any hope

[redriverhunter]

I have reached the point where the sights on my handgun are fuzzy and the target is clear, with my cheaters on sight are clear but target is now fuzzy are there any solutions. thanks rrh

[oldhenry]

I have reached the point where the sights on my handgun are fuzzy and the target is clear, with my cheaters on sight are clear but target is now fuzzy are there any solutions. thanks rrh

No solution here. I have the same problem & use an old outdated Rx for my Decots that allow a sharp view of my sights. I just line them up on the fuzzy target & get fairly good results.
Henry

[ioon44]

My shooting glasses have two different power lens one focuses on the front sight and the other on the target, I have shoot with both eyes open but it keeps me shooting going into my 70's.

[upnorthwis]

Better to see the sights clearly than the target.

[tazman]

Better to see the sights clearly than the target.

This^^^^^^^^
When I could see the target clearly but the sights were fuzzy, my groups were poor. When I switched to clear sights and fuzzy target, my groups improved dramatically due to better sight alignment.
I am getting ready to try ioon44's method of separate focal distance lenses in my glasses. I shoot everything with both eyes open anyway so it should not be a problem.

[tigweldit]

At 65, I have the problem also. The only glasses I use are 2.25 power "cheaters" reading glasses. I told my eye Dr. about the problem. He told me to try some 1.00 power glasses. What a difference! I can now make out the sights and the target without all the fuzz. This "fix" probably won't work for everyone, but it has given me many more years of shooting open and peep sights before I have to go to optics on all my firearms. Try a pair of cheep 1.00 power glasses. It might work for you to.

[GARD72977]

You can't focus on the target and the sights at the same time. When your eyes were younger you could change your focus from target to sights and back again.

Your sights should be very clear and the target fuzzy.

[ReloaderFred]

I'm 75, and still a reasonably good shooter. I explained the problem to my eye doctor and she made me some shooting glasses with larger than normal lenses and a "blended" prescription. What she did was have me hold my hand out as if shooting, with my head in the same position I would use shooting, and adjusted the focal point to the end of my hand. It solved the problem perfectly.

As long as your eye doctor understands what you're trying to do, they can fix the problem and keep you shooting.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I have a astigmatism in my right eye (shooting eye). gun sights are blurry no matter what.
I had my eye Dr make a set of prescription glasses to suit my shooting needs, they work fine, but now the target is more blurry than without glasses.

[KCSO]

Here is the secret to handgunning, you let the target fuzz and keep the sights clear. Hold for the bottom or the middle of the fuzz, your choice and if the SIGHTS are sharp the bullet will go where you want it to. An old trick is to turn the target backwards and have a person just shoot for the center of the paper. Most of the time they will shoot a better group as their focus is on the SIGHTS. As we get older accommodation drops any we have to adapt. This works the same in hunting so what if the rabbits head is a blur, if you hit the middle of the blur.

[Conditor22]

It's hard to aim when you have multiple sights.

I'm working on getting bigger/brighter sights.

I love the old guns but darn if those sights are small and hard to see.

I agree with JonB I just bought some bigger/brighter stick on bullseyes for my targets.

[Rich/WIS]

Focus point for target shooting should be the top edge of the front sight, the rear sight should have a wide enough slot that light is visible on both sides of the front sight. Your eye will automatically center it and level it with the top of the rear sight. The target will be fuzzy but as noted above your groups will show that concentrating on the sights is correct. This is for the patridge type sight, not sure about the newer fiber types as have only shot a few guns with them, and didn't like them for target use.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Been there and done that. First, blurry sights, used cheaters, then blurry target. For awhile I went with the advice "front sight, keep the front sight clear and ignore the back sight, keep the clear front sight on the blurry target." This worked to keep them all on the silhouette target, but not necessarily in the center ring. Had cataract surgery for both eyes. Everything became clear. Now, about 8 years after the fact, I'm back to sometimes needing reading glasses, but sights and target remain clear. How old are you? Have your eyes examined for cataracts!

