Seeking guidance: Shooting with Prescription Glasses

[mikest]

Hello,

Tried to make contacts work (no joy) and looking for any guidance on how to get used to shooting with prescriptions glasses (can't seem to get comfortable or get the position right / easily repeatable whereby I am not looking over the top of my glasses or able to see the full image)?

A few details..
Scope in use is a Minox ZP5
My glasses are progressive lenses (not bifocals)

Kind regards, and would appreciate any guidance or advice..
Mike

 

[Entropicitis]

I have some Decot shooting glasses that are awesome. I'm not winning fashion contests with them but they work great. They sit way high up so you can look through them in prone.

 

[alamo5000]

I don't know anything about eyes or especially prescription glasses. That said, there is a company that sells safety glasses that are also bifocals. You can pick how much you want them to be (+1-+4 I think).

If you know that basically "readers" help you in a pinch that could be an option. Of course this can be wildly different for each person, but it can be a huge help reading turrets or whatever and you can get lots of styles that are better for shooting.

Basically you can have eye protection and the ability to read turrets while also still being able to shoot with them on

 

[jaydoc12]

I normally wear wire framed glasses and got tired or risking my eye sight or putting safety glasses over the top. I bought a pair of Oakley Flak 2.0 XL with clear prescription lenses and love them. They offer better coverage and, if I’m not mistaken, are not OSHA approved, but offer an acceptable level of protection. They do periodically slide down and I notice my sight picture become blurry, but just push them up and go to go. Far less irritating than my normal lenses.

 

[Dobermann]

Hi Mike,

FWIW, Jacob said on The Triggernometry Show that he recommends people just don't use their glasses - and use the diopter to get the right focus:

https://precisionshooter.co.nz/jacob-from-rifles-only/

 

[sinister]

I've worn thick glasses since the second grade. I also have bad astigmatism.

Rigid gas-permeable contacts gave me the clearest vision for shooting I was ever able to achieve. Correction is right on the eyeball, with no other glass or air contributing to light twisting or curving, or changing due to head angle and position (prone, sitting, kneeling, standing)..

Converting to soft contacts took a little adjustment since one particular side is weighted to ensure proper up-down orientation over the eyeball surface. It's noticeable when going from start position (usually ready or standing), and you might have to blink a couple of times for the lenses to orient correctly.

Contacts and eyeballs don't mix with deserts and helicopters. The Chief of Eyeballs at Womack Army Hospital at Fort Bragg, North Carolina was all excited another HALO-assaulter was asking for PRK surgery. When I told him I am also a highpower competitor and sniper he told me, "I can absolutely guarantee you better vision in all aspects over spectacles (glasses) -- but not hard contacts. You'd still need contacts for best long gun shooting vision."

I didn't think it made sense for me, as a shooter, to go through the risk of surgery to still need contacts to shoot my best. The convenience would have been there for combat and every day life, but not for my primary work and hobby.

 

[Baron23]

Hello,

Tried to make contacts work (no joy) and looking for any guidance on how to get used to shooting with prescriptions glasses (can't seem to get comfortable or get the position right / easily repeatable whereby I am not looking over the top of my glasses or able to see the full image)?

A few details..
Scope in use is a Minox ZP5
My glasses are progressive lenses (not bifocals)

Kind regards, and would appreciate any guidance or advice..
Mike

Hi Mike,

FWIW, Jacob said on The Triggernometry Show that he recommends people just don't use their glasses - and use the diopter to get the right focus:

https://precisionshooter.co.nz/jacob-from-rifles-only/

Depends on if you ocular can adjust to the extent of your prescription diopter. I can because I have a fairly light prescription and so hose to wear plano shooting glasses and use the ocular. But many who require stronger correction cannot.

I run Randolph Rangers with prescription lenses for clays (yep, no ocular there to adjust! haha) and they are excellent. Not cheap, but excellent.

Mike at LM Lenses is outstanding for ordering these types of glasses. AND, I am pretty sure (but not completely) that they can adjust the position of center of the correction to suit what you use them for. E.G. Maybe want the center to be a bit higher on the lenses if you look a bit upward to get in the scope from prone. Talk to Mike about it.

Shooting Glasses - LM Lenses

shooting glasses, all american shooting glasses, pilla shooting glasses, decot shooting glasses, post 4 shooting glasses, randolph shooting glasses.

lmlenses.com

 

[mikest]

Awesome, thanks Gentlemen!

 

[StrayDog]

I shoot matches with the same glasses I wear all day to work every day all year, and always bring a backup pair.
I started wearing glasses @ 40 yo and have no interest in contacts.
What worked for me was to raise my scopes up with 1.5" mounts or rings so you're looking more through the center of your glasses lenses, instead of through an upper-inside corner or over the tops, and, I use croakies to hold them tight and high on my nose bridge to keep em from slipping down.
The extra benefit from the high mounts is less neck strain and better fundamentals--I find my natural prone is higher now and my neck and head are more comfortable.
No issues so far, except maybe fogging in the cold, a soapy water bath on the lenses the day before helps with that.

