Off-hand training

[johngalt]

Anyone successfully transition to their off hand? I've been having trouble with my dominant side shoulder, and after a recent MRI, I decided I should start practicing with the off hand.

I primarily shoot bullseye, so far I'm not doing great. Proficiency will take a while - the fine motor control muscles aren't there yet. I'm hoping I get there eventually.

My dominant eye is on the same side as my dominant hand. Should I try to switch eyes also?

 

[Golddollar]

I had to teach myself to shoot bullseye cross-dominantly when I had the retinal hemorrhage in my right eye. I would say go with whichever eye you can sight with best.

 

[Rudi]

Always good to practice with each hand.

 

[LVSteve]

I'm cross dominant, so switching to my off hand is not the bugaboo it could be for some. It also probably helps that I shoot and write with one hand but throw with the other. I wouldn't say I would be any good at bullseye, but once I persuade my dominant hand to do support duties, I'm certainly minute of goblin at sensible SD distances.

 

[Doug M.]

We trained on such at the SO and I carried my BUG to be used primarily by the off hand. It is not as important to me as it was then, but I do still have to do some with the off hand for the LEOSA qualification.

 

[petepeterson]

I had shoulder surgery last week, and worked a little with the offhand this weekend, one-handed. Not great results. Good enough for up close, but I went 0-2 with the raccoons at around 30-40 feet. I need either more practice, or quicker healing.

 

[WR Moore]

Bullseye is gonna require some work if you're one handing it. Olympic Champion Bill McMillan was cross dominant. He canted his pistol slightly to use the dominant eye. IIRC, there's some video of him out there showing how to shoot bullseye-link below. Short of the video there's: Attention Required! | Cloudflare

Electronic copy of an article in Guns Magazine.

How to REALLY shoot a Pistol! (Film)

 

[mckenney99]

A couple times a year I make a pistol range trip that is dedicated to shooting left handed only. I have even gone so far as to order a left handed holster that mirrors one of my daily carry holsters only this holster is for my S&W M&P 22 Compact. Using the M&P 22 Compact allows me to concentrate on the basic mechanics initially without having to deal with recoil and I can put in a lot of repetitions to refresh my muscle memory without breaking the ammo budget. After I am confident in my performance with the .22, I can then switch over to my daily carry pistol (CSX) in another left handed holster that mirrors my daily RH carry holster.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

Years ago Dean Grenell wrote during WWII when Uncle Sam was paying for his guns and ammo it took him about 2 weeks to achieve the same proficiency with his left hand he enjoyed with his right.
Charlie Askins recommended have eyeglasses ground to focus on the front sight.

 

[M1A]

You should be able to shoot either hand. It's basic, and easy. Just practice.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

Y
Charlie Askins recommended have eyeglasses ground to focus on the front sight.

My eye Doc thought I was nuts when I requested a pair set with Left Eye Far Rx and Right Eye Reading Rx but with focus at 34"! That just happens to be my extended arm holding a J-Frame with a 2" barrel (works fine with 4", 5" & 6" revolvers and full-size Autos too!) Much, Much easier to aim than bifocals!

Ivan

 

[desi2358]

It's a good skill to have, takes a little time to adjust but regular practice at it helps. I started shooting with my left hand years ago. My left eye is the master eye and shooting shotguns effectively right handed proved to be difficult on flying targets. Once I got adjusted to shooting shotguns left handed I made a practice of shooting everything from both sides. I do better with iron sighted rifles left handed (scoped it doesn't seem to matter) and had been subconsciously holding handguns so that my left eye was doing the work already. Just took time and practice for proper trigger control from either side and still practice that way regularly.

 

[johngalt]

I'm hoping it isn't a permanent switch, but it will be a while getting the shoulder back into form. Meanwhile, I've also discovered my off-hand grip strength isn't quite there either.

 

[StrawHat]

Much practice! I started teaching myself weak hand shooing when I was very young. First with a rifle, then a revolver. I competed in PPC, so weak hand accounted for quite a few shots a round. I continue to see my weak hand, writing, numbers, feeding and dressing myself, as 15 years ago it was necessary while recovering from shoulder surgery and it looks like it might happen again.

Kevin

 

[johngalt]

My eye Doc thought I was nuts when I requested a pair set with Left Eye Far Rx and Right Eye Reading Rx but with focus at 34"! That just happens to be my extended arm holding a J-Frame with a 2" barrel (works fine with 4", 5" & 6" revolvers and full-size Autos too!) Much, Much easier to aim than bifocals!

Ivan

I do something similar. My left eye has a full strength prescription for distance, my right has a weaker prescription that gives me 'adequate' distance but I can still focus at close distance.

 

[mtgianni]

I started my son out throwing a baseball with weak hand at about age 7. It was easy as his sister is a lefty. Grandson also sis this. I think it is a good prep for many things as well as off hand shooting.