[Petander]

Using reading glasses as I type this.

A longer barrel helps me. And possibly using both eyes,my eyes are always open,even with hi power scopes. But the rear sight is a little fuzzy,I'm still hitting ok but it's probably getting worse.

I think I will consider an operation when the time comes. So many happy friends have thrown glasses away.

[jdfoxinc]

eyepalusa.com

Diopters that stick to your glasses giving greater depth of field to your vision like stepping down the f stop on your camera. They really work.

[Silver Jack Hammer]

I went into the local gun shop and asked them if they had any handguns they didn’t have blurry front sites. They told me to get out

[bob208]

funny thing one eye doctor said I needed cataract surgery both eyes. $2,000 a eye, then he said I would need glasses after the surgery. was secluded. the wife kept questioning the needing glasses. so went for a second opinion that doctor said one day I mite need glasses but not to day. I have almost perfect vision. I am almost 70.

[Shuz]

When I first had the blurry sight problrm in my 40's,I bought a Merit Optical device. I have used it for nearly 40 years now and am very happy with it. I have heard that they are no longer in business.When I lost mine recently I got used one by advertising on swapping and selling. I'm back to shooting with clear sights again.

[knifemaker]

Tigweldit in post #6 gave good advice that will help a lot of shooters. I have 20/20 vision for distance, but need reading glasses for close up. I also bought cheap dollar store reading glasses at 1.00 power and now have clear crisp sights and the target is not fuzzy. If you have good distance sight, but poor up close give this a try before going to more expensive cures.

[oldhenry]

No solution here. I have the same problem & use an old outdated Rx for my Decots that allow a sharp view of my sights. I just line them up on the fuzzy target & get fairly good results.
Henry

I think my answer needs explanation. I've used Decots for a while & every now & then I update them with my latest Rx. I never dispose of my old lens. I'm now 80 & I went back & tried some of those old lens (some are pre-cataract surgery) for my shooting eye & have what I call a compromise: they're better than reading glasses.

The reply by ReloaderFred is a more technical way, but uses the same principle. An excellent contribution by ReloaderFred.
Henry

[Alstep]

Always keep your focus on the front sight. Let the target be blurry. If the front sight is blurry, the blurry error triangulates way out to the target. If the same amount of error is at the target, it doesn't amount to a hill of beans. This applies to pistol shooting as well as rifle shooting, especially at long range. It's absolutely essential to focus on that front sight!
As I got older, my eye Dr got me a pair of 1.0 diopter clip on lenses. What a difference! At 78, I'm older & slower, but seeing that front sight keeps me in the game.

[stubshaft]

I use a Merit aperture or Knobloch when shooting competitively.

[Petander]

Always keep your focus on the front sight. Let the target be blurry.

I agree with the front sight but if I use glasses to get sharp sights I can't tell wheteher I'm looking at a whitetail or neighbour's dog downrange.

It's possible to shoot blurry targets with glasses though. But for now, I sacrifice the rear sight a bit, seeing targets and the front sight with no glasses. 8" barrel front sight is clearer than a 4" one to me.

But I'm saving for the operation. Operations used to cost 10k ten years ago.

[wch]

See your ophthalmologist (not your optometrist) and tell him your problem, likely he can help you with a new prescription.

[osteodoc08]

go get an eye exam from an eye doc you trust. Make sure there are no signs of cataracts, glaucoma, other eye disease. If cataracts, get lens replacement.

[MT Gianni]

I know my eye doc well and took a revolver without a cylinder to his shop. We set up a fixed bifocal with the line at my front sight when held at arms length. The slightest motion of my head brings the target into focus then a return to a crisp sight picture lets you fire.

