Ron Ankeny Posted August 23, 2003 Share Posted August 23, 2003 [Major whine mode on.] After 35 years of shooting I just hate it that my vision has gone to hell in a hand basket. I was trying to shoot full sized poppers at 25 yards a couple of weeks ago and forget it. I had to shoot with one eye closed and even then the sights looked like crap. I just hate that. Well I just spent $507.00 for a new pair of glasses (Varilux lenses) and while I had my eye doctor cornered I asked him to explain to me what the hell is going on with my vision. Of course he launched in to a long winded explanation about presbyopia, bifocals, and so on. Then came the real problem. I have convergence problems. In simple terms, that's double vision. At distance I see double with one object above and slightly to the side of the other. In order to correct that problem I have prisms in my lenses. Well, as the focal point comes closer the convergence issues change from one above the other to side by side. So, at distance it's double vision one above the other and close up it is double vision side by side. Add to that the problem of presbyopia and I am just plain screwed. I am now shooting iron sights with tape over one lens with no clear focus on anything. Rear sight, front sight, and target are all a blur. Words can not describe how discouraging it is to have to give up iron sights. My open blaster is looking better all the time. [/Major whine mode off.] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted August 23, 2003 Share Posted August 23, 2003 (and I like your forum signature, too, Ron) MY particular vision "challenge" (I hate that word, actually) is 'aging' eyes that simply take longer to focus after each attempt to focus, and an astygmatism in just ONE eye that NEVER allows full focus of both eyes--ever. I have to grab a sight picture quickly or wait until the next focus cycle (which of course takes time)(which is hell when the timer's running). People also get annoyed at me for not always looking them in the eyes when conversing... cripes, I can't keep a steady focus on your face, that's why!! It's TIRING!! It's really hard to describe--constantly trying to focus and never quite making it. Makes rapid-fire targets and alternating targets really fun, I swear. I'm shocked I'm actually a B-class shooter in my indoor leagues with this pair of eyes! An eye doctor long ago asked me, "Gosh, how do you drive a car...?.." I said, "Very carefully." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhino Posted August 23, 2003 Share Posted August 23, 2003 I know it's tantamount to heresy to say this . . . . . . but . . . . . . there is nothing inherently wrong with closing one eye while you are shooting a pistol, especially if you see a double image otherwise. I've heard all of the arguments why you should try to shoot with both eyes open, but in the end they are not more compelling than being able to get the hits on the targets (or threats!). And I hate it that people have to feel like they're doing something wrong by closing an eye! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spook Posted August 23, 2003 Share Posted August 23, 2003 Ron, I know what you're feeling. My vision is deteriorating too and I'm only 25 . It just sucks. BTW, Rhino is right (IMHO ). Even Eric G. closes one eye when shooting targets that are more than 12 yards away. So lets just say that you can be a reasonably good shooter when you shoot like that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Nesbitt Posted August 23, 2003 Share Posted August 23, 2003 Ron, I have shooting glasses that focus my strong eye on the front sight and the weak eye is a normal focus for distance. I have just recently noticed that I do better at distance if I close my weak eye. Have you tried fiber optic front sights or the express sights yet. Several people like a gold bead on their front sight also. Anything to keep shooting. Bill Nesbitt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted August 23, 2003 Share Posted August 23, 2003 Interestingly--just a few short months ago or so--I found that opening BOTH eyes increased accuracy, increased ability to recapture sight picture (shorter focusing cycle) and increased my morale. Now, I can see (so to speak) that Ron's eye business and my eye business are two different conditions altogether, and what may work for one person may not for another. I strictly keep BOTH eyes open now because it works SO-O-O-O much better than the one-eyed blind shots I was taking previously. Remember, too, that I just this month realized I wasn't seeing the entire right-hand side of my REAR sight on any of my guns and THAT contributed heavily to off-center shots. So I backed up my focus even farther (god, more eye work bad habits to break), admittedly sacrificing a little of my target surface focus, but can shoot MUCH more on-center now. Like BN said: "Anything to keep shooting." And, in my case, anything to get better at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 You have discovered why a lot of us have gone to open guns. I am still retively new to our sport, but I've already gone to the "dark side". Not because it's more fun, but because I have the same vision problems that Ron has described. Maybe that's what makes it more fun for me, I can actually hit something I have found that if I shoot without my glasses, I see a double dot and "shadowed" targets. With glasses on, sharp dot and targets. I've wondered why the dot is crisp since it's closer than the front sight, but it is! Good luck in your quest! I hate getting older too! Carl Mongrue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luiz Francisco Ramos Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 Now I have found my help group section! Because of my presbiophy, I am shooting open even with a limited gun... I see the targets very well, but I see a borrowed sights (front and rear, indistinctly 2 or 1 eye open..), so It´s more confortable to see the targets and try a Type 2 BE focus, always! Of course, my points are not good. But I feel better; my times are better, and I can aplicate all other fundamental beside precision...! Now I asked to my pistolsmith to assemble for me a Open gun. When its ready to shoot, I think I´ll begin again, but certainly now that bad habits will not be bad anymore. So I hope... Ramos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AikiDale Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 I guess we should have our very own forum. For the record I am very near sighted, and at 52 do the bifocal thing as well as astygmatism. Perfect to take up a new sport which requires seeing! Have been experimenting with various combinations of glasses and contacts and have not found the right balance yet. There seems to be a new problem every time I fix something. It was a beautiful day to shoot today however so I am just going to ignore my scores and think about why I still could not call the shot, maybe I need a lighter spring Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ironman Posted August 25, 2003 Share Posted August 25, 2003 I with Dale on the astygmatism and the rest of you regarding the frustration factor of not being able to see as well as I use to. At 48 years old I am now using trifocals. I close my weak eye shooting small targets but use both eyes open for the close up stuff. With all this talk about new divisions within our sport maybe we need a half blind division. