Apparently I am an oddity in that I have to shoot with my left eye closed. Everyone tried to diagnose my trap shooting problem, but they always told me keep both eyes open for the best view. My ex's dad took me out trap shooting and I told him that when I keep both eyes open I see two barrels pointing in completely opposite directions. He told me he knew a guy who had to keep one eye closed and that I should try it. First round I didn't hit a single bird. Next round I went with my left eye closed and I hit 19 out of 25. What eye(s) do you all use?

 

well the only thing i really shoot is paintball haha. but yea i have both eyes oppen and i usually just point and shoot. but if im really aiming ill use my left eye. but one time i went hunting with some friends and i used both

 

you can find out what eye is dominant by looking at something across a room or a distance away, with both eyes open put your thumb on the item from across the room then close one eye, then check the other, your thumb should stay on the item with your dominant eye. hope that helps, sounds like you dont shoot much 19 out of 25 isint bad at all good job!

 

Trap shooting I keep both open, don't really use either or. Pistol nad rifle I am right eye dominant. Keep left eye closed.

 

You're rather lucky you're not in the military...they'd flog you (JUST KIDDING!). No seriously, IFFFFFF you were a right hander with LEFT eye dominant, they'd make you train LEFT HANDED, happened to a buddy of mine and a few others in the company. Most lucked out in this in they had little/no predispostion to shooting so the "adjustment" was next to nill. Shooters who've shot for years though and find they're right handers/left eye dominant usually have a much harder time adjusting to left hand shooting.

If it works, Go with it. K.I.S.S. principle (Military slang for Keep It Simple Stupid)- I say, iy you gotta close one eye to hit somen' then close one eye!

WHAT cha' shooting gun wise?

~saros7

 

most shotgun schools and teachers will tell you to shoot with both eyes open. you point a shot gun not aim it. your full concentration should be on the bird not the gun. if you look down at the gun to see where your beads are at the bird is already gone. if you are a right handed shooter and are lefdt eye dominat there is an easy fix. take a small piece of clear scotch tape and place it over the center of you left eye shooting glasses. now you can change the size and position of it till it's in your eyes center. by doing this it will blurr your left eyes vision in it's center forcing your right eye to take over. with both eyes open you will have a larger field of view and also depth perception also. with only one eye open you have no depth perception. i am center eye dominant which means both eyes kinda fight for who's in control sometimes it's the right sometimes it's the left. i carry the tape wiht me just in case my right eye gets lazy. i keep both eyes open when i shoot just about everything. especially when i am looking threw a scope it's amazing what the brain can actually do. try looking threw a scope with both eyes open and train your brain to use one eye then the other. also if you are really serious about shot gun shooting have an adjustable pad installed on your shotgun and have your gun fitted to you it will make worlds of differences!!

 

I used to shoot with my left eye closed. I remember missing more birds than I hit.

An 'old' Trapshooting friend 'coached' me to use both eyes. It really makes a difference in how and what I score, now.

I also used to shoot with my left hand on the forearm as though I was 'in a defensive posture.' (Hand under forearm, fingers brought around to right side of shotgun, thumb on left side.)
I learned that when I held the forearm 'comfortably' with my left index finger pointing forward, I hit more consistently. (Left index finger under forearm, pointing toward muzzle.)
This 'old guy' was telling me that I am actually pointing the shotgun with my index finger, and that the shotgun and the shot 'string' goes where my left finger is pointing and both eyes are looking.

Just my 2¢.

 

One eye closed? Cant imagine that. I shoot with both open...and pretty well if I do say so myself

 

i shoot with my right eye with my left eye closed. if my left eye isn't closed, you'd better move out of the way because i can't aim without it closed.

 

I started shooting pretty young with no real instruction in marksmanship...just safety and gun care from my dad (mostly "If you point that gun at anything you don't want to hit you'll never touch one again!") I'm left-eye dominant but was trained to be right handed in nearly everything, so I started shooting right-handed but would actually turn my head so my left-eye sighted. (Looked really goofy with a rifle!) When I started 4-H shooting sports they asked me what the heck I was doing, got me going left-handed and really increased my accuracy! Now I usually close my right eye for target shooting with a rifle, but keep both open for pistol and moving targets. Don't know if it's correct but it works for me.

 

My eyes are 100% co-dominant. I tried the close one eye and stare at your thumb and a reference point and there is the same amount of shift no matter which eye. I'm serious about seeing two different barrels when I look down my shotgun. They spread out in a narrow "V" shape so I just keep my left eye closed.

 

I can't vote on that - I use what I use at the time...
Stabilize the weapon, guage the wind and drop factor, estimate movement...
It may not allow for a choice of eye.

"Ambidextrous" was not a choice...

 

Left eye gun right eye bow.

 

Hey Maticuno, one of my "coaches" wanted me to try both eyes open and I saw two barrels also. I was told that you just have to get used to it. I said "screw it" and went back to just the right eye and it works great for me. Trap is all about finding what works for you and sticking with it, almost nothing is uniform.

Funny, I was once told the same thing. It works well for me.

 

I'm a lefty so I hold all guns left handed:

rifle-scope or sights-right eye closed.

shotgun/handgun-both eyes open.