Trouble with Targets (Spotting them)

[DocRDS]

I have a recurrent problem spotting targets through my scope that I can't seem to shake. Everything blends in or is fuzzy--Grey plates just melt into the background. I stopped wearing transitions and prescriptions (I have noline continuous bifocals). Been trying colored lenses. Target discrimination is really a problem for me. Even with High Eng Glass Like ZCO, My right eye is the weaker and I'm almost ready to switch to lefty because I loose so much time trying to find the grey ass fuzz target. Binos are better, but its clear the left eye is doing the work.

Full magnification (25X) and 100% daylight its still a struggle. No amount of parallax, diopter, glasses seems to fix it.

 

[Bluedog82]

I shoot lefty many times (especially at long range) due to my left eye being stronger. Much easier to switch sides for PRS shooting than it is for pistol, at least in my experience.

 

[sinister]

How old are you, Doc?

Has your opthalmologist checked you for cataracts?

 

[DocRDS]

50 and I get scanned regularly. Eyes are ok but the right one has thin tissure which appears to be directly related to poorer vision. IIRC I'm corrected 20/20 and 20/10 Left eye

 

[ShootnFool8]

Had the same problem. Got eyes rechecked, and good to go now.

 

[Chris1972]

I switched to lefty about 30 years ago. It changed my whole path of interest. Before then I only hunted, poorly, and never shot for entertainment. I struggled to focus with my right eye, then when I would get it it would only last a few seconds before it would start wandering around. I’ve heard people claim eye dominance can be overcome, I was never able to.

 

[gopherslayer]

I’m the same age as doc and my vision is the best it’s been since I was 25. Had a stroke a few years ago and needed vision therapy to get my vision back to a decent level. Took 6 months and $8000 to where we were comfortable to stop therapy. I also had LASIK during that time period. I need readers now but my distance vision is very good. I can shoot pistols both eyes open now due to the therapy exercises and astigmatism is almost eliminated due to LASIK, there’s just a very small hint of it at times.

I don’t recommend the route I had to take to get my vision where it’s at. Skip the stroke and nonstop migraines.

 

[SauerKraut]

I switched to lefty about 30 years ago. It changed my whole path of interest. Before then I only hunted, poorly, and never shot for entertainment. I struggled to focus with my right eye, then when I would get it it would only last a few seconds before it would start wandering around. I’ve heard people claim eye dominance can be overcome, I was never able to.

Nor have I. I've been shooting lefty long-gun since I was a little boy with a BB gun. I do everything else right handed.

 

[SanPatHogger]

I’m the same age as doc and my vision is the best it’s been since I was 25. Had a stroke a few years ago and needed vision therapy to get my vision back to a decent level. Took 6 months and $8000 to where we were comfortable to stop therapy. I also had LASIK during that time period. I need readers now but my distance vision is very good. I can shoot pistols both eyes open now due to the therapy exercises and astigmatism is almost eliminated due to LASIK, there’s just a very small hint of it at times.

I don’t recommend the route I had to take to get my vision where it’s at. Skip the stroke and nonstop migraines.

What is involved in vision therapy?

 

[gopherslayer]

What is involved in vision therapy?

You work on eye teaming and strengthening the eyes along with focus work that entails relaxing your eyes and then focusing on tight, helps with peripheral vision. Brock string exercises. Hand eye coordination which for me was crucial because I had issues with me left side after the stroke, I still have some coordination issues in the fine motor skills area and it’s a hard pill to swallow after being a toolmaker and mechanic for 20+ years combined. My issues weren’t all from the stroke. I had work related TBI that was undiagnosed from a fall and my ear crystals were really messed up but my brain had compensated during that time until my short circuit. I’m didn’t hit my head but your brain still bounces around. I hit with the same force as laying on a cart and ramming into a steel wall at 27mph with your feet but I was upright and received whiplash along with broken bones.

Have you ever seen the cards from the 70s and there’s 2 pictures on them that are identical? You focus on them and can pull the images together to make one 1 image.

You do reading with red and green lenses and incorporate prisms into the reading.

There’s a lot more involved than what’s above. If anyone has been in a car accident or had a head injury/TBI/concussion I’d highly recommend seeing a real therapist. What I mean is someone who specializes in it not someone at a hospital that’s had some training. My optometrist/therapist does this because her brother had issues growing up and doctors said there was nothing they could do so her father, who was an optometrist, learned what he could and consulted with the very few therapists that were around 50 years ago and began doing the work with his son. She has lived it and does an excellent job and her therapists are top notch. It’s amazing the people that they see and the progress made.

 

[Glassaholic]

I have a recurrent problem spotting targets through my scope that I can't seem to shake. Everything blends in or is fuzzy--Grey plates just melt into the background. I stopped wearing transitions and prescriptions (I have noline continuous bifocals). Been trying colored lenses. Target discrimination is really a problem for me. Even with High Eng Glass Like ZCO, My right eye is the weaker and I'm almost ready to switch to lefty because I loose so much time trying to find the grey ass fuzz target. Binos are better, but its clear the left eye is doing the work.

Full magnification (25X) and 100% daylight its still a struggle. No amount of parallax, diopter, glasses seems to fix it.

Doc, some of us are more sensitive to different colors. Certainly ZCO is one of the best in the biz, but have you tried other high end scopes like TT, S&B, Nightforce and even Vortex? They all use different formulas for their multi-coating process which affects how colors are transmitted to our eye. Your situation sounds like it definitely could be eye related, but I'd also see if you can get behind some of these other options and see if your eye likes them any better.

 

[bghartm]

I feel your pain. I am color blind, especially red/green, and almost 50 years old. I struggle sometimes at PRS matches when the target is all shot up and no paint left on it.

