Nearsightedness and iron sights

[hkusp9c]

I went to sight in my DD M4 during the weekend for a 50 yard zero. I looked through the aperture and I could see that there's a target but I couldn't really tell if I was aiming for the center. It was really frustrating and I couldn't even tell if I hit or miss. I'll be only shooting with iron sights for a while and only be shooting for around 100 yards or less. Would it help if I get either a eotech 3x magnifier or a Aimpoint magnifier? or are they for Red dots only?
Thank you for advice.

[Sky_DiveR]

You could pick up one of those shooting glasses that target shooters use. It has a round disk about 1" in diameter with a pinhole in the center that you look thru. I think they also have one with a suction cup on it if you already have shooting glasses, which you just flip down to use.

I hear it brings everything into focus... target and sights. Something about the eyes will automatically adjust for focus thru the little pinhole. Haven't tried it myself but I know a couple of target pistol shooters that are using them. They might help if you don't or can't use red-dots or holo-sights.

I don't know bout the magnifiers but it would seem they are just like low magnification scopes to me. I don't see how you could use them with iron sights tho.

[ronas]

Nearsightedness and iron sights

I have the same problem you experience. Don't really have any great answers however my friend has an AR 15 with the Eotech with the red dot and I and shoot it fine out to 100 yards, which is how long the range is.

I think some sort of optic is the best solution for those of us that don't see as well as we did when we were younger.

[xrMike]

I am lightly nearsighted but shoot better than most, with irons, as long as I wear my glasses.

Don't you have a pair of glasses or contacts to correct your vision?

[coop44]

once I got to a certain age NO amount of corrective lenses would help. The "Ocular Device" mentioned earlier looks weird but it works!!! Brownells sells them.

[Stanze]

I'm nearsighted. How would one go about getting prescription shooting glasses made?

I don't want the Lasik surgery, I hear your eyes can hemorrhage during extreme G-Force levels and I intend on piloting my own Millennium Falcon someday.

[Scarecrow Repair]

I am lightly nearsighted but shoot better than most, with irons, as long as I wear my glasses.

Don't you have a pair of glasses or contacts to correct your vision?

I am moderately nearsighted (DMV says I need them, I agree in cities, but freeway driving doesn't feel like it) and if I wear my normal long distance glasses while shooting, the sights are too blurry, especially the rear sight. I couldn't focus on it if I tried, it's too close, and it ends up blurring the sight picture too much. So I just shoot without corrective glasses. I can't do much better than a six inch group at 100 feet, even with table rest. But I don't mind -- if I do that well, I'm at my best, and it's close enough to scare somebody at least. i have a scube tank hanging in a gully by the side of my house, 240 feet away, and sometimes I do better -- I once got 8 out of 8 hits from my Garand, firing pretty quickly. Other times I miss half my shots even with a scope.

Nearsighted sucks, but I can deal with it.

[Big Dog Howie]

My problem is I shoot IPSC and can see the targets fine but my front site is blurred,I need reading glasses to read but can't use them to shoot.So I went to the eye doctor yesterday for new reading glasses and told him the problem I was having seeing the front sight,he is a shooter so he understands the problem.He came up with a set of lenses that allow me to see the front sight clearly and also the the target,I use ESS ICE II shooting glasses so I ordered there RX inserts and he is going to fit them to the inserts.If any of you are in the IE area he is in Riverside,DR Bozner.He is located down town on Market St.Great guy and can relate to our shooting sports.

[Sky_DiveR]

I'm nearsighted. How would one go about getting prescription shooting glasses made?

As mentioned above, just see your I-Doc. I had prescription glasses made for just about everything... Sport, Industrial (shooting), driving, sun-glasses, scuba, etc. If you prefer a particular brand, check with the manufacturer website cuz prescriptions can't be made past a particular degree of angle. Or you can buy those that have a prescription insert behind the lens, like goggles, for instance, that your I-Doc can have filled.

[Knight]

I'm nearsighted. How would one go about getting prescription shooting glasses made?

I don't want the Lasik surgery, I hear your eyes can hemorrhage during extreme G-Force levels and I intend on piloting my own Millennium Falcon someday.

I was actually going to recommend Lasik. Got it last year and all my problems with iron sights disappeared. For me, Lasik was virtually a necessity - my old vision was worse than 20/400, and for the career I want I wouldn't even be considered unless my uncorrected vision was better.

I understand though if one is reluctant to get it. But it does help a lot for those with severe nearsightedness like myself.

[aethyr]

The "Ocular Device" mentioned earlier looks weird but it works!!! Brownells sells them.

What is this officially called?

[bigbob76]

I've been using a Truglo magnified red dot on one of my .22 pistols. It's not the greatest glass but at least I can see the target clearly.

[Chopper]

Love to know more about the "ocular device"

[JamesY]

I have the same problem as you. I used to have 20/20 vision two years ago and now it's more like 20/50. I used to not have a problem with my eotechs and aimpoints but now, the dots are really blurry. I started wearing glasses and most of the problem went away. I have two pairs of glasses. One for normal everyday activities and another (sunglasses) for shooting. I have a pair of Oakley Gas Cans that have corrected lenses that I wear for shooting. They work great and keep my eyes safe!

[maxicon]

Here's some info on variable apertures for shooting. It's the same as dropping the F stop on a camera lens - things get darker, but the range of what's in focus extends quite a lot. It's a trade-off of how dark you can take it and how focused you want everything.

Some basics:

http://www.pilkguns.com/c16.shtml

http://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2007/09/shooting-glasses.html

Some gear:

http://www.pilkguns.com/varga.shtml

http://www.nealjguns.com/pdfcatalog/Shtgglasses.pdf

http://www.nealjguns.com/ss_store/ShootingGlasses.html

http://www.championshooters.com/store/home.php?cat=292

Pinhole glasses:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinhole_glasses

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3907.m38.l1313&_nkw=pinhole+glasses&_sacat=See-All-Categories

To try it yourself, here's what another poster suggested some time way back. You can also do this with small holes in card stock to see how it works for you:

Another solution is to fasten a small aperture to your glasses at the spot where you aim (the upper "see-far" part). This should be in the form of a small black doughnut maybe 0.3" diameter with a hole about 0.050 punched in the center. I just use common printed circuit board stick-on tape forms and they work perfectly.

I don't use iris glasses, but have several different versions of prescription strengths.

For iron sight shooting, especially with rifles, I have to find a strength that allows me to see both the front blade and the target, while still allowing the shape of the rear sight to be clear enough that I can roughly center the front in it. 1.0 reading glasses work OK for me. Stronger ones clear up the sights but the target goes away, weaker ones clear up the target but the sights get too fuzzy.

Both front sight and target will be fuzzy - a clear front sight means the target's a blob, and can be impossible to see at any distance; a clear target means the front sight's a blob. This results in groups that aren't that impressive.

For me, there's no substitute for a scope or a red dot for any accuracy once your eyes start going, but maybe the iris trick would work.