Harriw
Member
- Joined
- Nov 8, 2018
- Messages
- 282
Sounds like a bizarre question, I know. But please hear me out. I've always called myself left handed because I write and throw with my left hand, but I'm actually fairly ambidextrous. I do some activities left-handed, others right-handed, and some a mish-mash of both (I know its bizarre, but I cast a spinning rod with my left, then pass the rod to my right hand to handle the rod twitching).
Anyway, I'm left-eye dominant, so I've been shooting long-guns (and bows) left-handed for years. That's how I shouldered a toy gun while playing as a kid, so it just felt right anyway. Other than bolt guns, I've never really seen right-handed long-guns as a disadvantage to a left-handed shooter (I actually prefer it in some cases). Controls tend to be fairly ambidextrous for the most part (though there are some designs I avoid because of being a lefty). Was never really that big a deal.
But I'm now researching my first hand-gun purchase, and find myself crossing models off the list because safeties/decockers, slide locks, and mag releases are right-hand-only. I've certainly found full-ambi designs that I think I can live with, but I stumbled across another potential solution the other day. I was watching Hickock45 on youtube, and heard him mention that he's actually cross-dominant. He explained that he shoots right-handed, but has a dominant left eye so he shifts his head and/or hold to align his left eye with the sights of a handgun held in his right hand. This option had never occurred to me before. And now the more I think about it, the more I think it makes a lot of sense for me. I'm quite new to this whole handgun thing, so the only muscle-memory I'd have to fight/re-train would be from arcade games in my youth and a CO2 pistol I had years ago. Would I be better off starting from day 1 as a right-handed hand-gun shooter using my left eye? I've experimented with holds a little bit, and it doesn't feel odd to me to hold right-handed... I really think I simply haven't developed a "muscle-memory" preference yet. In fact, I even realized that when playing with nerf guns with my kids, I tend to pass the pistols back and forth between hands, or just keep a small "back-up" in my right hand. I don't expect to ever need to be able to do this - being the Joe-civilian I am - but I can see advantages to shooting a primary weapon left-handed, and a side-arm right-handed.
So the only downside would be that I'd be forcing myself into a cross-dominant situation. So what do you think? Should I side with eye-dominance and shoot with the left hand, or side with the standardized world we live in and shoot with the right hand?
Thanks very much in advance for any suggestions/comments/help!
Anyway, I'm left-eye dominant, so I've been shooting long-guns (and bows) left-handed for years. That's how I shouldered a toy gun while playing as a kid, so it just felt right anyway. Other than bolt guns, I've never really seen right-handed long-guns as a disadvantage to a left-handed shooter (I actually prefer it in some cases). Controls tend to be fairly ambidextrous for the most part (though there are some designs I avoid because of being a lefty). Was never really that big a deal.
But I'm now researching my first hand-gun purchase, and find myself crossing models off the list because safeties/decockers, slide locks, and mag releases are right-hand-only. I've certainly found full-ambi designs that I think I can live with, but I stumbled across another potential solution the other day. I was watching Hickock45 on youtube, and heard him mention that he's actually cross-dominant. He explained that he shoots right-handed, but has a dominant left eye so he shifts his head and/or hold to align his left eye with the sights of a handgun held in his right hand. This option had never occurred to me before. And now the more I think about it, the more I think it makes a lot of sense for me. I'm quite new to this whole handgun thing, so the only muscle-memory I'd have to fight/re-train would be from arcade games in my youth and a CO2 pistol I had years ago. Would I be better off starting from day 1 as a right-handed hand-gun shooter using my left eye? I've experimented with holds a little bit, and it doesn't feel odd to me to hold right-handed... I really think I simply haven't developed a "muscle-memory" preference yet. In fact, I even realized that when playing with nerf guns with my kids, I tend to pass the pistols back and forth between hands, or just keep a small "back-up" in my right hand. I don't expect to ever need to be able to do this - being the Joe-civilian I am - but I can see advantages to shooting a primary weapon left-handed, and a side-arm right-handed.
So the only downside would be that I'd be forcing myself into a cross-dominant situation. So what do you think? Should I side with eye-dominance and shoot with the left hand, or side with the standardized world we live in and shoot with the right hand?
Thanks very much in advance for any suggestions/comments/help!