Having trouble seeing reticle on the optical sight small arms trainer

[RichardCaan]

Good day, so we had a range PD day with a lot of ROTP people. I honestly thought shooting a gun would be pretty easy just like call of duty haha. Most failed on the SAT trainer but hit a few shots correctly (this was our first time ever using a gun, we had a quick 15 minute lesson covering the basic drills and components of the C7A2)

Well when it was my turn on the range I either saw pure black or blurry white when viewing the scope through my right eye, missed all my shots. I swear I thought the scope was broken so we tried with another same thing happens.

One of the infantry guys did an assessment on me and determined that I am left eye dominant. So we try the scope through the left eye (with both eyes open) and then boom I see very clearly lol.

Throughout my whole life I always thought I was right side dominant haha. I am honestly so glad I found this issue before BMOQ.

So what should I do here practice left handed shooting and transition to left hand dominance or try and force my right eye to work?
If you have any stories of this happening to you or your buddies please let me know what worked for you!
If there are any resources going more into detail about the C7A2 or 3D interactable online models send them my way!

Thank you for all the help so far!

 

[KevinB]

You can retrain your eyes if you want to make the effort.

Cross dominant eye/hand is fairly awkward, so you will ideally either become proficient at using the weapon with your left hand as your master arm, or retrain your right eye to be dominant.

Also machine gun usage is right handed due to the feed/ejection on the C9/C6 so your better off looking into to a method to help you overcome the left eye dominance.

Ideally you will be able to operate the rifle with both hands and eyes as situations do come up that using your master side isn’t tactically sensible.

 

[RichardCaan]

You can retrain your eyes if you want to make the effort.

Cross dominant eye/hand is fairly awkward, so you will ideally either become proficient at using the weapon with your left hand as your master arm, or retrain your right eye to be dominant.

Also machine gun usage is right handed due to the feed/ejection on the C9/C6 so your better off looking into to a method to help you overcome the left eye dominance.

Ideally you will be able to operate the rifle with both hands and eyes as situations do come up that using your master side isn’t tactically sensible.

Thank you for the reply brother, do you have any recommended way to retrain my eyes so my right eye becomes stronger? It was very very very embrassing to have the crappiest score in the range.

 

[KevinB]

I’m not an optometrist.

Years ago there was some stuff in small arms coaching manuals about using patches over ones dominant eye to bring the other eye to greater strength — but I don’t know how well that worked beyond the theory.

A friend of mine used to put a patch on his left eye when shooting further than 200m with the C1A1 and C7 (pre C79 Elcan) he said it helped.

I can shoot using either eye - and while I’m dominant right handed, my eyes are nearly identical, so I prefer shooting right, but have the ability to transition shoulders if I need to

I would recommend talking to an optometrist to get a professional opinion and advice.

 

[childs56]

I’m not an optometrist.

Years ago there was some stuff in small arms coaching manuals about using patches over ones dominant eye to bring the other eye to greater strength — but I don’t know how well that worked beyond the theory.

A friend of mine used to put a patch on his left eye when shooting further than 200m with the C1A1 and C7 (pre C79 Elcan) he said it helped.

I can shoot using either eye - and while I’m dominant right handed, my eyes are nearly identical, so I prefer shooting right, but have the ability to transition shoulders if I need to

I would recommend talking to an optometrist to get a professional opinion and advice.

I recommend you see a Optometrist also and or learn to shoot left handed. I shoot rifle primarily left handed but machine guns right handed.

 

[RichardCaan]

I recommend you see a Optometrist also and or learn to shoot left handed. I shoot rifle primarily left handed but machine guns right handed.

For sure, I am hoping I resolve this issue before I hop on BMOQ

 

[Booter]

do not become a cross eye dominant shooter because you can make it work. There is a ceiling to how useful and good that 99% of cross eye dominant shooters can be. They can pass quals- but they’ll never be “good”. There are outliers- but you aren’t one of them. (Probably)

I trained some new shooters with eye patches and had some luck. But it take time and commitment.

 

[Kirkhill]

do not become a cross eye dominant shooter because you can make it work. There is a ceiling to how useful and good that 99% of cross eye dominant shooters can be. They can pass quals- but they’ll never be “good”. There are outliers- but you aren’t one of them. (Probably)

I trained some new shooters with eye patches and had some luck. But it take time and commitment.

As a similarly afflicted individual, right hand dominant, left eye dominant, I concur with checking with an optometrist. My problem started with an astigmatism from birth.

I struggled with scopes (including microscopes).

 

[childs56]

Quick question, did they explain eye relief to you? Did they set the C79 site for eye relief? Reason I ask is the black ring and then white blurry might be a quick fix with eye relief.
It might have just been coincidence that your left eye relief was set properly.

 

[RichardCaan]

Quick question, did they explain eye relief to you? Did they set the C79 site for eye relief? Reason I ask is the black ring and then white blurry might be a quick fix with eye relief.
It might have just been coincidence that your left eye relief was set properly.

Whats a eye relief haha? The guys who used the same C7A2 before me had no issue
EDIT: could you please explain how to set the eye relief, maybe if I set it be better next time. So far no one told me anything about eye relief haha.

