yrd.+) small steel target.

[Yondering]

I use a target focus with both eyes open for almost everything with iron sights.

 

However, in the past few years with certain red dot sights (mostly on rifles), I've needed to close one eye to avoid double vision. I'm not sure if that's the optic, since it doesn't happen with all of them, or my eyes since I hit 40 a couple years ago. I've noticed it especially pronounced with some Aimpoint H1/T1 and Trijicon TRO optics.

I do not have that problem with magnified optics, since I can easily distinguish between the magnified and unmagnified views from either eye and choose which to use mentally.

Edited August 15, 2019 by Yondering

[Dranoel]

As my eyes have started to go bad, I had a pair of shooting glasses made. Medium distance focus in the right lens, long distance focus in the left. Took a bit of getting used to but but with both eyes open and centered on the target my left eye has the target in focus while the right eye look "through" the sights at the target but the sights are in focus. Both eyes open all the time.

[RandyBaker]

22 hours ago, Dranoel said:

As my eyes have started to go bad, I had a pair of shooting glasses made. Medium distance focus in the right lens, long distance focus in the left. Took a bit of getting used to but but with both eyes open and centered on the target my left eye has the target in focus while the right eye look "through" the sights at the target but the sights are in focus. Both eyes open all the time.

Do you only wear these glasses right before you shoot or can you leave them on? I was wondering if the different prescriptions make it difficult to wear while at the range but not shooting? 

[Dranoel]

It looks a little odd when walking around because things are in focus but not in focus for both eyes. But it's usually a matter of setting up at the range and putting them on to shoot then swapping again when I'm done and packing out. Truth be told I'd just rather have the eyes I had when I was 25.