Glasses for older shooters

[BuckRimfire]

I'll turn 60 on a soon-upcoming major holiday, so I need progressives for work and reading. I don't like using them for shooting. In good light, the best solution is probably an aperture on your glasses, but that's inconvenient and rather contrived. Does have the fun advantage of making you look a little like a Borg!

Rather than go that route, in the last couple of years I have ordered some cheap glasses from EyeBuyDirect that have single-vision lenses (that's the cheap part; progressives are expensive) and, since I'm right-eye-dominant, the left lens cut at my spherical distant correction (and astigmatism) and the right lens at a reduced spherical correction so I can see the front sight clearly. I have been trying to skirt the ragged edge of correction reduction, so my right lens is NOT the same as the reading correction my optometrist gave me, but is a little "stronger" (i.e. biased toward distant focus) than the reading correction. I biased the first pair too much toward distance and had to order another. For me, making the lenses about 0.5 or 0.75 diopter stronger than my reading correction seems best for seeing the front sight. Since presbyopia tends to be progressive, it's probably best to go with 0.5 so the glasses continue to work for a couple of years.

Example: my right eye (OD line of prescription) correction is -5.25 and my left eye (OS line) is -4.75 (I'm very nearsighted). My reading correction is "Add 1.75." So my prescription reading strength would be -5.25 + 1.75 = -3.50. For shooting I ordered the glasses OD -4.00 and OS -4.75 (and with my astigmatism corrections as written on the prescription) and these work nicely. A pair at OD -4.25 and OS -4.75 make it easier to see the target but harder to see the sights: sometimes I have trouble focusing on the front sight and always the rear sight is a tad blurry, even with a handgun.

Since plain tints on their lenses are cheap (unlike real sunglasses), I ordered these with yellow colored lenses for a little blue-blocker effect. I'm tempted to get a pair with the "light-pink" tint because rose-colored glasses really do make everything look prettier, and I like a stunt. I think with the tint I was able to get the glasses for just over $70.

BTW, if you're wondering why it's "OD and OS," that's from the Latin: Dexter meaning "right" and Sinister meaning "left."

 

[DGW1949]

Perfect vision or not, the human eye can only focus on one distance at a time, glasses or no glasses....Thing is though, you gotta be able to focus on the front sight if you want to hit anything....Myself, I'm 75 years old and had to have fake lenses put in both eyes which means that I can now only see clearly at distance. To "fix" that situation I had a pair of glasses made which are similar to bi-focals, only the part that I use when shooting is at the top instead of the bottom like how traditional "readers" are made....Works great for shooting a hand gun, and cheap to have made....Shooting a rifle is even easier. No glasses needed to shoot a rifle. All you need for that is a peep sight of the correct diameter for your particular vision and then place it the correct distance from your eye, which varies a bit person to person.....The only thing better is a scope or some sort of red-dot, but that's a whole different discussion.

DGW

 

[Mobuck]

This is why I use dot optics.

 

[GypsmJim]

This is why I use dot optics.

I have added a red or green dot to several of my firearms. Surely helps a lot. Now just to find a cure for arthritis.

I used to shoot bullseye with my club. I understand that dots are now approved if you don't want to use open sights. Good news, bad news. Further inquiry revealed that they still won't let me shoot with 2 hands.....

 

[06dilly]

I have prescription glasses that I used for desk/computer work before I retired. They are bifocals with the top set for computer distance and the bottom are just readers. So I can see the front sights clearly as that's about computer screen distance but then I can also see to load, etc. up close with the readers. Works great.

TomD

 

[NC FNS]

This is why I use dot optics.

Lucky me sees a red oval and if I’m lucky I pick the correct side of it to line up on.

 

[Jeepnik]

I wear progressive lenses. Seem to work pretty good.

Still iron sights became problematic. I switched to ghost ring rear sights and these still work quite well.

