Woes of the middle-aging... can't see the front sight clearly WITH my glasses on

[CoalCrackerAl]

When i needed glases. I had my son measure the distance from my eye to the rear sight. On my crack shot. The eye doc made my prescription. The focal point starts at 18 inches. They work well. Only regret is getting the auto darken.

 

[1KPerDay]

When i needed glases. I had my son measure the distance from my eye to the rear sight.

How does that help?

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

I can now see my sights clearly on all my guns. The crackshot is the closest the rear sight on my guns would be to my face. With scopes i don't need the glasses. I use them only for shooting.

 

[ericuda]

I just wonder what hickok45 does. He hits everything with open sighted rifles and pistols and some rifles at longer range.

 

[GE-Mini-Gun]

Get your script made for shooting…I had the same issue and after talking with the Doc, she agreed to measure for what I needed. She mentioned I wouldn’t be able to see clearly beyond the sights…I informed her that wasn’t important…got a puzzled look until I explained how Bullseye shooting works. To date my scores haven’t slipped so I’m GTG, once they start to drop I’ll get new inserts.

 

[1KPerDay]

She mentioned I wouldn’t be able to see clearly beyond the sights…I informed her that wasn’t important.

Well I should be okay then since I can see my sights fine without lenses. But I’m not. I guess I’m too engrained in seeing the target clearly for accurate shooting. I’ll have to try some groups I guess.

 

[George P]

I am not worrying about it; I can hit COM decently enough - which is why I have certain handguns in the first place; since I shoot 100X more shotgun at targets, I am not going to change to worrying ab out a front sight

 

[tws3b2]

50 old??? Wait till your middle 70s. Out shooting my 550-1 the other day and I couldn't see the front sight. First thing that popped into my head?? " I must be getting old". Old is not number of years. It's attatude. I decided I will get old at 85 or so, Maybe.

 

[tws3b2]

I just wonder what hickok45 does. He hits everything with open sighted rifles and pistols and some rifles at longer range.

I just wonder what hickok45 does. He hits everything with open sighted rifles and pistols and some rifles at longer range.

Hickok45 does wear glasses.

 

[LightninST]

I ask my eye doctor if I could bring in my pistols he said sure !
Then he ask me about shooting and what guns I liked .
Turns out he target shoots indoors , low light he uses shooting prescription glasses with his contacts .
Like they say you never know till you ask

 

[Strainer]

I have the same issue of losing crisp vision with age. The OP observes undiminished skill in his practical shooting, which is great. And I think it’s best to go with what you can still do well. I tried shooting glasses but thought it impractical. I got away from using a pistol for precise shooting to more defensive practice and plinking, which to me is more the purpose of a pistol anyway. So I mostly satisfy myself with short distance double taps at the best speed I can reasonably manage, etc. A slightly fuzzy front sight doesn’t matter for that, so I am happy. Just my 2 cents.

 

[JN01]

From Grant Cunningham in the Gun Digest Book of the Revolver, commenting about his deteriorating eye sight:

"I discovered that if I focused on the target, instead of trying to focus on my front sight blade, I could shoot surprisingly accurately. Heresy! The reason is simple: alignment guides still align things even if they’re not in perfect focus. The sharper the focus, the more precise the alignment, that’s all!

Having the front sight in focus gives us the most precise sight alignment, but having the target in focus gives the most precise sight picture. A loss of precision in one seems to be compensated by a rise in precision in the other. The technique is simple: focus on the target. As you do so, bring the sights into your line of sight. Keep your focus on the target, and look through the sights. Now just get the sight alignment/sight picture that you already know. The sights will be fuzzy, but you’ll easily be able to discern when everything is as it should be. That’s all there is to it!"

 

[George P]

From Grant Cunningham in the Gun Digest Book of the Revolver, commenting about his deteriorating eye sight:

"I discovered that if I focused on the target, instead of trying to focus on my front sight blade, I could shoot surprisingly accurately. Heresy! The reason is simple: alignment guides still align things even if they’re not in perfect focus. The sharper the focus, the more precise the alignment, that’s all!

Having the front sight in focus gives us the most precise sight alignment, but having the target in focus gives the most precise sight picture. A loss of precision in one seems to be compensated by a rise in precision in the other. The technique is simple: focus on the target. As you do so, bring the sights into your line of sight. Keep your focus on the target, and look through the sights. Now just get the sight alignment/sight picture that you already know. The sights will be fuzzy, but you’ll easily be able to discern when everything is as it should be. That’s all there is to it!"

And exactly what I said I do - and it works!

