Recurve shooting

[emtpbowhunter]

I would like to start shooting a recurve bow, but my problem is I am a right handed shooter with dominet left eye, I shoot compund very well, but I shut my left eye, and I herd that on a recurve or long bow that this ia a no no. I have tried shooting left but just cant do it. Any advice other than shooting left handed?

[Mac...]

Lay your head over to the right and use your left eye.





Wear a patch over your left eye and adapt you right eye to shoot with.

[LeanMachine]

Nothing wrong with closing one eye. Not preferred, but nothing wrong with it.

[Bisch]

There are several "left eye dominant" right handed shooters on here. I can't really give any advice but know it can be done. I'm sure one or two will chime in at some point.

Bisch

[Txnrog]

How do you shoot a shotgun? Same concept. Opposite eye dominance really just changes your sight picture, you'll just have to get used to the sight picture not being in a straight horizontal. You can change your eye dominance, but it takes some work (i.e. shooting with a patch for a while) - I used to be left eye dominant, but it shifted in my early 20's.

[2050z]

Shoot a left handed bow.

Lean your head over until your left eye is right above the arrow. See if that works for you.

[Deb]

I am left eye dominate and shoot right handed just fine. Both eyes open.

[bob sarrels]

My left eye is my master eye but I shoot right handed. Tried lefty but it was a poor thing to view. As earlier post said, just lay your head over a bit more till your left eye is over the arrow. Converting to lefty is surly the best alternative but I just could not do it. You can make right work but will take a bit more time.

[Tom Kidwell]

You may want to consider shooting TRULY instinctive. I'm left eye dominant and shoot right handed with no problem. The only time it would become a problem, is if a person was using a visual point of reference, such as the arrow tip, etc. By the same principle, no sights or reference point is used when you throw a rock, and it surely doesn't matter which eye is dominant when you throw one. If you do, in fact, require a visual reference point, then you need to try shooting as a lefty, or cheat a little and over-cant the bow until the arrow is nearer to a point directly under your left eye. Before giving up and going lefty, you may want to give instinctive shooting a try.... without any visual references. JMHO

[Txnrog]

You may want to consider shooting TRULY instinctive. I'm left eye dominant and shoot right handed with no problem. The only time it would become a problem, is if a person was using a visual point of reference, such as the arrow tip, etc. By the same principle, no sights or reference point is used when you throw a rock, and it surely doesn't matter which eye is dominant when you throw one. If you do, in fact, require a visual reference point, then you need to try shooting as a lefty, or cheat a little and over-cant the bow until the arrow is nearer to a point directly under your left eye. Before giving up and going lefty, you may want to give instinctive shooting a try.... without any visual references. JMHO

Not to get too off track, but whether concious or subconcious, there's a sight picture involved, even 'instinctive' shooters brains are gauging the release based on some queues coming from the visual picture. You do the same thing with throwing a rock. But, to your point, if you try to rely less on concious aiming points, your thinker will adjust quicker to the fact that the arrow tip, or shelf window or whatever, will be 6 inches (or whatever it ends up being) to the left of the target when your actually pointing right at it - your subconcious is still getting both pictures and can use the right eye's view better than you can trying to think about it. Confused yet?

[jmack]

"When shooting instinctively, it matters not which eye is dominant." Instinctive aiming takes LOTS of practice, and once you've put the time in, eye dominance really won't matter. Muscle memory will have completely taken over...

[emtpbowhunter]

Thanks for all the input, I will try evrything said here except shooting lefty, I tried and just cant do it, but I am a strong believer that we should all shoot compound and traditional. Thanks for your help folks.

[Deb]

Thanks for all the input, I will try evrything said here except shooting lefty, I tried and just cant do it, but I am a strong believer that we should all shoot compound and traditional. Thanks for your help folks.

Intresting thought. Why do you think we should shoot both?

[emtpbowhunter]

Intresting thought. Why do you think we should shoot both?

This is just my way of thinking, but as archers we should explore everything there is about the sport, I might not be a good shot with traditional but I am dead on with a compound, so the compound will be my weapon of choice for hunting (for now), but the simplicity of a bow and string in traditional is pretty cool, especially when you see hunters harvest an animal with one. I love to fish also, and most of my equipment is conventional bait casting and spinning rod and reels, but when you see a fisherman using that fly rod, it just cool. Maybe its the idea of the old ways never die down.

[RickBarbee]

I am , and shoot right handed, but am left eye dominant.

I close my left eye to shoot.

Rick