Dominant eye macula damage forces crossover rifle stock enquiry

Shooting Supplies : Ammo - Reloading - Firearms - Optics - Accessories
Krabryn

Krabryn

Well-Known Member
The macula is the small area of the retina responsible for the highest visual acuity, so my eye specialist told me. Damage to the macula causes a distorted image of the cross hairs reticule and blurring of the target (I keep both eyes open). If it is limited to one eye, a crossover stock (as more commonly found in shotguns) would bring the unaffected eye into line and cure the problem.
Has anyone else had the same problem and resorted to this type of solution?
Has anyone good experiences and can recommend a stocker capable of taking on this unusual type of custom challenge?
Thanks, K
 
I would say it is more common for people to start shooting left handed, I know at least one right handed rifle shooter who shoots off the left due to eye issues

cross over stocks are even more difficult to get a correct fit

I started shooting left handed with a shotgun to solve an eye dominance issue.
 
i bought a 303 with a brass offset scope fitted to trade on along with some other rifles ,what it was fitted on for i dont know but it could be used with the left eye right shoulder i never shot it ,just traded it on
 
I've always had a dodgy right eye, and nothing glasses or surgery could correct. I'm also right handed. I had to switch shoulders when I took up shot gun. I'd been shooting rifles right shoulder, left eye. Head sort of cranked over the stock. This worked for the rifle but when I took up shot gun, it's a whole new ball game. I had to learn to shoot off the left and believe me, at first it's a nightmare. Totally alien, even just to break the gun and put cartridges in the thing. Anyway I stuck with it but still shot the rifle off the right shoulder, for a time. Now though, through staying with the left shoulder for the shot gun, I now shoot every thing from the left and it's very much second nature. If you go down this route, it takes a while but is worth it. Hope this is relevant…

cjs
 
Andrew Coull of Osborn Gunsmiths at Auchterhouse, near Dundee makes the best crossover shotgun stocks that I have ever seen. But, like everybody else says, change to the left shoulder. Not too difficult to get left handed rifles nowadays.
Good hunting.
 
I am left eye dominant, albeit right handed. I have always shot left handed from a young age. 10 years ago I dislocated my left wristm, and faced with the prospect of 10 weeks in plaster with pins through it and clear possibility of having quite little use from it, out came the pellet gun. I tin of pellets later I was pretty effectively with my right hand and eye. Ok not as quickly or as well as my left, but good enough that several rabbits regretted my ability and I am sure with another tin or two I would be pretty much there. Fortunately once my left wrist had recovered and a bit of physio later I have gone back to left handed, but will use a right handed shot if I need to - say if shooting from a vehicle.

And with a shotgun, in many ways its your front hand that does the pointing, all your trigger hand is squeeze a trigger. It should take long to retrain from the otherside. You know how to shot, it's just applying that to a different set of muscles.
 
I would imagine that the main problem you would find putting a cross eye stock on a bolt action would be the affect on the throw of the bolt, so affecting loading and reloading for a follow up shot etc. I guess the only type of rifle you could do this type of conversion would be on a break barrel rifle. I am also sure it would be very difficult to do this type of work on a rifle with a stock fixing bolt like the Sauer 202.
 
Had the same problem and struggled at first shooting left handed as It never seemed comfortable.So eventually bought a cheap ambidextrous air rifle and just kept on practicing with that until it felt natural.Now I shoot left handed and it does not bother me.
 
Sorry to hear about your problem. Might be an idea to try and change eyes and shoot with the right closed. I have seen some people who seem to do fine working a RH bolt off the left shoulder by using the front hand to operate it. Probabl easier off sticks or a bipod than freehand but might be a good place to start without incurring big extra expanse.

Best wishes,

David.
 
As has already been said you will be better off learning to shoot left handed.

My brother who is right handed and a ex-PWRR sniper and now a game keeper has suffered with eye damage so was forced to learn to shoot left handed which I did along with him at the same time.

It's not as hard as you would think, as with all shooting it's all in the trigger control.
 
I am left eye dominant and right handed, the vision in my left eye is also sharper, clearer and brighter than that of my right eye.

I do however shoot a right handed rifle. I keep my left eye closed and rely on having focused the eye piece lens on my scope to get a clear sight picture. I manage pretty well doing this.... I couldn't shoot with two eyes open though as my left eye would always take over and make things very difficult .

have you tried just keeping one eye open and relying on focusing your scope to correct the problem... Perhaps you could try a variety of scopes and might get lucky. I am assuming this problem can't be corrected by wearing glasses?

I find shooting a shotgun a lot more difficult, again, I always have to keep my dominant left eye closed before I take a shot. I have tried shooting left handed but it doesn't seem natural at all and I couldn't get on with it .

Good luck with trying to solve your problem.
 
Last edited:
There was a cross-over stock for sale at John Dicksons in Edinburgh last time I was in, so might be worth checking. I've been on shoots where people used them & they shot just fine.
 
I too right handed but shoot left handed. Instinctively I have shot a right handed rifle off the left shoulder. Ambidextrous stocks being easier but not a necessity. Being right handed then the bolt is on the dominant dude and allows quick recycling without taking the hand off the stock so keeping on target. It works for me and much better than cross over stocks.

BE
 
srvet said:
Would a custom scope mount be able to do the same? Zeroing might be fun though
Click to expand...

Might work but as you have said zeroing would always be a compromise (unless always shooting at a given range).

Following sudden deterioration (due to a medical condition) of the sight in my right eye I realised that I could no longer shoot with that eye. Being right handed I investigated all the possibilities including cross stocks and offset scope mounts, but eventually decided it was better to just bite the bullet (pun intended) and go left handed....

sold my rifles, bought a left handed one and spent a few hours (probably less than 5) on a range, spread over a few weeks. Now (5 months on) I'm as accurate as I ever was using my natural hand. In total I was probably out of stalking for about 3 weeks before i felt confident enough to shoot deer left handed.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Subscribe to Rifle Shooter - With insurance cover and 10% discount
Back
Top