Aging eyes and Rimfire shooting

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  • ELLICOTT

    Member
    Feb 28, 2015
    12
    Good day everyone. I am brand new to this site as of today and I shoot mainly Rimfire guns and was wondering if anyone has any ideas for a 59 year old with trouble seeing close up to see the iron sights and to also see the target clearly?
    I do wear readers (drugstore reading glasses) I saw a thing called Eye Pal but was not sure if it works. Thanks for any help you all could offer an old Plinker.
    Have a blessed day everyone.
     

    dist1646

    Ultimate Member
    May 1, 2012
    8,758
    Eldersburg
    I suggest a visit to your eye Dr. and have your eyes examined. Depending on what the Dr. finds, your vision may be fully correctable. You are at that age...! I wound up having surgery and everything is fine. It is amazing what they can do now. Of course, you may not need surgery but it is always best to have an expert diagnosis.
     

    CrazySanMan

    2013'er
    Mar 4, 2013
    11,390
    Colorful Colorado
    My eyes are starting to go and I've found a ghost ring rear sight with a fiber optic or hi-viz tritium front sight is the best for me.

    Also check out the XS Big Dot sights.
     

    Atrox88

    Gold Member
    Jan 7, 2016
    1,245
    Carroll County
    66 year old tri-focal wearing eyes here. Scopes on all of my rimfire rifles but I can manage with hi-viz iron sights on the pistols. The closer together the sights are the better it is but still not perfect. I can get a pair of customs made at Wayne Optical in Hanover, PA and maybe one day I will.
     

    SKIP

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Mar 5, 2009
    3,248
    Glenwood/Glenelg
    In my 70s and enjoy using iron sights at 100+ yards. Lately, the target has began to appeared blurred. Expecting new glasses any day.
     

    Amigo109

    Active Member
    Jan 25, 2018
    265
    Columbia MD
    Check out the Bates method for improving your vision through eye exercises to sTrent hen the museless that control your focussing and impact the shaperson of your eyeball.

    I have some eye issues as well. I started doing some of the focusing exercise and it seemed to help. Then I got lazy and stopped and it seemed to deteriorate back to where it was.

    I can't yet say if it definitely works, and it might not work for all situations, but it's worth a shot.

    I spent a couple grand on specialists and they were no help at all for my particular issue. Your mileage may vary.

    Please PM me if you have success with it.
     

    Mt Airy

    Ultimate Member
    Nov 28, 2010
    1,444
    Frederick county
    Are you talking about shooting rifles or pistols ?
    There is a big difference in the sight radius and also how far is is from your eye?
     

    Pinecone

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Feb 4, 2013
    28,175
    Several options.

    Scope, reticle and target are in the same focus.

    Red dot, same as above

    Shooting glasses, with prescription set to front sight distance. A friend, who shot pistol, took his pistol to the eye doctor to show what was needed.

    But on thing is, you will never be able to have both the front sight and the target in focus. You focus on the front sight and accept that the target will be a bit fuzzy.
     

    photoracer

    Competition Shooter
    Oct 22, 2010
    3,318
    West Virginia
    Several options.

    Scope, reticle and target are in the same focus.

    Red dot, same as above

    Shooting glasses, with prescription set to front sight distance. A friend, who shot pistol, took his pistol to the eye doctor to show what was needed.

    But on thing is, you will never be able to have both the front sight and the target in focus. You focus on the front sight and accept that the target will be a bit fuzzy.
    Get a pair of glasses made with an 18" focus on the dominant eye and your regular prescription in the other. Takes about 15 minutes to get used to them before shooting. Your brain will see the target clearly from your non-dominant eye while your dominant eye will see the sights clearly. And use fiber optics sights both front and rear.
     

    davsco

    Ultimate Member
    Oct 21, 2010
    8,607
    Loudoun, VA
    maybe play with a few handguns and rifles with red dots and actual scopes. folks with aging eyes seem to favor these. i'm 56 and need reading glasses at times but so far so good with iron sighted handguns. but i still have a few guns with red dots and scopes...
     

    knovotny

    Active Member
    Feb 5, 2013
    980
    Aberdeen, MD
    I recommend starting with a visit to your eye Dr. Readers probably just aren't going to cut it. I finally made the jump to glasses and it has made a huge improvement in my shooting. I can actually focus on the front sight now, AND the target is round! Who knew?
     

    slsc98

    Ultimate Member
    May 24, 2012
    6,746
    Escaped MD-stan to WNC Smokies
    . . . was wondering if anyone has any ideas for a 59 year old with trouble seeing close up to see the iron sights and to also see the target clearly? . . .

    What a coincidence; I am 58 and today is my first day post-op following Refractive Lens Replacement procedures on both eyes. Had my right eye done Monday and yesterday was my left.

    BEST ... DAMN ... $9,400 ... I’VE ... EVER ... SPENT ... MY ... ENTIRE ... LIFE !!!!!

    Guaranteed 20/20 vision and NO glasses or contacts for life and positively NO chance of cataracts ... ever — SIGN ME UP!!! :party29:

    Surgeons tell me it’ll be awhile (4-6 weeks) before my brain adjusts to the new lenses but, as soon as I removed the eye shield off my left eye this morning the difference is definite and dramatic (to put it mildly)!!!

    Dr. R. Ousler at GrayStone Clinic — I literally am seeing things like I was when I was in my teens and twenties — freaking unbelievable!!!

    Oh yeah, the whole procedure took less than 10 minutes!
     

    willtill

    The Dude Abides
    MDS Supporter
    May 15, 2007
    24,314
    What a coincidence; I am 58 and today is my first day post-op following Refractive Lens Replacement procedures on both eyes. Had my right eye done Monday and yesterday was my left.

    BEST ... DAMN ... $9,400 ... I’VE ... EVER ... SPENT ... MY ... ENTIRE ... LIFE !!!!!

    Guaranteed 20/20 vision and NO glasses or contacts for life and positively NO chance of cataracts ... ever — SIGN ME UP!!! :party29:

    Surgeons tell me it’ll be awhile (4-6 weeks) before my brain adjusts to the new lenses but, as soon as I removed the eye shield off my left eye this morning the difference is definite and dramatic (to put it mildly)!!!

    Dr. R. Ousler at GrayStone Clinic — I literally am seeing things like I was when I was in my teens and twenties — freaking unbelievable!!!

    Oh yeah, the whole procedure took less than 10 minutes!

    That is very exciting! :thumbsup:


    .
     

    Magnumite

    Ultimate Member
    Dec 17, 2007
    6,561
    Harford County, Maryland
    Perscription shooting glasses as recommended in the previous posts. At the beginning of the first shooting session after getting my first pair of perscription shooting glasses I remember thinking, “Oh, that’s how the front sight look. On my third set and at 63 still loving all black target sights. I use a 26” sight distance (wife and I measured it) for the dominant eye and the standard distance with a bifocal for the opposite eye. There are days when I don’t have to wear any perscription eyewear for irons. For a scope I use the standard lense or no perscription glasses.
     

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