Aiming

[SoldierInAYear]

Sorry if this is a dumb question but.. can you hold your gun on the other side? if you can't can you aim with your left eye? i will be joining next year

 

[George Wallace]

Yes, you may fire the rifle from either side. 

 

[SoldierInAYear]

k thank you because in all the videos i watched all the guys were firing from the right side

 

[Retired AF Guy]

k thank you because in all the videos i watched all the guys were firing from the right side

Because the majority of people are right-handed.

 

[X Royal]

Sorry if this is a dumb question but.. can you hold your gun on the other side? if you can't can you aim with your left eye? i will be joining next year

k thank you because in all the videos i watched all the guys were firing from the right side

The question is why can you not aim with your right eye? Is it due to your left eye being the dominate one or do you have a problem with your right eye? A problem with your eye may effect you joining or at least limit what you may apply for.
Many people like myself have a left dominate eye but still shoot from the right side as we are right handed. We simply close the left eye to aim.

Best Wishes: Rick

BTW: Use of capital letters to start sentences and periods to end them would make reading your posts far easier.

 

[SeanNewman]

Our standard C7 service rifle used to be a lot more biased toward right-handed firers than it is now.  Before, it was harder to a left-handed firer to do things like cock the weapon, release the magazine, etc.

Those things have been remedied somewhat in the C7A2 mid-life update that made several features ambidextrous (in theory).

The only "big" issue remaining is that all rifles extract the spent casings* on the right side, meaning that this will travel past your face and may occasionally be a bit of a distraction.

*Note* I'm not sure what your level of knowledge is, but in laymen's terms, a round consists of the brass casing, the powder inside that causes the explosion, and the "bullet" part that actually does the killing.  Once the round is fired, the rifle then discards the casing to make room for another one, and it's that empty casing that comes flying out of the right side of the rifle with every shot.

 

[X Royal]

The only "big" issue remaining is that all rifles extract the spent casings* on the right side, meaning that this will travel past your face and may occasionally be a bit of a distraction.

Not nearly as bad with the C7 compared to the SMG we use to use.

 

[SeanNewman]

Not nearly as bad with the C7 compared to the SMG we use to use.

There is an old wive's tale that some well-intended soldier came up with the idea of a spent casing deflector and sent the idea to Diemaco/Colt and they gave him a whopping $50 cheque for the idea.  Then they patented it and made millions.

This could just be trench talk rumour mill, but it's funny.

 

[xo31@711ret]

I'm a leftie big time; When I first joined in 82 I was told to fire right-handed with the C1. After a couple of times of trying to qualify, I was told to fire left-handed - had no probs qualifying & we all could finally go back to the barracks!  ;D
First time on the grenade range in Pet, I was ordered to throw right-handed. I argued that I was a 'hard-leftie' until finally I was ORDERED under threat of jail (remember this was 82) by the master-jack to throw right-handed. I threw right-handed just over the wall & to the right in front of the observation tower. We all head the LT yell over the loud-speaker.' NICE FN SHOT PTE *******!!' And he shut down the range. After explaining my story ( I had a witness, thank gawd, my grenade partner, who heard what happened between the master-jack & myself). All I can remember was the master-jack being called over to see the LT for a private 'conference'; then I was shown how to hold the grenade left-handed (because of the spoon) & ordered to throw again this time, left -handed. No probs after that.

 

[medicineman]

I've met a few people with opposite eye dominance issues - teaching them to shoot can be a bit of a hassle.  They just had to learn to switch hands and work the wrong side.  I always felt sorry for lefties who had to shoot the SMG's - what with the cocking handle ramming back at their faces and rounds flying out by their noses - Gerry, did they try to make you shoot the SMG right handed as well?

MM

 

[TangoTwoBravo]

I am right-handed but left-eye dominant.  My Phase 2 instructor refered to me as a "crack baby" due to this when he tested us for eye-dominance.  I tried shooting left, but the improvement with eye-fatigue and sight picture retention was overwhelmed by my complete inability to operate the weapon left-handed with any dextrousness.  Subsequently, I shoot right and seem to do OK.

When I am gunning in an AFV, though, I use my left eye.

 

[vonGarvin]

When I am gunning in an AFV, though, I use my left eye.

Of course you do.  If you used the other eye, you'd have to sit outside the turret!  ;D

 

[Bluebulldog]

Just a qick word of advice...

It's a rifle..or a weapon.......you call it a gun...and you're going to learn your terms of reference the hard way.....

Particularly if you have the great fortune to have an arty NCO on your course....

 

[TangoTwoBravo]

Of course you do.  If you used the other eye, you'd have to sit outside the turret!  ;D

I must be thicker than usual today.  I'm not getting it...?  I close my right eye when I look through turret optics.

 

[vonGarvin]

I must be thicker than usual today.  I'm not getting it...?  I close my right eye when I look through turret optics.

[drawing a pic].  Imagine if you will a gunner sitting in a turret. Imagine that gunner using his LEFT eye to look through the turret, and his RIGHT eye closed.  His body is shifted RIGHT to look through the optics.  Then, suspend reality and imagine you have to, as a gunner, (in a Coyote: this doesn't work in a tank, nor as a crew commander: you said when you gunned), to shift LEFT to use your right eye; however, the turret is so small, when you shift to use your other eye, you have to sit on the outside of the turret, with your head sticking in (somehow) to look through the optics
[/drawing a pic]

Yeah, I know, poor humour


(And I thought I heard crickets when I first posted it here)

 

[TangoTwoBravo]

I just adjust the brow pad and get down to business!

 

[SeanNewman]

I just adjust the brow pad and get down to business!

Don't worry, even commanders with three full bananas on their epaulet do that...in your current unit no less (with a pintle though).

My side!