 

[RichardCaan]

As a similarly afflicted individual, right hand dominant, left eye dominant, I concur with checking with an optometrist. My problem started with an astigmatism from birth.

I struggled with scopes (including microscopes).

What did you do to resolve your issue or fix your shooting skills, I am in the same boat as you haha and want to get this solved before BMOQ!

 

[RichardCaan]

do not become a cross eye dominant shooter because you can make it work. There is a ceiling to how useful and good that 99% of cross eye dominant shooters can be. They can pass quals- but they’ll never be “good”. There are outliers- but you aren’t one of them. (Probably)

I trained some new shooters with eye patches and had some luck. But it take time and commitment.

Thank you for the input, I guess it's going to be eyepatches around the house! Just curious how much months did it take your shooters to become more right eye dominant? How long do you recommended wearing the eyepatch for?

 

[Kirkhill]

What did you do to resolve your issue or fix your shooting skills, I am in the same boat as you haha and want to get this solved before BMOQ!

Let's just say that life was different 40 years ago.

Listen to the guys that are "in" just now. But I would start with a visit to the optometrist.

 

[RichardCaan]

Let's just say that life was different 40 years ago.

Listen to the guys that are "in" just now. But I would start with a visit to the optometrist.

Understood, thanks for reaching out!

 

[Booter]

Thank you for the input, I guess it's going to be eyepatches around the house! Just curious how much months did it take your shooters to become more right eye dominant? How long do you recommended wearing the eyepatch for?

Talk to your eye doc like everyone is saying- they’ll be able to show you how to strengthen your eye. It varied for the patch fix. Some people was very short- some people never were able to- but there are ways to strengthen that eye.

 

[childs56]

Whats a eye relief haha?

The distance between your eye and the Rifle Sight
Check these pictures for a better understanding.

Google Image Result for https://i.ytimg.com/vi/LI8m2kWHsg4/hq720.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEhCK4FEIIDSFryq4qpAxMIARUAAAAAGAElAADIQj0AgKJD&rs=AOn4CLCZfxCG3--JBk_Eze7c4YbJDmo6bQ

The guys who used the same C7A2 before me had no issue
EDIT: could you please explain how to set the eye relief, maybe if I set it be better next time. So far no one told me anything about eye relief haha.

 

[Eaglelord17]

You can retrain your eyes if you want to make the effort.

Cross dominant eye/hand is fairly awkward, so you will ideally either become proficient at using the weapon with your left hand as your master arm, or retrain your right eye to be dominant.

Also machine gun usage is right handed due to the feed/ejection on the C9/C6 so your better off looking into to a method to help you overcome the left eye dominance.

Ideally you will be able to operate the rifle with both hands and eyes as situations do come up that using your master side isn’t tactically sensible.

C6 and C9 can be operated left handed. As a lefty it is the only way I have ever operated them. The C9 ejects far enough forward it isn’t a problem and C6 ejects downward.

Only issues I have run into running them left handed is accidentally putting on the safety on the C6.

The one firearm I have used in the CAF which was a issue for lefties was the Browning Hi-Power, which soon enough won’t be a issue.

 

[childs56]

C6 and C9 can be operated left handed. As a lefty it is the only way I have ever operated them. The C9 ejects far enough forward it isn’t a problem and C6 ejects downward.

Only issues I have run into running them left handed is accidentally putting on the safety on the C6.

The one firearm I have used in the CAF which was a issue for lefties was the Browning Hi-Power, which soon enough won’t be a issue.

I fired the both the C9 and C6 right handed, it was easier to deal with the ammo belts. Especially when the crappy plastic drum fell off the c9. Then you go full rambo....

 

[medicineman]

I've seen people do as Kevin suggests, I've seen people that shoot with their dominant operating side and move their head to accommodate the dominant eye, I've seen people just switch out from right to left/vice versa. There is a practical advantage to being able to shoot both sides - that of being able to continue fighting if one side is injured. I taught myself to shoot off handed when I was a teenager - was shooting precision pistol for a bit in school 1 handed dueling style when I had an elbow injury playing other sports, so had to switch hands out - I shot left hand to right eye with decent effect - actually came in useful during a combat pistol shooting test the USMC had us do when training with them in California - for the final engagement we had to load/make ready/and engage targets with our off hand only (used the "injured" arm to hold the pistol in place to load the mag though).

 

[KevinB]

I've seen people do as Kevin suggests, I've seen people that shoot with their dominant operating side and move their head to accommodate the dominant eye, I've seen people just switch out from right to left/vice versa. There is a practical advantage to being able to shoot both sides - that of being able to continue fighting if one side is injured. I taught myself to shoot off handed when I was a teenager - was shooting precision pistol for a bit in school 1 handed dueling style when I had an elbow injury playing other sports, so had to switch hands out - I shot left hand to right eye with decent effect - actually came in useful during a combat pistol shooting test the USMC had us do when training with them in California - for the final engagement we had to load/make ready/and engage targets with our off hand only (used the "injured" arm to hold the pistol in place to load the mag though).

We grew up in a different era of Canada though.

When you could get pistols and AR’s and practice yourself. My first AR wasn’t even restricted when I bought it.



I don’t think that option exists anymore, at least practically.