How bothersome is it for a lefty to shoot a right hand bolt gun?

[LynnJr]

I'm also a lefty who shoots ambidextrous without issue but I am mainly a bench shooter.
My uncle is a lefty who goes over the top to cycle the bolt and he is so used to doing it that way he prefers right hand rifles.
On target actions you can even go dual port and pick which direction you load from and which direction you eject from.

[golfish]

My son is a lefty and he shoots everything right. I've asked him a few times to shoot lefty and he says it doesn't feel right..

You know those lefty's they are all messed up

[pennstater]

"You know those lefty's are all messed up".
We are indeed! It's the only damn way I can shoot a rifle. Oh well.

MLC

[tanks]

I've noticed there are no left handed Garands. And in all the military instruction videos and manuals I've never even seen the topic come up. Apparently all Americans were right handed back then.

Ahem, Garands are NOT bolt action rifles.

[sfvshooter]

You're all doing it wrong. Get a LH BA rifle.

[Ora Serrata]

Both my wife and son are left handed. They shoot bolts left handed by reaching over to cycle the bolt. They’re used to it. In fact I got a left handed savage bolt 30-06 for my son and he finds it strange to shoot (he likes milsurp Enfields).

[tomrkba]

Since target shooting and hunting usually involve shooting with a slow rate of fire, do left-hand shooters find it terribly bothersome to have to shoot a right-hand bolt gun? Or is it no big deal? Thanks for sharing any experience you have with this.

Works great in the prone position since running the bolt with the right hand means you don't have to break your grip.

I find other positions to be annoying. I have been looking for a straight pull gun that wasn't a Blaser and Savage just released one.

[Newport]

Left-hand shooter and left eye dominate. Shooting bench rest or with anything that supports the fore-end makes running the bolt right-handed easy. When standing or kneeing with the right arm supporting the fore-end is doable provided you are shooting with irons. Bringing the left-hand over the receiver to run the bolt isn't a problem, it is however very awkward and slow when a scope is mounted.

[subscriber]

Ian on Forgotten Weapons is left handed. He shoots bolts guns from the left and right shoulder: https://www.youtube.com/c/ForgottenW...=bolt%20action

Not all his videos involve shooting, but there are many more than these samples:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrI_-W2rIX0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUPOD99urCE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpAaqgTXuXM

[sigstroker]

The sniper in Saving Ryan's Privates seemed to do okay left-handed.

[Starslinger]

Thanks y'all for sharing your experiences!

[IronsightsRifleman]

Ahem, Garands are NOT bolt action rifles.

True enough. But you still have to work the oprod from the right and keep clear of the spent brass and clip ejecting up from the right. It's a very right-handed rifle.
Dad was a left handed Marine and always complained about those difficulties.

[dizzyblonde]

I'm a rightie that often shoots left handed rifles. I find them more fluid to use from any kind of supported position since I don't have to take my fire control / direction control hand off the gun to cycle the bolt.

[RandyD]

I am a left-handed shooter. When it comes to handguns, there is no disadvantage. Shooting semi-auto rifles and shotguns, again there is no disadvantage unless you are shooting a Garand in a match, and having to single load in the prone position. In that case, there is no remedy. I shoot in small-bore prone competitions and using a right-handed bolt, is a disadvantage. In hunting, I use a left-handed bolt, but in reflection, I can use a right-handed bolt even quicker by using my right hand to manipulate the bolt.

[1990Husky]

I am mostly right handed. I write and shoot left handed. Shooting from a bench or bipod and cycling the bolt with my right hand, I can run the bolt faster and get back on target faster than most if not all right handed shooters. Left hand never leaves the grip and I am on target and ready to pull the trigger as soon as the bolt closes. A right handed shooter cycling the bolt with their right hand can't do that.