Jump to content

Recommended Posts

My son is getting close to an age that I want to teach him to shoot. But he's a lefty. All my guns are for rightys. So I've got the following thoughts and would love to get some advice, espically from lefties out there.

 

1) Can I teach him to shoot as a righty? He's 5 and pretty athletic.

 

2) Will you get a facefull of brass if you're a lefty and shoot ARs, AKs or a Mini?

 

Other thoughts:

3) How old were you when you learned to shoot?

 

4) How old is old enough to learn?

Link to post
Share on other sites

My son is getting close to an age that I want to teach him to shoot. But he's a lefty. All my guns are for rightys. So I've got the following thoughts and would love to get some advice, espically from lefties out there.

 

1) Can I teach him to shoot as a righty? He's 5 and pretty athletic.

 

Yes, but with a lot of patience.

 

2) Will you get a facefull of brass if you're a lefty and shoot ARs, AKs or a Mini?

 

I never have and I have several of each. ARs should have a brass deflector though.

 

Other thoughts:

3) How old were you when you learned to shoot?

 

7, with a BB Gun.

 

4) How old is old enough to learn?

Depends on the child. Biggest mistake I see some fathers make, (I am an RO,) is they ignore the ergonomics and the reality of the situation. For introducing a young person to shooting, a Youth Model .22 can't be beat. A big, recoiling, loud firearm can turn what should be a great 1rst experience into a bad experience.

Also, IMHO, your boy is too young to handle a handgun. And will be, for 4 or 5 more years.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks for the feedback fellas. Yeah, I'm thinking pellet gun soon, .22 if a couple of years and the big stuff when he's 13 and up. I've got a nice single shot bolt action .22 that can shoot shorts or LR and that will be a good introdution.

 

But as I aquire more guns I want to make sure he will eventually be able to shoot everything I've got.

Link to post
Share on other sites

My son is getting close to an age that I want to teach him to shoot. But he's a lefty. All my guns are for rightys. So I've got the following thoughts and would love to get some advice, espically from lefties out there.

 

1) Can I teach him to shoot as a righty? He's 5 and pretty athletic.

 

2) Will you get a facefull of brass if you're a lefty and shoot ARs, AKs or a Mini?

 

Other thoughts:

3) How old were you when you learned to shoot?

 

4) How old is old enough to learn?

 

Im not a lefty, but...

 

1) My Dad is a lefty, shoots lefty and is a pretty good shot, all but one of his guns is a left handed gun. From a young age he learned how to operate right handed guns with is left hand. I would suggest just letting your son shoot your right handed guns the way he wants to.

 

2) Maybe, if you do the ejectors/extractors can be adjusted or a case deflector can be installed to fix that problem. Also should not be a problem with AR's because of the built in case deflector unless you happen to have an early A1 style AR.

 

3) I was 2 years old.

 

4) That's up to you and yours.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

I am a lefty and learned to shoot from my Dad who is also a lefty and my Grandpas who were boyh righties. I am left eye dominant and my dad is right eye dominant. With all those combinations I got to see many different ways to opetate the firearms. I personally believe that most right handed guns are easier to operate for a lefty as you can keep your trigger finger in the ready position while operating the bolt, safety, etc. As patriot said the only disadvantage is a right ejecting bullpup ( never shot one because of this)

 

As far as age goes I would say as early as hr shows interest and you are comfortable. One of my earliest memoried is shooting a pellet gun in the backyard with my Grandpa and Dad.

 

Have fun, you'll both enjoy it!!

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Im a lefty too! ARs, AKs, mini14s, SKS, FALs,.... are all gtg. In fact besides bulpups I don't know of any modern self loading rifle that isn't ok. When he gets older and you let him shoot more stuff you'll find little quirks here and there none of which are difficult to overcome. Like the left side scope on an AK or the safty on a commonwealth L1A1. You end up manipulating it as you're shooting.

 

Handguns are fine too. If he's like me and likes to use the slide release guns like Walther PPS and Glocks are annoying. If it can't be ambidextrous then I prefer slide releases like those found on 1911s, hipowers, steel s&w..the type that are further out and protrude slightly.

