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I taught myself to bat left handed


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I want to read up on how to use my left hand to shoot. My right is my strong side hand.

 

Should I just use my left eye? Both eyes open with both hands?

 

Shameless Womanizer

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Depends on how your eyes work. If you can easily sight with the left eye, with little or no squint of the right, then that works well. If not, use the dominant eye for both guns.

 

I had to shoot lefty for a while after an injury. I used my right eye. I tuned my head a bit left to better acquire and use the sights. I do not need to squint or close the left eye to do this.

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Aim as you would normally aim (one eye or both) and...dare I say it? Practice. :) Basically you have to "body build" the muscles in your left hand. Lay a pistol on the table beside you while you watch T.V. When a commercial comes on, dry fire 'till you can't. Then do it some more. I think body builders call it sets. Do as many sets as you can. When the show comes back on, watch it. Commercial comes on, dry fire 'till you can't and repeat. Believe me, you'll get lots of "body building" practice.

 

Our off hand seems "dumb," but it's trainable.

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Before I started cowboy action shooting in 2005 (which required two pistols) I had never shot two pistols at the same time before. I started out shooting with my right hand and a strong side holster and a crossdraw. After several matches with people yelling at me to do the "crossdraw twist" everytime I drew my crossdraw (it felt un-natural) I got sick of hearing it so I was determined to learn to shoot with both hands. It took me about two seasons of CAS to get competitive. I practiced drawing, aiming and dry firing over and over again. I began shooting with two strong side holsters. Left hand left eye, right hand right eye. I've since won two New Hampshire "B-Western" championships, a Vermont B-Western Chanpionship and several second and third B-western MA, CT, RI Tri-State and Regional Championships. Ya' never know 'til ya' try!

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I am left handed and shoot with both hands (left and right). I leave both eyes open. Shot my first match as a 49er/duelist 12/22/12. Clean match but I don't know my time. I do shot slow most matches I'm in the middle. When I get the money for new guns I will shot just duelist. Use Ruger Blackhawks

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Aim as you would normally aim (one eye or both) and...dare I say it? Practice. :)/> Basically you have to "body build" the muscles in your left hand. Lay a pistol on the table beside you while you watch T.V. When a commercial comes on, dry fire 'till you can't. Then do it some more. I think body builders call it sets. Do as many sets as you can. When the show comes back on, watch it. Commercial comes on, dry fire 'till you can't and repeat. Believe me, you'll get lots of "body building" practice.

 

Our off hand seems "dumb," but it's trainable.

 

 

^What he said. But don't just work your weak hand, work your strong had too. Otherwise you'll end up with an imbalance and your body doesn't like imbalance.

 

Also, the best advice I was given when I first decided to shoot double duelist came from Madd Mike. Brush your teeth with your weak hand. It sounds odd (Pretty much anything and everything coming from Madd Mike sounds odd. :wacko: ) but it works to get the mind muscle connection revved up. (Mind muscle connection is another term body builders use. ;) )

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^What he said. But don't just work your weak hand, work your strong had too. Otherwise you'll end up with an imbalance and your body doesn't like imbalance.

 

Also, the best advice I was given when I first decided to shoot double duelist came from Madd Mike. Brush your teeth with your weak hand. It sounds odd (Pretty much anything and everything coming from Madd Mike sounds odd. :wacko:/> ) but it works to get the mind muscle connection revved up. (Mind muscle connection is another term body builders use. ;)/> )

 

 

.... not just your teeth, try using your computer mouse with your off hand; there is a lot of little things that you don't even think of ..... doodling with a pen/pencil .... swap your knife and fork around .... stuff like that .... ;)

 

 

... wb(whot cain't use a mouse in his strong hand anymore)j .... ^_^

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Thanks for all the input.

 

I talked to a retired Marine one day at Alpine Range who was Qualifying with the FTW police force. i helped him improve his score by sighting with his left eye.

 

I am so right eye dominate the turning my head to the left seems like a good idea as is doing more fine motor skills with my left hand.

 

Shameless

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Thanks for all the input.

 

I talked to a retired Marine one day at Alpine Range who was Qualifying with the FTW police force. i helped him improve his score by sighting with his left eye.

 

I am so right eye dominate the turning my head to the left seems like a good idea as is doing more fine motor skills with my left hand.

 

Shameless

 

 

 

..... so where is your computer mouse now ?

 

 

 

;)

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I am so right eye dominate the turning my head to the left seems like a good idea as is doing more fine motor skills with my left hand.

Don't get your head caught up in thinking aiming is different just because the gun is in your left hand. Aiming is the same. The hand (and the gun) can easily move to be in the same position as your right gun would be. Aiming is no different. You actually can move your hand far beyond your normal aiming position. Probably 12-18" or so beyond. To demonstrate, imagine holding a pistol in your left hand pointed straight down range. Now see how far to the right you can move that gun while still maintaining the barrel straight down range. If you're reasonably flexible, it will be to the right of your right shoulder.

