Winking the dominant eye?

rpenmanparker · Jun 17, 2020

I'm strongly left eye dominant, and I shoot left handed. I choose to shoot with my off side eye closed and am able to close my right eye to do this. I don't have the control/coordination to wink my dominant, left eye. But for me that isn't an issue. I can do what I want to do, so no problem. But I'm wondering if it is common to not be able to wink the dominant eye and shoot with the one eye and gun on the non-dominant side . Supposing you are cross eye dominant. Do you have the ability to shoot with only the gun side open by shutting the off side but dominant eye? Or is it normal to only be able to wink the non-dominant eye?

I'm not trying to influence anyone's shooting practice here. I'm just interested in how prevalent the inability to wink the dominant eye is.

oyeme · Jun 17, 2020

It of course can be done. However, it is not a really easy or natural thing for someone to do hence the name, dominant eye.

The helmet mounted display on some military aircraft like the Apache have required right eye dominance. They can be taught to ignore the left eye input so they can use the display properly as it was designed for right eye dominant pilots.

rkittine · Jun 17, 2020

At times I just wear a patch.

rpenmanparker · Jun 17, 2020

rkittine said:
At times I just wear a patch.

Which does work well, but is an on or off thing. The winking can be applied at the last second after both eyes have been used pick up the target.

DonSmith · Jun 17, 2020

I'm right eye dominant and shoot right handed, but probably 20 years ago, I taught myself to shoot left handed. I have no trouble closing/winking my right eye (or my left eye for that matter). I taught myself to do that one day while shooting bluebills from a layout boat in Mitchell's Bay, Ontario. I got frustrated not being able to swing on 'bills crossing in front of me from left to right in a sitting position. So, I taught myself to shoot left handed. That way, depending on whether the birds were coming from right to left or left to right, all I had to do was switch the gun from one shoulder to the other. Doing that, I could complete an almost 180% arc. It felt a bit unnatural with the gun on my left shoulder, but I got used to it and started dumping birds right away. Sometimes even today when shooting sporting clays, I shoot left handed just for fun.

Drew Hause · Jun 17, 2020

The eye winker orbicularis oculi are bilaterally innervated by cranial nerve VII, so when winking one eye, usually the other will close slightly. Check it out in a mirror. For some, it is difficult to volitionally wink one eye without some effect on the visual acuity of the other eye.

Dr Duk · Jun 17, 2020

Maybe close both eyes? :mrgreen:

DEG · Jun 17, 2020

Don't know what's normal, but I am strongly right-eye dominant and it's just as easy for me to wink my right eye as it is the left.

Maybe it's like rolling your tongue; some people just can't do it.

Do this after calling for the target and your scores will improve dramatically.

rpenmanparker · Jun 17, 2020

Dr Duk said:
Maybe close both eyes? :mrgreen:

The ultimate in intuitive shooting.

rpenmanparker · Jun 17, 2020

DEG said:
Don't know what's normal, but I am strongly right-eye dominant and it's just as easy for me to wink my right eye as it is the left.

Maybe it's like rolling your tongue; some people just can't do it.

Do this after calling for the target and your scores will improve dramatically.

I'm gonna try that.

DEG · Jun 17, 2020

rpenmanparker said:
DEG said:

Don't know what's normal, but I am strongly right-eye dominant and it's just as easy for me to wink my right eye as it is the left.

Maybe it's like rolling your tongue; some people just can't do it.

Do this after calling for the target and your scores will improve dramatically.

Click to expand...

I'm gonna try that.

Please have someone film it and post the video so others can learn.

rpenmanparker · Jun 17, 2020

DEG said:
rpenmanparker said:

DEG said:

Don't know what's normal, but I am strongly right-eye dominant and it's just as easy for me to wink my right eye as it is the left.

Maybe it's like rolling your tongue; some people just can't do it.

Do this after calling for the target and your scores will improve dramatically.

Click to expand...

I'm gonna try that.

Click to expand...

Please have someone film it and post the video so others can learn.

That part about others learning is really funny. Good luck with that.

JoeCool · Jun 17, 2020

Drew Hause said:
The eye winker orbicularis oculi are bilaterally innervated by cranial nerve VII, so when winking one eye, usually the other will close slightly. Check it out in a mirror. For some, it is difficult to volitionally wink one eye without some effect on the visual acuity of the other eye.

That is the reason I really don't like winking one, it partially closes and hinders vision in my the other eye. When I lived near Dryke's range in Washington, I shot with Ellen Dryke, Matt's sister, and she shot cross-dominant. She could close one eye with really good control, it did not partially close the other eye at all. She could do that so well she would close an eye when calling for the target, and make the entire shot with one eye closed.

rpenmanparker · Jun 17, 2020

Of course. Funny thing is I recently had lower and upper eyelid surgery. On the left upper, the lid ended up with a little peak in it. When I wink the right lid and the left follows it, that little peak provides some extra opening over the pupil. I could have had the surgeon redo it, but I won't. Looks funny, but I get a little extra opening when winking down the other eye. Sweet.

rkittine · Jun 18, 2020

I watched an exhibition shooter at one shoot's lunch break, who shoot a round of Skeet with a blindfold on. He had a puller that he shot with all the time, so he knew he would get good pulls. He set his feet where he wanted them for feel on each concrete station pad and then mounted the gun, called for the bird, swung, shot and broke 24 of them. There was some wind on the one that he missed.

Same shoot the following year, a guy shot a round of skeet during lunch break, on a unicycle. He went straight.

Bob

rpenmanparker · Jun 18, 2020

rkittine said:
I watched an exhibition shooter at one shoot's lunch break, who shoot a round of Skeet with a blindfold on. He had a puller that he shot with all the time, so he knew he would get good pulls. He set his feet where he wanted them for feel on each concrete station pad and then mounted the gun, called for the bird, swung, shot and broke 24 of them. There was some wind on the one that he missed.

Same shoot the following year, a guy shot a round of skeet during lunch break, on a unicycle. He went straight.

Bob

I do get a kick out of watching trick shooting, stuff like from the hip and the examples you mentioned. You see the same kinds of things with pistols, rifles and in golf. But I don't make the mistake of thinking that has anything to do with me. I try to tailor my methods of doing all kinds of things to my understanding (after 72 years) of what my abilities are. Maybe I could spend a fortune on top-notch coaching and several practice sessions a week to get pretty good at doing it like the champions do. Not likely, but maybe. I'd rather be decent now and a little better than decent in the future just keeping my money in my pocket and teaching myself how to shoot my own way. With some books and other references for help, of course. I find lots of satisfaction in being my own coach. It is how I have learned almost everything physical that I know how to do, tennis, pistol shooting, bicycling, etc. Yes, I had to teach my self how to ride a bike. Even swimming. I taught myself how to swim too. Following coaching isn't part of my makeup.

Winking the dominant eye?

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