 

[mikest]

really appreciate that advice sir, makes sense and very easy to try....

 

[Badfinger]

I use rangers because you can adjust the nose piece up or down to keep the center section of the lenses inline with your eye and they come with easy to change lenses in many different colors.

Ranger Glasses

 

[sinister]

You can find a good optometrist (a shooter) and optical shop that will put the visual center of your spectacle lens wherever you want.

The Army Reserve and Virginia Team were blessed for many years with LTC Alan Toler as one if their shooters. He'd have you bring your long gun or pistol to the practice, look to see where you looked through irons or scope, and adjust scrip, glasses, and frames specifically for your shooting discipline.

These are extreme:

 

[jab00]

I shoot matches with the same glasses I wear all day to work every day all year, and always bring a backup pair.
I started wearing glasses @ 40 yo and have no interest in contacts.
What worked for me was to raise my scopes up with 1.5" mounts or rings so you're looking more through the center of your glasses lenses, instead of through an upper-inside corner or over the tops, and, I use croakies to hold them tight and high on my nose bridge to keep em from slipping down.
The extra benefit from the high mounts is less neck strain and better fundamentals--I find my natural prone is higher now and my neck and head are more comfortable.
No issues so far, except maybe fogging in the cold, a soapy water bath on the lenses the day before helps with that.

This is probably the best advice so far. I have progressive lens and is almost exactly what I do as well. I’ll use contacts and safety glasses when I shoot reloads “just in case” but with factory rounds I’ll use my regular glasses and it works just fine

 

[Phil Drenik Jr]

StrayDog's got it right. I did poor mans version cause I didn't want to buy new scope mounts. I removed cheek rest from AI AX chassis and put foam on frame. This allowed me to place butt stock high in pocket and lower my cheek on chassis. Ends up doing same as StrayDog's fix - place reticle in center of glasses without craning neck. I believe I saw this on SSGT Taylor's rifle in pics. Not sure if his is done due to probs with glasses.

 

[TwistedOneinSeven]

Hello,

Tried to make contacts work (no joy) and looking for any guidance on how to get used to shooting with prescriptions glasses (can't seem to get comfortable or get the position right / easily repeatable whereby I am not looking over the top of my glasses or able to see the full image)?

A few details..
Scope in use is a Minox ZP5
My glasses are progressive lenses (not bifocals)

Kind regards, and would appreciate any guidance or advice..
Mike

I just ran a match this weekend as MD and noticed guys using prescription glasses really struggled with impacts at times, especially in the night stages.
https://brcmonstermatch.weebly.com/

Watching guys, that at times had a hit ratio of 90% in a stage, get zero impacts has me convinced that looking through glasses into your scope at any angle is a bad idea. Especially when prone.
I noticed that the "glasses wearer" would appear to be looking through the very top part of the lenses when prone and I assume this effects image alignment.

Just my opinion, but unless you're basically blind without glasses, I'd try setting your scope up without glasses and popping them on your head when you shoot.

 

[DownhillFromHere]

Advice from a 30+ year competitor in clay target, handgun, and rifle disciplines:

• Don't cheap out on shooting glasses
• Get guidance from a company or individual who understands the discipline you're pursuing,
• Please don't try to make your everyday prescription eyewear work for shooting unless you're wearing the shooting glasses as daily wear*

I can't speak to what advice/options that outfits like Wiley, Rudy Project, etc. customer service people can offer, but I do know that Decot used to be excellent at providing such help. Call a few and ask. If the CS agent doesn't ask very specific questions about exactly what discipline you're chasing, look elsewhere.

And pay attention to any caveats they mention. When I went from contacts to prescription Decot Hy-Wyds for skeet, I was told that correcting my heavy nearsightedness/astigmatism would require a very thick, heavy lens. I thought, well, polycarbonate is light, it'll be ok. Uh, no. It wasn't. Even though Bud Decot himself adjusted my frames at a shoot in Savannah, those glasses were so heavy that I could barely tolerate a 100-target event without very sore ears and nose and subsequent headache.

Heh. Just wait. Sometime in your 60s, you can expect cataracts and your new plastic eyeball lenses will fix it all... ;-)

* I knew a guy that wore Hy-Wyds for daily wear. Somehow they looked normal for him... despite how they sit so high on the nose and have very wide lenses...

 

[sinister]

... I thought, well, polycarbonate is light, it'll be ok. Uh, no. It wasn't. Even though Bud Decot himself adjusted my frames at a shoot in Savannah, those glasses were so heavy that I could barely tolerate a 100-target event without very sore ears and nose and subsequent headache.

I have the classic Filipino nose -- there's no way to perch glasses on it. Even with ear hooks they constantly slide down my face, dry or sweaty.

 

[Baron23]

Advice from a 30+ year competitor in clay target, handgun, and rifle disciplines:

• Don't cheap out on shooting glasses
• Get guidance from a company or individual who understands the discipline you're pursuing,
• Please don't try to make your everyday prescription eyewear work for shooting unless you're wearing the shooting glasses as daily wear*

I can't speak to what advice/options that outfits like Wiley, Rudy Project, etc. customer service people can offer, but I do know that Decot used to be excellent at providing such help. Call a few and ask. If the CS agent doesn't ask very specific questions about exactly what discipline you're chasing, look elsewhere.