 

[entropy]

50 old??? Wait till your middle 70s. Out shooting my 550-1 the other day and I couldn't see the front sight. First thing that popped into my head?? " I must be getting old". Old is not number of years. It's attatude. I decided I will get old at 85 or so, Maybe.

Old is 15 years older than your current age.

From Grant Cunningham in the Gun Digest Book of the Revolver, commenting about his deteriorating eye sight:

"I discovered that if I focused on the target, instead of trying to focus on my front sight blade, I could shoot surprisingly accurately. Heresy! The reason is simple: alignment guides still align things even if they’re not in perfect focus. The sharper the focus, the more precise the alignment, that’s all!

Having the front sight in focus gives us the most precise sight alignment, but having the target in focus gives the most precise sight picture. A loss of precision in one seems to be compensated by a rise in precision in the other. The technique is simple: focus on the target. As you do so, bring the sights into your line of sight. Keep your focus on the target, and look through the sights. Now just get the sight alignment/sight picture that you already know. The sights will be fuzzy, but you’ll easily be able to discern when everything is as it should be. That’s all there is to it!"

Same here. When I mentioned raising my head and looking through the top of the progressive segmant to sharpen up the front sight earlier, that's mainly for Bullseye (which I still like to practice at occasionally), or past 25 yards. I actually took the sights off of one of my pistols (Taurus PT145) because I was hitting low with them. I shot better after. That gun isn't shot for bullseye, and the max range I practice with it is 15 yards. I, too shoot much more shotgun than pistol or rifle. I have shooting glasses set up just for shotgunning.

 

[Howland937]

I'm currently awaiting a prescription for a contact lenses for one eye. At 44, my non-dominant left eye is still working perfectly. My right eye has a astigmatism that I've been dealing with for a couple years. Never had any type of problems before. I've had 2 pairs of glasses prescribed, but both pairs made everything look like a Dali painting, falling off to the left. New approach is one contact for one bad eye...we'll see.

 

[rbernie]

And exactly what I said I do - and it works!

I find that it works best when the rear sight notch is wide enough to let a decent amount of light around each side of the front sight - my eye naturally wants to equalize the light on each side of the post in the notch, even though it's all fuzzy.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

I read in one of Charlie Askins' books years ago, he said discuss your needs with your optometrist, get a pair just for shooting , focused on the front sight. I knew an appliance repairman years ago, like the finish carpenter he had bifocals with the near vision section on top because he was often looking up at close range.

 

[Australian410hunter]

I feel your pain. At 59 years old I have tried pretty much everything to help my fading close focus. Glasses can help some, but be aware that the more magnification you use, the more parallax you have. In other words, you can see the sights clearly now, but the target may not be exactly where you think it is. Look at a vertical edge with a pair of lined bifocal readers and turn your head slightly and you'll see what I mean. If you shoot competitively in speed events, you will also find as you age your eyes not only don't focus as well, they don't focus as fast. As of 2 months ago, I flew the surrender flag and put red dots on every gun I own. Cost me a small fortune. Was still pretty competitive at steel challenge with irons, but was having to make too many make up shots for my liking. Just couldnt see the sights well enough, fast enough.

I refuse to give up the fight. For pistol my arms are still long enough, with glasses. For shotgun, old groove and post, I found my current glasses I actually have to push over onto my nose to focus on front sight/sight picture. For rifle scope I just wind it out until it suites. For some rifles with the rear sight halfway down the barrel (an express sight) I can still use it, easily. I'm in the same age bracket... and I suspect things are not going to get better!
And yes, I have a couple with dots, however I am not ready to concede yet!! Good luck.

 

[loneviking]

I know about that fading vision. With my reading glasses the front sight is blurry and where did the target go?

I have distance glasses to sharpen that up—but I can’t see the rear sites well.

Then I bought a Staccato which has a blacked out notch and a fiber optic front sight. Perfect! Even without glasses I can tell when that bright red dot is centered.

 

[drband]

I read in one of Charlie Askins' books years ago, he said discuss your needs with your optometrist, get a pair just for shooting , focused on the front sight. I knew an appliance repairman years ago, like the finish carpenter he had bifocals with the near vision section on top because he was often looking up at close range.

Those duo-bifocal safety glasses are available on-line @ Amazon and other sites. I’ll post a link below. Look for the 3M glasses like these— 3M Safety Glasses, BX Dual Readers, +2.0, ANSI Z87, Anti-Fog Clear Lens, Silver/Black Frame, Adjustable Length Temples and Lens Angle https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B007JZ1XT6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_EREFDDNAD9E7JEGBZPNK
and they come in several strengths to match your prescription.