 

[DocRDS]

Doc, some of us are more sensitive to different colors. Certainly ZCO is one of the best in the biz, but have you tried other high end scopes like TT, S&B, Nightforce and even Vortex? They all use different formulas for their multi-coating process which affects how colors are transmitted to our eye. Your situation sounds like it definitely could be eye related, but I'd also see if you can get behind some of these other options and see if your eye likes them any better.

I'll give it a try. I had my Vortex Razor Gen 2 this weekend with the same issue. Ironically My (Vortex) binos work fine. (I think its the left eye taking over as Ireally have to conventrate to range a target or see the HUD which is in the right.)

 

[sinister]

Not uncommon, you could set up your rifle for right hand shooter / left eye dominant (this is a grenade launcher):

Hart makes an offset scope base like this:

Fox Valley:

 

[Glassaholic]

I'll give it a try. I had my Vortex Razor Gen 2 this weekend with the same issue. Ironically My (Vortex) binos work fine. (I think its the left eye taking over as Ireally have to conventrate to range a target or see the HUD which is in the right.)

Interesting about the binos. Next time you’re having difficulty try switching to left handed and use your left eye and see if that does the trick, if so you know it’s your eye. Also try your binos with the one objective covered and see if that changes.

 

[carbonbased]

Eyes are ok but the right one has thin tissure which appears to be directly related to poorer vision.

Are you referring to lattice degeneration? That’s the thinning/stretching of the retina, often with people with extreme nearsightedness.

What Is Lattice Degeneration?

Lattice degeneration is a thinning of the retina that happens over time. About 1 in 10 people have lattice degeneration, and most don’t know they have it because there are no symptoms.

www.aao.org

I am no doctor, just an unlucky slob that had extreme nearsightedness, then necessary cataract surgery, then two retina detachments. Previous to the surgeries last year (in my mid-fifties) docs always told me I had the lattice thing. Like for the last 20 years, at least.

I never had issue like you are describing.

Could you describe your issue in a bit more detail? Do you only have issues with grey plates? And I’m a bit unclear if you are wearing any rx glasses when shooting. What is the uncorrected rx for each eye? (Like, mine were -11/-10.5 or so before cataract surgery)

I wonder if you have huge floaters in that eye? I do and I have to dart my eyes around to get them to temporarily move away from my center vision, especially when using magnified optics.

It gets worse as magnification goes up, and much worse in a riflescope. Don’t know why. The image goes fuzzy as the floater drifts in, then after the eye dart it clears up for 5-10 sec. Rinse, repeat (often, but not always).

FLOATER TANGENT
Another glorious thing that happens to high nearsighted people is a lot of floaters, even before one’s 50s. I had a crap-ton before my surgeries, but in my shooting eye I now have an absolute butthole amount lol.

Reason why?
Right eye:

1. Cataract surgery—>
2. Reduces “flesh volume” in eye as replacement lens is smaller than biologic lens—>
3. Less volume in eye causes jelly in eye to pull away from retina—>
4. This pulling-away created a glob of huge, Jupiter-sized floaters
5. Right eye’s retina surgery was done with lasers only, not by opening up my eye (so liquid was not replaced & floaters remain)

Btw #3 can happen even without surgeries as one ages. You see some flashes.

My left eye was spared the floater issue as its retina detachment was more serious. In the normal course of that surgery they replaced the liquid in that eye with fresh, no-floater stuff.

Yea!

 

[DocRDS]

I've had floaters and its the grey targets that give me trouble. I can easily see red,yellow, blue etc. Grey plates on green grass or dirt is impossible.

 

[carbonbased]

I've had floaters and its the grey targets that give me trouble. I can easily see red,yellow, blue etc. Grey plates on green grass or dirt is impossible.

I assume others at the same place/time could see the plates with no problems?

 

[Aftermath]

You just gotta be sneakier and get closer.

 

[DocRDS]

I assume others at the same place/time could see the plates with no problems?

Yeah I'm the only one with issues. Still new and learned to zoom out but now its just a bunch of grey "fuzzies" in the field. Prescription/No Prescription/Yellow/Red/Grey/Clear lenses glasses makes no difference.

 

[carbonbased]

Yeah I'm the only one with issues. Still new and learned to zoom out but now its just a bunch of grey "fuzzies" in the field. Prescription/No Prescription/Yellow/Red/Grey/Clear lenses glasses makes no difference.

Huh. Well, consider going to an ophthalmologist and get a workup if you haven’t already. If you have already gone, maybe go to a different guy for a second opinion. An optometrist might do the trick, but unless you find a good one I’d use an ophthalmologist.

This doesn’t strike me as an eye dominance thing. Your color vision in the right eye isn’t working right.

I assume your right eye’s color vision used to work?

Had the same problem. Got eyes rechecked, and good to go now.

What was the solution?

 

[DocRDS]

Yeah everything has been normal except right eye is weaker than left eye. Corrected right eye is 20/20 Its a PITA for sure.

You're right though--time for a second (medical) opinion.

 

[ShootnFool8]

Huh. Well, consider going to an ophthalmologist and get a workup if you haven’t already. If you have already gone, maybe go to a different guy for a second opinion. An optometrist might do the trick, but unless you find a good one I’d use an ophthalmologist.

This doesn’t strike me as an eye dominance thing. Your color vision in the right eye isn’t working right.

I assume your right eye’s color vision used to work?


What was the solution?

I have astigmatism, and found out I have karadoconus. Also eyes just getting worse. Started getting regular 1 yr ck up, instead of assuming my eyes are good. Right eye just keeps getting worse, sight wise.