And pay attention to any caveats they mention. When I went from contacts to prescription Decot Hy-Wyds for skeet, I was told that correcting my heavy nearsightedness/astigmatism would require a very thick, heavy lens. I thought, well, polycarbonate is light, it'll be ok. Uh, no. It wasn't. Even though Bud Decot himself adjusted my frames at a shoot in Savannah, those glasses were so heavy that I could barely tolerate a 100-target event without very sore ears and nose and subsequent headache.

Heh. Just wait. Sometime in your 60s, you can expect cataracts and your new plastic eyeball lenses will fix it all... ;-)

* I knew a guy that wore Hy-Wyds for daily wear. Somehow they looked normal for him... despite how they sit so high on the nose and have very wide lenses...

I totally agree but while I've owned Hy-Wyds back in the day shooting skeet, I found the Randolph Rangers more to my liking but both are very high quality.

I just never understand people that will pay up to $4K for a scope and then look thru it via cheap eye protection.

I currently wear planos in my Rangers for scoped shooting but yeah...at 69 I'm in for cataract surgery in mid-Nov in my on (right) eye. I expect much will change...for the better.

Cheers

 

[DownhillFromHere]

I totally agree but while I've owned Hy-Wyds back in the day shooting skeet, I found the Randolph Rangers more to my liking but both are very high quality.

I just never understand people that will pay up to $4K for a scope and then look thru it via cheap eye protection.

I currently wear planos in my Rangers for scoped shooting but yeah...at 69 I'm in for cataract surgery in mid-Nov in my on (right) eye. I expect much will change...for the better.

Cheers

This exemplifies my experience that OP should consult with multiple companies and don't quit if a solution from one of them doesn't work out. I mentioned Decot because I had significant experience with that company through multiple sets of glasses as my eyesight and competitive disciplines changed. While the 1988-vintage plano Hy-Wyds are in standby for any clay target outing, a multi-lens set of Rudy Project wrap-arounds is in the rifle bag. The latter came on board when I wanted wrap-arounds for handgun steel challenge matches and similar where backsplatter is always present so I had protection even if I wasn't facing downrange.

Only advice I'd offer re cataract surgery is to do as much due diligence as you can on the surgeon. Mine came highly recommended by the optometrist I'd been with for most of my adult life and remembered how I'd come to him complaining I couldn't see if my contacts-corrected vision dropped so low as 20/20. Back then, I could usually read most of the 20/15 line. Post-surgery, that was also the case, and remains so on good days. On the other hand, another guy I know (not well) had cataract surgery and didn't have that favorable outcome. I don't know why. Nothing's guaranteed in life......

 

[acudaowner]

while I have shooting glasses I wear glasses can't see without them well not well at all anyway while shooting I will use if I do wear my clear non prescription shooting glasses with the scope allowing the scope to act like my glasses while looking through it and adjust till the picture is clear enough to see what it is I am hopping to hit if I have to write anything down after the shot I pull down my shooting glasses and move over to my reading glasses one sits on my head the other strapped to my neck . my pop has a better solution he got piano glasses that focus about a foot away from his nose in a flip up style lenses so he only wears one pair that does two things flip them down when you want to shoot and up to read I being lazy and slow still have two pairs with me most days .

 

[Baron23]

Only advice I'd offer re cataract surgery is to do as much due diligence as you can on the surgeon. Mine came highly recommended

Absolutely and my primary of over 20 years recommends this surgeon very highly and I have been his patient for 5 years and believe him to be highly competent.

The other thing to keep in mind is that I'm only going for single focal length lenses and not the multi-focus as I have both seen (with a friend) and researched that they have far more problems...especially star bursts from headlights at night...than the single focus. I don't mind reading glasses when needed and just want the best vision I can get in my right eye.

I don't compete at skeet anymore but do shoot recreationally now and have had a hell of a time over the past 2-3 years seeing the target due to this cataract so its time to get it done.

Cheers

 

[DownhillFromHere]

I don't mind reading glasses when needed and just want the best vision I can get in my right eye.

You don't know what you're in for! Remember this exchange a year after your surgery: You have No Idea how many times in a single day you'll reach for your readers... and they're not there because you set them down and walked away and you have No CLUE!! where they are! And the search is on.

The solution one of my in-laws uses is to have a pair of cheap readers on nearly every horizontal surface within arm's reach of every kitchen or seating location in the house. This doesn't work for me because I found within two months of getting the second eye done that the cheap Target or Wal-Mart readers are just that - CHEAP and lacking the clarity I expect. Pay the $$ and get a GOOD pair of progressive readers from your optometrist, with whatever the magic coating is that makes looking at a computer screen less eye-straining. I have frames with spring-loaded temples which sort of "clamp" in the neck of the tshirts I wear 99.9% of the time so I can lean over with out the danged things falling on the floor or the ground or whatever.

Mark my words. Remember this post, and you'll laugh at the truth of it! Good luck!