 

[Pat Riot]

I am 60. I have worn glasses since the age of 5 and have always had terrible vision. I am technically “far sighted” but have never seen any distance, near or far, clearly without correction. If my doctor adjusts my lenses to see 20/20 the focal point is so narrow that I have no periphery at at except for straight ahead and I look like Bubbles from “Trailer Park Boys”. My prescription has been decreased so I see well overall, but not great. It’s a pain in the butt, but I live with it. I also have astigmatism.

Anyway, I found red dot sights and red fiber optics blob out on me due to astigmatism.
I see green fiber optics crystal clear. I have installed them on my S&W model 63 and on my 10/22. This has helped a great deal. I installed Tru-Glo TFX sights on my Glock 45. These work wonderfully for me. They are green fiber / tritium with a white ring around the green dot on the front sight.
I am going to have to pay more to replace the red dot sights on my AR and PCC with green dot sights.

White and black sights help a good deal as well. XS sights on my Winchester 94 are a far cry better for me than stock Marlin 336 sights just because of the color and also a peep rear sight is easier for me than the standard rear notch sights.
Factory Glock sights work well for me on my G34s.

On my revolvers that have fixed non-replaceable sights I plan to pint the front sights with white or fluorescent green horizontal lines near the very top of the ramp sight. I am debating on installing green fiber optics on my revolvers that have pinned in front sights but it almost seems sac-religious to put fiber optics on a S&W 19-4 or a 17-3 in place of Patridge sights.

Regarding sight correction, I have tried having my optometrists set up lenses for shooting for iron sights on rifles. I have tried having the focal point at the length of the front sights from my eyes. I have tried making it so the target was clear. I have tried trifocals (I wear progressive bifocals now). I have tried dedicated shooting glasses. I have tried various doodads that attach to my glasses. None of these options worked for me in my CAS or IDPA competitions and for shooting in general.
I refuse to carry special glasses or optics just for shooting. I see them as a crutch. A crutch I may not have in a defensive shooting situation.
So, I have my glasses set up for everyday life and I work around my eyesight issues with color and contrast.

Something I have discovered recently is I now have an easier time focusing on the front and rear sights of my snubbie revolvers. At the same time now I have a harder time with the sights on my 6” and 7.5” revolvers. Annoying! Perhaps painting or changing the sights to fiber will help...except I can do fiber on Cowboy Action revolvers.

I resign myself to being a good shooter. I have never been an excellent shooter in regards to target shooting. My eyesight is a hindrance. I used to let it bother me but I eventually realized that all my rounds aren’t going to hit in a tight little group at 25 yards from my handguns. They still all hit in the center mass of the target or in a small dinner plate sized circle. My iron sighted rifles all hit in kill zone. That’s good enough for me.

 

[JCooperfan1911]

I just wonder what hickok45 does. He hits everything with open sighted rifles and pistols and some rifles at longer range.

Because his targets really aren’t that far. His 16” gong is set at 80 yards and it looks much farther in the videos due to camera angles. He is also an experienced shot.

 

[Flatbush Harry]

My ophthalmologist asked what distance I wanted to be in best focus. I measured 30" from my eyes...he wrote script accordingly. My non-glasses vision is 20/25-30 in my right eye, 20/25 in left eye. With glasses, 20/20 in both eyes. I'm almost 75 so it won't get better. The glasses help. My script changed only in the cylinder (for astigmatism)...haven't gotten new glasses yet as old ones are still pretty good.

It's a comedown from 20/10 &20/15 in my early 20s.

Harry

 

[entropy]

So, I have my glasses set up for everyday life and I work around my eyesight issues with color and contrast.

Look into (pun intended) Nikon's Transitions Gen8 Colors lenses- I wear the Amethyst ones for Trapshooting. One of them might work for your shooting needs. I have sold several pairs in the Amber and Brown colors for Sporting Clays and upland bird hunting.

https://nikoneyes.com/products/transitions-lenses

They are available in Hi-Index plastic and polycarbonate, to help keep the thickness down. I am very near sighted, so I understand your concern about thickness.

 

[Pat Riot]

Look into (pun intended) Nikon's Transitions Gen8 Colors lenses- I wear the Amethyst ones for Trapshooting. One of them might work for your shooting needs. I have sold several pairs in the Amber and Brown colors for Sporting Clays and upland bird hunting.

https://nikoneyes.com/products/transitions-lenses

They are available in Hi-Index plastic and polycarbonate, to help keep the thickness down. I am very near sighted, so I understand your concern about thickness.

Thank you. I will.