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twix Posted August 26, 2003 Share Posted August 26, 2003 Eric G closes one eye on targets farther than 12 yards? Spook, I can't begin to tell you the load you have lifted off from my shoulders. From a guy who is 20/600 (that's not a typo) can we start a thread on this. Thanks for the rant Ron A, I think this may help a lot of folks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reneet Posted August 26, 2003 Share Posted August 26, 2003 I've got 2 eye problems. 1st is nearsighted w/ astigmatism, 2nd is Strabismus which I found out a couple of years ago means that I have monocular vision hence no depth percepetion. My focal point with my right eye is around 26 inches which allows me to see my front sight clearly. Up until June of this year, I was either wearing only my right eye contact or my regular prescription glasses to shoot. I was talking to Kay Clark one day when I told her I could see my front sight without correction. She asked me why I was wearing my RX to shoot if that was the case. I didn't know the answer. As an experiment, I decided to try shooting without my RX and it's great (as long as I can differentiate the target from the background. Since I can't "score" targets as I'm shooting, it forces me to totally focus on doing what it takes to make sure the hits are there. I turned in one of my most consistent performances at the FG Nationals 2 weeks later and wore my prescription on only 2 stages where I was unable to distinguish targets without them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
froglegs Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 Compared to some of you I have eyes like a hawk... however, I found a product that actually helps my eyes it called OCUGUARD PLUS its from twinlab and it costs about $50 you can get it at health food stores I take half the dosage and it works great for me this isn't going to fix all your problems but I bet it is noticable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiG Lady Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 What's IN it...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rising Sight Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 I have a stigmatism in my right eye(my dominant eye) but the doctor told me I have 20/20 vision. I don't really notice it during the day, but at night I see a haze around things. I have to get my eyes tested once a year for my job and my eyesight has actually improved over this past year. Maybe it's because I am a very new shooter, but I haven't really noticed any problems with my eyes while I'm shooting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
froglegs Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 whats in it? vitamins A,C,E,RIBOFLAVIN,ZINC, SELENIUM and a bunch of other stuff thats suppose to be good for the eyes. It's probably the lutein and bilberry extract as these are said to be great for eyes health. I just found this worked for me. Some of the stuff it helps with are dry eyes, floaters, sunlight sensitive eyes it will most certainly clear the red out and brighten the eyes and it sure seems to be easier to focus on stuff the clarity is noticable improvement! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPatterson Posted August 29, 2004 Share Posted August 29, 2004 As part of the ageing trifocal crowd I am trying something new that works so far. I bought a pair of DeCot glasses with the inverted bifocal useing the distance and intermediate prescriptions. Since I discovered my normal shooting position causes me to lower my head slightly with the draw this gives a sharp sight picture. But by raising my head slightly I can actually see the next target location clearly and as I extend my arms to move the gun into position my head drops and the sights are clear with a blurry target behind. This sounds like lots of head movement but it is really very slight when standing still and easy to do when moving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahroc Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Hello all Sounds like an old f@#ts forum, lol. Well here I am! I haven’t shot in a long while but very recently just purchased a Springfield XD .40 and went to a range with a friend. I have bifocals and basically had to bob my head to see the sights and then see the target, with my friend laughing at me (grumble). The sights would blur terribly when I focused on the target. I guess I need to gut used to the sights being blurry. I loose the daylight bars on the sides of the front sight when I focus on the target, would a wider trough on the rear sight help? Also I've been looking hard at the TruGlo TFU's, do any of you other old f@#ts use them? do they help? Basically what crutches work for you? Good Day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AikiDale Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 You need to see the front sight clearly. Let the target be fuzzy if you must choose. Welcome to the forums! Dale Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bountyhunter Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 You have discovered why a lot of us have gone to open guns. Carl Mongrue <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Welcome to old age. C-MORE has a 10% discount if you show your AARP card. By the way, if your vision is the only thing failing, you have a lot to be thankful for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Boudrie Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 You have discovered why a lot of us have gone to open guns. Carl Mongrue <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Welcome to old age. C-MORE has a 10% discount if you show your AARP card. By the way, if your vision is the only thing failing, you have a lot to be thankful for. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Really? Did C-More notice that the AARP has been distinctly anti-gun? Surely there are better ways of proving one's elderly status than by a membership card from an organization which opposes our fundamental human rights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRubio Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 I hate getting older too!Carl Mongrue <{POST_SNAPBACK}> You are right Carl, but it definitely beats the alternative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bountyhunter Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 You have discovered why a lot of us have gone to open guns. Carl Mongrue <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Welcome to old age. C-MORE has a 10% discount if you show your AARP card. By the way, if your vision is the only thing failing, you have a lot to be thankful for. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Really? Did C-More notice that the AARP has been distinctly anti-gun? Surely there are better ways of proving one's elderly status than by a membership card from an organization which opposes our fundamental human rights. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> It's a joke dude. The good news is, even if the AARP management is anti gun, all you have to do is wait a few days.... by then they will probably forget what they were against in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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