 

Beat is if you can teach him to be comfortable with both right and left hand.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm lefthanded, but I shoot right-handed because I'm right-eye dominant. Do you know the quick eye-dominance check? You hold your hands up at arms reach, make a little triangle by touching thumbtips and index fingertips. Now, with both eyes open, look through that little 'window' at something at least 20 feet away. Now, without moving your hands, close your left eye. If you can still see the target through the window, you're right-eye dominant and should shoot right-handed. If you can't see the target through the window, you're left-eye dominant. If you can see the target no matter which eye you have open, make a smaller window and do it again until you can only see the target with one eye.

 

I started shooting when I was 12 or so, but there weren't any shooters in my Dad's generation of the family.

 

At 5 years old, I'd start him out with a pellet gun.

Link to post
Share on other sites

AK's are OPTIMIZED for leftys....

 

 

Except for the safety.

I use my left thumb... works perfectly!

 

 

Your LEFT thumb or your right? Would a 5 year old have large enough hands to safely reach the safety that way?

Link to post
Share on other sites

Don't worry, the 5 year old won't get on the AK for a while, so hand size at this point is not an issue. I just wanted to make sure that I was building my collection in a way that he wouldn't be left out as he gets older. From the sounds of it as long as I say away from bullpups (which I'm not fond of anyway) I should be OK.

 

Thanks everyone for the great tips/advice.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I do everything but shoot right handed, I shoot left handed because my left eye is my master eye. If I wink it's always the right eye that closes. Don't know but things like that could be a factor. To qualify with a M60 I had to shoot right handed so I put a patch over my left eye.

I'm in my late fifties and just got my 1st left handed gun last year, having the bolt handle on the left feels funny after all this time working with right handed guns. For starters try a BB gun with a stock short enough for him to handle and make sure he's not trying to sight with his left eye when shooting right handed. Good luck to you and the little guy and have years of fun with it.

Edited by going12220
Link to post
Share on other sites

Ditto : "I do everything but shoot right handed, I shoot left handed because my left eye is my master eye."

 

Until about age 17, I could shoot with either eye equally well but a severe right eye problem changed my ability to shoot with my right eye, and my left became dominant. So eye dominance is a key factor to think about with your son.

 

So, I shoot lefty now and I have no left handed guns. I shoot bolt actions, levers, pumps, semi-autos and have had no problems with any. And I have had no problems with ejected shells. My Saiga/AK actually ejects forward, and a long way at that! As said, some safeties are a little inconvenient, but you adapt.

 

I got my fist gun (Red Ryder BB) at age 6 and a 410 shot gun at age 12.

Link to post
Share on other sites

AK's are OPTIMIZED for leftys....

 

 

Except for the safety.

I use my left thumb... works perfectly!

 

 

Your LEFT thumb or your right? Would a 5 year old have large enough hands to safely reach the safety that way?

 

I got the dinzag safety mod so I can normally do it with my left.. reach around with right works good, too!

I'd start a five year old out on a cricket or somthin over an AK...

Link to post
Share on other sites

Yeah, as already explained, eye dominance is the biggest factor with long guns. An easy way to tell is just watch 'em and see which eye they're trying to aim with. I'm left-handed, but right-eyed...I've always shot right-handed (rifles) and it just feels natural. With handguns I can't help but use my left hand...in which case you do need to mind the brass. Haven't had too many problems, but my dad's P22 kicks 'em straight back...not fun catching hot brass with your neck while wearing multiple layers of clothing lol

Link to post
Share on other sites

I am also left handed and I had trouble with the S&W 59 until I had an ambidextrous safety installed. Rifles other than bullpups are no trouble to shoot including the AK. The Ruger 10/22 is another good one to teach shooting with at a low cost compared to centerfire ammo.

 

I had one pistol maker tell me that their 'expert' told me to get training to use their pistol (a CZ copy) instead of getting a pistol with an ambidextrous safety since they don't have that option available. I replied to them that they need a real expert not a someone who pretends to be an expert.

Link to post
Share on other sites

...Handguns are fine too. If he's like me and likes to use the slide release guns like Walther PPS and Glocks are annoying. If it can't be ambidextrous then I prefer slide releases like those found on 1911s, hipowers, steel s&w..the type that are further out and protrude slightly....

 

Glocks don't have a slide release.. they have a "slide stop lever". If you don't know the difference, you've probably been putting some extra, unnecessary wear on your Glocks. unsure.png

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izKoMROFTZI

Edited by post-apocalyptic
Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Chatbox

    Load More
    You don't have permission to chat.
×
×
  • Create New...