[gwpercle]

Red Dot sight got me shooting again . Millet SP-1 mounted on a Ruger MKII was the saving grace.
The dot appears in the same plane as the target ...put the dot on the target and squeeze the trigger, you can hit things again .
Gary

[redriverhunter]

Thanks for all the replies and advice. rrh

[Nueces]

My cowboy competition Wiley-X shooting glasses have my 26" focal length "computer prescription" in the right lens and my distance prescription in the left lens. When first donned, there are a few minutes of getting adjusted, then it's completely comfortable, with normal vision. I sight right eyed (though I'm left dominant), and can see both rifle and handgun sights clearly, as well as the targets. Saved the game, it did.

[BamaNapper]

I like this post and can definitely relate. At 60+ my rifles are fast becoming scope only.

But this thread got me thinking. I use a website to order my glasses. I can get them for about $10 a pair for single vision, maybe $30 for progressive. Here's my thinking: Get a pair made with my right eye (dominant eye) focused at maybe 2 ft so I can see the sights. That's less correction than a pair of reading glasses, but more than for what I had made for computer work (computer Rx is about arm's length). Have the left eye Rx for distance. This might sound weird, but I remember my grandmother having cataract surgery many years ago and they put a different Rx in each eye to allow her to read and still see at distances. She always said her brain took care of picking the eye to use. I wonder if such a pair of glasses would work. It seems worth $10 to give it a try.

Sorry, just saw that someone posted the answer while I wrote this comment. Looks like it's time to order a pair.

[kevin c]

I've been presbyopic (age related far sightedness) for a long time. My fix is an adjustment to the contact lenses I normally wear to have dominant eye sharp focus at front sight distance and sharp distance vision in the non dominant eye. I can see the target well enough with the non dominant eye, and the front sight perfectly with the other.

I use bifocal glasses over the contacts for reading up close (lower prescription) and driving (top prescription).

This was the solution proposed by my optometrist, which has worked well for me. He did say that not everyone can use this set up, which he called monovision: some folks get headaches on trying it.

ETA: forgot to say I am a pistol shooter. This set up does not work for me with iron sighted rifles because, obviously, the front sight distance is very different. My rifles have scopes or electronic dot sights.

[Lloyd Smale]

my solution was to quit handgun hunting and going back to scoped rifles. Not one bit of help. Sorry

[contender1]

A lot of good info above.

One thing I didn't see,, (and if I missed it,, my apologies,) is an explanation of the eyes & focusing. No matter who you are,, your eyes can not focus sharply at 3 different distances. There is the target, the front sight & the rear sight.
The reason we all mention the front sight as the main focal point is that it's a constant,, and the rear sight,, being so close is normally slightly out of focus. The target,, is a variable in the field. It can be a tiny 1" center of paper or as big as an elk. And the distance is different. A 6" target circle is bigger at 25 yards (visually) than at 100 yds.
So,, we want to focus on the one preferred constant,, the front sight. Yes,, the rear sight is a little out of focus,, but the target is going to be the biggest challenge.
Add in the aging factor,, and how our eyes change,, our abilities to do all this get harder.
Glasses,, especially corrective lenses to allow a sharp focal point, ( the front sight) may not always work the absolute best as noted by the comment of not telling if it's a deer or a dog.
So,, like so many above,, see the eye doctor who CAN and is WILLING to seriously fix your issues.

I just got new glasses myself,, and this was a long serious discussion with the Dr.

[rfd]

I'm 75, and still a reasonably good shooter. I explained the problem to my eye doctor and she made me some shooting glasses with larger than normal lenses and a "blended" prescription. What she did was have me hold my hand out as if shooting, with my head in the same position I would use shooting, and adjusted the focal point to the end of my hand. It solved the problem perfectly.

As long as your eye doctor understands what you're trying to do, they can fix the problem and keep you shooting.

Hope this helps.

Fred

THIS ^^^^ is THE answer.

[BD]

I'm with ioon, my shooting glasses are bifocals, right lens, (dominate eye) is arms length above, left lens is distance above, both are reading below so I can see the score sheets. Works fine.