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sighting in problems?
- Thread starter tsillik
- Start date
I don't..bifocals..use the reading lower to 'see' the sights and then 'estimate' the target..not ideal but whatareyagonna do?You guys with bifocals, how do sight in on the front and rear sight and target all at once? I have to have one or the other blurry. terry
I can sometimes 'see' the sights and try to keep hand still as I tilt my head forward to 'see' the target..
Use big targets?
NoSecondBest
New member
No one can focus on both sights and the target all at once. That's not possible for anyone regardless of age or eyesight. That's just how the eye works. Even a camera can't do that. Bifocals simply make using "irons" worse than before needing them. Shooting a handgun accurately requires the shooter to focus sharply on the front sight with the target being a slight blur. Young eyes have the ability to change focus almost instantly and can shift from the front sight to the target and back again almost instantly. Older eyes lose this visual acuity. I suggest getting a pair of glasses that focus the front sight at what opticians call intermediate distance (around 24-28") so that you can clearly see the front sight, and depending on your vision either leave the top clear or put enough prescription in to see infinity clearly (your target). As you age and lose some of your vision, you have to get glasses to fit your shooting needs. What you use around the house, etc, might help quite a bit but won't allow you to shoot your best using open sights. That's just one of the facts about getting older and having your vision lose its clarity due to age. Find an optometrist who's dealt with this before. Believe it or not, there's a lot of them that get asked to do this all the time. I've found some who actually keep a stick around with faux sights on it and have you look at the distances you need for shooting and make glasses that greatly improve the situation.
I've had progressive lenses (no line bi-focals) for years. I had issues the first few times I went shooting but somehow, I apparently adjusted. I don't have any issues as I apparently unconsciously adjust the angle to where I am looking through the part of my glasses where it changes. The glasses were only around $100 at Walmart if you get their $9 frames (I've had several and they hold up very well and come with a year warranty I have never needed).
"...the front and rear sight and target all at once..." You're not "sighting in". Like NoSecondBest says, with or without bifocals or no prescription glasses at all, you cannot focus on three things at once. You focus on the front sight for target shooting. The target for the shooting games.
NoSecondBest
New member
The Merit Aperture surely is a good device for sharpening the target up for precision shooting. I have owned several over the years and they worked to very good effect. However, they do not correct visual problems that are from aberrations within the eye. Before you buy one, simply take a piece of paper and poke a pin hole in it and look through the pin hole. Does the target/object you're looking at "sharpen" up by looking through it? Is so, it will help. If not, you have other problems that this device won't fix. It costs nothing to do the experiment, so try it before spending the money. There are many other things that can change due to age. You can start to get defects in the inner lens that every one gets with age....the lens loses its ability to flex/bend. You can also get pre-cataract clouding and defects within the lens due to pre-cataract conditions. Aging eyes happens to everyone and there are several things that can be done to assist with the resulting problems. Try the pinhole paper trick and if a Merit helps....great. If not, see an experienced eye doctor and see what they suggest. Getting a medical evaluation is reasonably inexpensive, about the same price as the Merit Aperture. Good luck with this.yes I realize you cannot focus on all three, I just wanted to know which was best to focus on first, that thing that goes on your glasses looks to be quite the help on focusing on your target. terry
I use drug store reading glasses which focus for me at the distance the FRONT SIGHT is from my eyes when shooting a handgun.
Bifocals won't work unless they're made to focus so you can read with your arms fully extended, and you're shooting a derringer or other short handgun.
The reading glasses have numbers like 2.25, 2.50, 2.75 etc. Try different strengths of reading glasses while standing a little more than your extended arm's length away from a shelf in the drug store. You want the little bottles or whatever is on the shelf to be the same distance from your eyes as the front sight. Buy the ones that work best for you, and try shooting while wearing them.
You could just take your handgun and see which strength glasses focus best, but people might freak out.
Bifocals won't work unless they're made to focus so you can read with your arms fully extended, and you're shooting a derringer or other short handgun.
The reading glasses have numbers like 2.25, 2.50, 2.75 etc. Try different strengths of reading glasses while standing a little more than your extended arm's length away from a shelf in the drug store. You want the little bottles or whatever is on the shelf to be the same distance from your eyes as the front sight. Buy the ones that work best for you, and try shooting while wearing them.
You could just take your handgun and see which strength glasses focus best, but people might freak out.
You don't....something will always be out of focus .
I usually look at the sights first , get them lined up. Then look at the target...get an idea where it's at.
Finish up focusing on the front sight with the rear and target sorta not in true focus but having an idea of where they were .
I'm wearing tri-focals now and when I discovered what a Millet SP-1 Red Dot sight could do on top of a handgun I was estatic...I could shoot tiny groups again.
Getting old really sucks rocks !
I usually look at the sights first , get them lined up. Then look at the target...get an idea where it's at.
Finish up focusing on the front sight with the rear and target sorta not in true focus but having an idea of where they were .
I'm wearing tri-focals now and when I discovered what a Millet SP-1 Red Dot sight could do on top of a handgun I was estatic...I could shoot tiny groups again.
Getting old really sucks rocks !
Focus for target or distance shooting should be on the front sight...the rear sight and target will be blurry. For defensive shooting at speed, out to ten yards, it really doesn't matter since your target area is so much bigger.
As Cooper once said, "Front Sight, press, Front Sight, press, Front Sight, press." Meaning focus and trigger manipulation. To practice, try using a sharpened #2 pencil to place a small dot or line on your front sight...if you can see it while pressing the trigger, you are indeed focused on the front sight.
Best Regards, Rod
As Cooper once said, "Front Sight, press, Front Sight, press, Front Sight, press." Meaning focus and trigger manipulation. To practice, try using a sharpened #2 pencil to place a small dot or line on your front sight...if you can see it while pressing the trigger, you are indeed focused on the front sight.
Best Regards, Rod