Left eye dominant

[DrMO]

I'm 66 years old shot right handed my whole life. Can it be done efficiently

[McDave]

Many people shoot right-handed bows even though they are left-eye dominant.  Sometimes they have to squint their left eye closed, and sometimes they just learn to aim with their non-dominant eye.  It is said that a truly instinctive shooter who is focusing only on the target can shoot either way without worrying about it.  I don't know if that's true or not, but some people with more horsepower than I have think it is.

Anyway, the only way to really find out is to learn to shoot left-handed and see if you can shoot better that way.  Most people who switch to their dominant eye seem to improve their shooting.  It seems awkward for about a week, and then seems pretty normal. After about a month, you should know if it was a good idea for you or not. I learned to shoot both ways just for the fun of it and I'm older than you are.

[mangonboat]

I have just the opposite problem. I'm left handed, learned to shoot instinctive left handed, shot that way, quite effectively, target and hinting, for a decade,then I started shooting wheel bows with peeps and sights for 30 years. I  recently decided to go back to my trad recurve bows  and shoot instinctive.

After weeks of practice, I am shooting good groups, but always to the right of the aiming spot, and it gets more right the farther I back up. So, on a wild hunch, I did the test to determine dominant eye and I find that I am now right eye dominant! So now I am trying to decide whether to practice aiming to the left of where I want to hit, which seems illogical for an instinctive shooter, or start shooting right handed and see if I do better.By coincidence, I have a nice RH 35# Damon Howatt Ventura that I've been saving for a grandkid-to-be-named later.

I appreciate any and all suggestions, i.e.,  on how to switch over or become a instinctive switch hitter ( could be a real asset, depending on how astand is laid out). In the meantime, I am going to hold off on upgrading to a heavier/faster  left-handed bow.

[joe nichols]

I am also right handed and left eye dominant.  I might be going to left handed due to an elbow injury but currently it does seem to cause an issue when aiming.  Shooting purely instinctive, seems to have better results.

[McDave]

Mangonboat,

I could list at least a dozen reasons why a LH shooter might hit to the right of the mark.  I suppose it would be best, in your case, to at least eliminate one of them, before you go out and do anything expensive.  Try shooting alternatively with your right eye closed and open (or just tape over the right lens if you wear glasses), and see if that makes any difference in where you hit, to see if your right eye is taking over the aiming of your shot.  If it does, then you might want to consider switching to a RH bow.

If you hit inconsistently to the right, that is probably a form problem and should be dealt with separately.

If you hit consistently to the right and it's not caused by your eye cross dominance, then these would be the most common causes:

1.  Need to change the spine of your arrows or the weight of your point.

2.  You might be shooting a bow that is less center-cut than you are used to.  This will solve itself over time as you get used to it.

3.  Your eye is not over the arrow.  Change your anchor until it is.

4.  You are not coming all the way to full draw, so the arrow is pointing to the right of the target when you release it.  The draw should be sort of "J" shaped, so that at the end of the draw your elbow is moving in an arc around your spine rather than straight back and your forearm ends up in line with the arrow.  If you don't complete the J, then you will miss right, and this can be very consistent, as you might be short-drawing to the same place every time.

5.  Your shoulders might be aligned to the right of the target at full draw.  Have someone hold an arrow across your shoulder blades at full draw.  It should point toward the target.

[mangonboat]

My right-of-aimpoint has been a consistent phenomenon with three different left hand bows. I experimented with closing my right eye and what I saw through my left was completely different from what I saw as my instinctive aim. So I just strung up my RH target bow and , never having shot right-handed before, clustered arrows exactly where I was instinctively aiming them. I think the cause is now clear and now the question is if I can develop good form as I practice shooting a right handed bow. This is so weird. I have good distance vision with both eyes, use minimum strength reading glasses ( I am 58 and read documents or stare at a computer screen all day at work) and I was definitely left-eye dominant before. Oh well.

[wharvey]

I shot bows right handed for years and I'm also left eye dominate. Years ago, due to a shoulder injury I started shooting left handed. After the initial learning curve my shooting was never better. Should have tried it years earlier considering how many things I already did better left handed, like batting and shooting a slingshot.

Can still shoot right handed well enjoy to tune my kids bows but now much prefer left handed.

[the rifleman]

I believe a big factor I that people miss when this topic comes up is how significant is the vision difference between ones dominant eye and non dominant eye.  I think that most folks are blessed with pretty closely matched vision that allows them to have true depth perception and all the other neat stuff that goes with good vision. In those cases squinting an eye or other minor adjustments could allow you to shoot with whatever hand you prefer.
I am right handed and have very little vision in my right eye. Shoot handguns right handed but have to shoot everything else left handed. Learned this the hard way shooting a bow in college. My instructor (we actually had archery as an elective) was ready to kill me. Shooting right handed my arrows hit a mile to the left. We even tried a pin sight moved as far out to left as it would go. Still left hits. Would have needed a sight several inches out on left side to correct prob. Tried shooting lefty but could not keep arrows on the shelf. Spent my first 5 years bow hunting using a crossbow then one day tried a compound and release left handed and it worked for me. About three years ago I bought a left handed longbow and dedicated time every day to learning to shoot it. Soon by using a deep hook and tab controlling my left fingers was second nature. I am now a solidly mediocre shot, but having fun.
For me using my non dominant hand to accommodate my dominant eye was my only option. Hope this helps someone.

[KyStickbow]

I am right handed/left eye dominant. I switched to shooting lefty earlier this year and it is hands down the best thing I ever did for my shooting. It is weird feeling for about a week...but after that everything becomes fluid...at least for me.

[damascusdave]

I am right handed and at least used to be left eye dominant, although now I think neither eye wants the job...I shoot what I call intuitively both right handed and left handed all the time...I am not a great shot, but can hold my own, so it can be done...I did not start shooting until I was 57 and I will be 63 next week

DDave