THE BASICS OF MARKSMANSHIP - Part 1 and Part 2

[Ed Ely]

Originally Posted by Snydremark

To a new poster and XD owner, this is great information to have! I do have one question, though, on the suggestion for determining eye 'dominance'.

If I focus on a give target and then bring an 'ok' symbol to bear on it, I see two circles. Whichever circle I use as my marker determines which eye appears to be dominant. So, if I line up the left circle over the target and my right eye is the one that maintains a view; if I line up the right circle over the target, my left eye maintains the view.

Does this indicate that my eyes are agnostic as far as aim goes? Or does it mean I'm doing this exercise wrong?

TIA,

-Snydremark

Here is what I was taught, really simple,
a way to find eye dominance.

Take your thumb and bring the pointing
finger down to it whereby it makes about
a one inch to one inch and one half type
circle.

Put that hand out in front of your eyes
about a foot or so away. Slowly bring that
cupped thumb and pointing finger slowly to
to your eyes while looking and focusing on
the circle until it actually touches the forehead.

The circle will always wind up on the dominant
eye. Try it several times just to prove it right.

Ed

[Godless Gun Guy]

If you find that you are a right handed shooter with a dominant left eye you can actually change to make your right eye dominant. Spend a weekend with semi transparent tape over the center of the left lens of a pair of glasses so that the vision in that eye is blurred but still useable. Your right eye will gain strength to compensate for what the brain perceives as a damaged left eye.
It may take longer for some people, and please be smart and don't drive without full use of both eyes!

[Jarhead]

You've managed to distill down a huge amount of information into those two posts. Read it twice, bookmarked it, forwarded it...much obliged.
Liberty Lane...how appropriate.
-Jarhead

[sewerman]

hey great set of posts on fundamentals of marksmenship and determining the dominant eye.

thanks, fellas

[Ghostface03]

That is great! Thanks for the Information, very well explained.

[Amkus]

Thanks for this. I always got the impession that you're supposed to shoot with both eyes open, which I fail at doing.

[U.S. Patriot]

Originally Posted by Amkus

Thanks for this. I always got the impession that you're supposed to shoot with both eyes open, which I fail at doing.

Well it depends on the situation. If you are just plinking at the range, and shooting for pure accuracy then shoot with one eye closed. In a defensive situation you may not have time to shoot with one eye closed. When we learned Tachtical entry in the service, sometimes you had to shoot on the fly. You storm a room, with your pistol at the ready. A threat apears, and you must fire. If you walk around with one eye closed focused on your sights it henders your field of vision. If you can, practice shooting both ways.

[Cigarfiend1]

Thanks for posting this Ed, this was very helpful and I found out that my opposite side eye is my dominate which explains target practice last night at the range for the first time. I didn't shoot bad but did not group as well as I thought I was. Now I can try my other eye on Sat.

[gunless]

thank you sir

[golfguru2]

Awesome thread. Great info. I've shot handguns quite a few times before but was never "taught" how to shoot outside of "line up the sights on the target, pull the trigger straight back". I can't wait to practice now!