These days I have added various brands of RDS. I have discovered that there isn't much difference in usability between lower cost units and top end ones. I suppose if you subject them to "combat" conditions the higher end units may survive better. But for the majority of my shooting more affordable options work well.

 

[s4s4u]

This is why I use dot optics.

Work great, until you develop astigmatism.

 

[s4s4u]

I tried progressives and couldn't deal with the distortion so I got bifocals with the line instead. Much happier.

 

[GypsmJim]

Work great, until you develop astigmatism.

I was born with astigmatism. That's what the glasses are for.

 

[Mobuck]

"Work great, until you develop astigmatism."
I just pick one of the vertical dots and see where the bullet hits.

 

[hittman]

Guess I'm one of the lucky one with no scope or sighting problems even though I wear glasses. Of course, I've worn them for 59 of my 65 years so maybe that's an advantage; I just don't know any different.

And my vision without them is horrible. Something like a -12, acute astigmatism, far-sighted, lazy eye, some "curvature" thing they talk about, about 20/280 UN-corrected in right eye.

Thank God I'm 20/20 corrected and the days of GLASS heavyweight lenses are long gone. I was that kid in grade school with one lense 4 times thicker than the other.

 

[jav]

I use reading glasses for shooting my usual readers are 2.75 so for me to see the fronts sites I use 1.50 for shooting works well for me

 

[Paul B]

I had cataract surgery about ten years ago and have excellent distance vision and can still use iron sights on a rifle although I prefer scopes. The problem stems from a few year back when I started having problems with double vision.I have no idea what got that started but I have to wear special glasses to corect the problem. Now, when I look through a scope, the crosshairs look like something out of a Picasso painting and are totally useless. I can remove the glasses and the scope works as it should.
I can just see it now, pun intended, I'm out in the field and see what could be the newest world record B&C deer ever and then have to remove the glasses and try to find it in the scope before it runs off. My other choice would be to do my hunting with one eye closed. I'm scheduled next February to see a specialist in hopes the problem can be corrected by surgery and the blankety-blank insurance company pays for it.
Paul B.

 

[6GUNSONLY]

Interesting discussion. I've been thinking of getting a pair of glasses made strictly for computer screen distance with hope that would also help me with open sight handgun shooting. Readers don't help me with either of those - the focal distance is wrong. I don't wear glasses at all now, and only use readers for fine print or reading for extended periods of time.

 

[Jeepnik]

These days what works best for handguns and "short" range rifles is a dot, red or green doesn't matter, with my progressive lenses.

"Long" range it's strictly scopes but no glasses. I have never been hit with a recoiling scope. But I can imagine the possibilities of injury if wearing glasses.

I haven't tried optics on a shotgun yet. Thinking about it though.

 

[s4s4u]

I was born with astigmatism. That's what the glasses are for.

I had glasses made to address my astigmatism. I cannot wear them because they distort my senses. When I put them on it appears as if everything is shorter/lower/further away. I nearly wrecked my knee stepping down from the cab of a piece of heavy equipment because the ground appeared closer than it actually was. .

I can still shot a red dot at close range with astigmatism, but the dot looks more like a bunch of grapes. I just deal with it, or use a scope/prism with an etched reticle. I cannot rely on glasses to remedy the issue.

 

[C3Ranger]

Following cataract surgery, my distant vision greatly improved, and I need glasses now only for reading. However, while shooting, the target was clear but I could not see the front sight clearly. I found some flexible plastic static cling "reading" lenses online and applied one to my shooting glasses for my dominate eye. The static cling lens is removable for repositioning as needed and has worked great for me. I can now see the target and surrounding area clearly with my non dominant eye and see the front sight clearly with my dominant eye. The lenses are available in various strengths and sizes and sell for under $30.

 

[KIR]

I am always mixing things up whenever I read them here. When I saw the title of this thread I thought it was "shot glasses' to hold bourbon. Oh dum moi!

 

[JackBull]

But the book "How to Improve Your Eyesight" By Margret Darst Corbett. Will help vision tremendously. Ive used it for 30 years.