Question for Lefties

[justinp61]

I too am left eye dominant but right handed and shot RH guns all my life. Several years ago I bought a LH Savage 22 rifle and really liked it. Last year I put together two LH centerfires, wish I could've done it years ago.

The only time I like a RH rifle is when shooting off a bench, it's easy to run the bolt and load RH.

 

[BrentM]

Shot right hand rifles most of my life and even for prs. Have a couple lefties now and def prefer it over a righty

 

[Cool Joe]

Right handed left eye dominate. I shoot right handed out to 250 yards and switch to left hand at distances greater. Never had the opportunity for lefty's growing up, but never shot much over 200 yards until I reached my 40s. Having had the opportunity to learn with left handed actions, I think I would have done much better. IMO teach both but let the dominant take the lead. Good luck and safe shooting!

 

[Pauleye]

I being a ophthalmologist, I am left handed but right eye dominant, started shooting left handed. I wish someone would have pointed this out .When I took up bow hunting, I switched to right handed and no problems. It is easier to use the dominant eye rather than hand preference. Each to his own

 

[WMTex]

I've been a firearms instructor for most of my career. I just adopted two boys; one is a leftie. So, for all of you lefties, IF you learned to shoot a right handed bolt rifle, do you wish you would have learned on a left bolt rifle from the beginning or are you glad you learned on a right handed rifle (before switching to a left bolt rifle)?

I learned to shoot with a RH action. Reaching across the scope and having brass eject across my right eye FoV was distracting and slowed things down. For a single shot it almost doesn't matter but it does if you are making follow-on shots. As an aside, in the military my rifles were always right hand and getting hot brass down your neck is no picnic. I would definitely train with the LH bolt. Like someone else said below, you don't hear RH shooters suggesting that they train on LH rifles just in case. There are lots of LH options these days.

 

[Rockchuck27]

I leaned on righty bolt guns as a kid as that is what we had and they were pretty rare in our area. When I finally saved enough to buy my first rifle, I bought a lever gun as I really don't like shooting a righty bolt. These days, its all lefty bolts for me and if it had been possible in my sutuation, I would have preferred that from the start.

 

[sitkastw]

I started out right handed then lost that eye. Had to switch to left at a young age. I am now a left handed long range shooter and hunter. The bolt is the least of my worries and like most can be adapted to while shooting prone or off a bench. What matters most for me is having a stock that fits me. Most right handed bolt guns have stocks with raised cheek pieces and palm swell for a right handed shooter (in my experiences). Also having the safety on the correct side for hunting and all around shooting is big plus. While varmint hunting I use a right handed bolt rimfire with an ambidextrous stock. For magnum rifles I really prefer the left handed options as they fit and are made for left handed shooters. I am proficient with both and would take the correct left handed option over a right 100% of the time.

 

[skipglo]

As a firearms instructor Most of your Career....you should have this question figured out a long time ago, these boys can't be your first encounter with us lefties. So what have you done in the past with us? Or did you just overlook us because we weren't going home with you at the end of the day?

 

[valleyforge.1777]

There are really two issues with shooting a bolt rifle. There is the issue of which hand one uses for cycling the bolt. But there is also a safety issue. The chamber and receiver of bolt-action rifles are designed to channel gases out and away from the shooter if there is a case rupture. A case rupture can occur with Factory ammo. It can also occur with reloaded ammo although of course everybody is extremely careful with making their own reloaded ammo. But a case rupture can occur with either Factory or Reloaded ammo. The Chamber and receiver on a bolt action rifle are set up to channel those gases back or to the side and then a right-handed bolt action rifle they are set up to channel those gases to the right and out away from the shooter. If a left-handed shooter is firing a right-handed bolt action rifle and there is a case rupture all of that gas gets directed right at the shooters face. That is why it is really important for a left-handed shooter to be using a left-handed bolt action rifle if one is possibly available. Most shooters can fire hundreds of thousands of rounds throughout their life and never have a case rupture so this is a relative safety issue but it is an important one.

 

[JAYgs8163]

I'm ambidextrous and left eye dominant. I shoot both but primary is left handed.

 

[bernerd257]

I too learned on a right handed bolt and didn't know any better until I was introduced to a left hand gun, so much easier. I see no reason to make him start with right handed. Go with left as soon as he can.

 

[jpd676]

As a firearms instructor Most of your Career....you should have this question figured out a long time ago, these boys can't be your first encounter with us lefties. So what have you done in the past with us? Or did you just overlook us because we weren't going home with you at the end of the day?

So, my question was to know if lefties would have preferred to learn on a left handed rifle or if they later appreciated learning on a right handed rifle. It seems like there are mixed reviews; I appreciate the comments so far and have learned a ton from you guys.

I went through an NRA patrol rifle school many years back. As we were all instructors, we were forced to run the AR left handed for the entire course so we had something to instruct the other instructors on. This was the best class I have taken! It taught me to run a rifle left handed; prior to this I was not very good at instructing lefties. Now, I can shoot the AR qualifications with either hand.

I agree you should shoot a rifle based on eye dominance not hand dominance (I should have specified this). So, based on what I am seeing here, I am looking for a leftie rimfire and then I'll talk to the little man about a leftie in a caliber he wants.

Thanks!

 

[D2wing]

I've been a firearms instructor for most of my career. I just adopted two boys; one is a leftie. So, for all of you lefties, IF you learned to shoot a right handed bolt rifle, do you wish you would have learned on a left bolt rifle from the beginning or are you glad you learned on a right handed rifle (before switching to a left bolt rifle)?

If you a certified instructor you should know that the side is determined by the dominant eye. That is regardless of the shooter being right or left handed. That is how I would do it and how I did it with my own children and students if thier dads hadn't screwed them up first.

 

[bigred1]

I'm also a southpaw that learned to shoot right hand bolts. I have observed that most people tend to drop the rifle down after a shot (especially when shooting at game) and then cycle the bolt. This is due to recoil were most people lose the sight picture and drop the rifle enough to make cycling the bolt from the shoulder difficult.
The point I'm trying to make is that unless trained properly in recoil management and to work the bolt from the shoulder it makes little difference in which side the bolt is on.