 

Now aim with your right hand and you'll see that you don't keep the gun to your right, but instead you bring it directly in front of your right eye. The extra distance your left hand must travel in order to be in front of your right eye is less than three inches...which is the distance between your eyes. Hey, I'm the master of stating the almost-obvious. :) Moving your left hand less than three inches to the right is not fine motor skills.

 

The "fine motor skill" needed is the ability to cock the left gun. The next most important ability is being able able to hold it steady...which is more a function of strength. If you watch the really good double duelist, you'll see that what they do really well (I'm only speaking pistols here), that distinguishes them from others, is they can rapidly cock while limiting gun movement.

 

This guy's pretty good at it. :ph34r:

 

 

 

FWIW, I can't brush my teeth left handed, use a mouse left handed, or do practically anything with my left hand other than pull my pistol, cock it, hold it, pull the trigger (repeat four more times) and holster. As a gunfighter, I don't have to be able to cock as fast as the double duelist, but I can cock the gun I've just shot faster than I can aim the other one.

 

 

 

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Don't get your head caught up in thinking aiming is different just because the gun is in your left hand. Aiming is the same. The hand (and the gun) can easily move to be in the same position as your right gun would be. Aiming is no different. You actually can move your hand far beyond your normal aiming position. Probably 12-18" or so beyond. To demonstrate, imagine holding a pistol in your left hand pointed straight down range. Now see how far to the right you can move that gun while still maintaining the barrel straight down range. If you're reasonably flexible, it will be to the right of your right shoulder.

 

Now aim with your right hand and you'll see that you don't keep the gun to your right, but instead you bring it directly in front of your right eye. The extra distance your left hand must travel in order to be in front of your right eye is less than three inches...which is the distance between your eyes. Hey, I'm the master of stating the almost-obvious. :)/>/> Moving your left hand less than three inches to the right is not fine motor skills.

 

The "fine motor skill" needed is the ability to cock the left gun. The next most important ability is being able able to hold it steady...which is more a function of strength. If you watch the really good double duelist, you'll see that what they do really well (I'm only speaking pistols here), that distinguishes them from others, is they can rapidly cock while limiting gun movement.

 

This guy's pretty good at it. :ph34r:/>/>

 

 

 

FWIW, I can't brush my teeth left handed, use a mouse left handed, or do practically anything with my left hand other than pull my pistol, cock it, hold it, pull the trigger (repeat four more times) and holster. As a gunfighter, I don't have to be able to cock as fast as the double duelist, but I can cock the gun I've just shot faster than I can aim the other one.

 

 

Those are the two I have been learning from.

Although I am not a good student. :unsure:/>

 

But one thing they did have me do is what Buck said about dry firing.

 

I am just a half fast Double Duelist. But did shoot my first 18.xx 10-10-4 stage

as a DD this past weekend. :rolleyes:/>

 

YES. I am pating myself on the back for that one.

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Those are the two I have been learning from.

Although I am not a good student. :unsure:/>/>

 

But one thing they did have me do is what Buck said about dry firing.

 

I am just a half fast Double Duelist. But did shoot my first 18.xx 10-10-4 stage

as a DD this past weekend. :rolleyes:/>/>

 

YES. I am pating myself on the back for that one.

 

As well you should, Al. That's great shooting.

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Those are the two I have been learning from.

Although I am not a good student. :unsure:/>/>

 

But one thing they did have me do is what Buck said about dry firing.

 

I am just a half fast Double Duelist. But did shoot my first 18.xx 10-10-4 stage as a DD this past weekend. :rolleyes:/>/>

 

YES. I am pating myself on the back for that one.

 

 

DANG!!!! That's FAST!!! I've gotten into the 19s a few times. Never broken into the 18s yet.

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DANG!!!! That's FAST!!! I've gotten into the 19s a few times. Never broken into the 18s yet.

 

YET! You will. This was my first.

It was a S&D stage.

Problem is. A few stage later I can, and did, put up a 45.xx stage :wacko:/> :blink:/>

Not consistant.

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I have a little different take. I've shot DD since I started about 8 years ago. I am almost blind in my right eye, since early childhood. I am also naturally right handed. My Dad taught me to shoot a long gun left handed when I was about 7 years old. I guess shooting lefty, but being righty, gave me an advantage. I was also a switch hitter in baseball.

 

When I started CAS, I just started practicing with both hands. Lots of practice drawing and dry firing. As stated earlier...muscle memory.Don't worry about your eyes, use whichever is your dominent eye and lots of practice should get you going. :rolleyes:/>

 

Damn, just looked at when I joined SASS and it's been 10 years :o

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