Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: Has anyone had a +0.5 diopter lense made for shooting frames?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Kilmarnock
    Posts
    130

    Has anyone had a +0.5 diopter lense made for shooting frames?

    Has anyone had one made for their shooting glasses? If so did/do you find it a worthwhile addition?

    Where did you get it made? Any cost info available?

    Cheers.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Location
    Taunton
    Posts
    496
    Is this for rifle or pistol?

    +.5 is common for rifle shooting as it will give a focal length of 2 metres, roughly where you still get a clear foresight, but the target is less blurred than if focus was directly on the foresight. My first lens was +.5 as I didn't need any additional distance correction. My current lens is +1.50, my distance prescription of +1.0 plus .5 to get the focal length in front of the foresight. I find the extra +0.5 extremely useful as I'm long sighted, and tend naturally to focus on the target. Even with my normal distance prescription my eye wanders off the foresight. If you aren't long sighted, or you have young flexible eyes and good acuity, the lens may not help as much.

    I have my lenses made by Mike Taylor of Bill & Taylor (the Collumpton branch is closest to me). Cost for the last one was under £30.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2011
    Location
    Skelmersdale
    Posts
    656
    Yes and Yes.
    I've had lens made at Specsavers. Usually it's +.50 or +.75 added to the distance prescription (for air pistol). Need to take in the lens holder or a sample lens and ask for non reflective glass. IIRC cost was aprrox £35.
    Evo 10 Compact.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Hastings East Sussex
    Posts
    342
    Yes and yes from me, the +.50 is added to your distance prescription, when I asked about this on another forum I was told up to 40 years of age +.50
    40+ years of age +.75.
    As I am 75 with +.75 lens I get a superb sight picture, pity about the old mans shakes though.
    I had two lenses made,air pistol, left eye, and air rifle, right eye for £44 by L G Optical, a optical manufacturing company near my home.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2013
    Location
    bridgnorth
    Posts
    720

    I did

    And no! It didn't help.

    I'm 63 and shoot pistol.
    I had a plus +.5 42mm lens made for my Champion shooting glasses.
    I also use a variable diopter.

    I found the target blurred too much for my liking, and I could not dial it out.
    So reverted to a standard distance lens from a few years ago.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    swanley
    Posts
    1,707
    Yes & yes from me,

    I normally wear low strength glasses for reading and had a .50 made at specsavers, worked very well, I also use a yellow filter which I find sharpens up the sight picture, the biggest difference to me was how much more relaxed my eyes felt after shooting as my natural focus point with the lens and my eyes relaxed is the front sight.
    Steyr LP10, Steyr LP5,
    Vintage Collection - Walther LP53, HW77k Venom, BSF S20 Match, Original 35, ASI Target plus lots more

  7. #7
    RobinC's Avatar
    RobinC is offline Awesome Shooting Coach and Author.
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Gt Yarmouth
    Posts
    1,315
    Rifle and pistol lens are very different as is the sighting principle.

    With a pistol the aim is more an area aim and the lens will be what ever is neccessary for you to get sharp focus on the foresight, the top shooting specific Opticians work on a focal length of 1.3 mts, when I shot pistol seriously I always took my pistol to the optician and they got it exactly spot on.
    As its an area aim the target blur is irrelavent, the aiming mark is just to give a relation to the centre, you do not aim at it, and you do not want to be tempted to try and focus on it, it is the best way to get flyers! If you can see the target clear then you are not focusing on the sight picture and you will get a bigger error from misallingned sight picture than any wobble or placement of the sight picture against the target. Try shooting with the target reversed (no aiming mark), If your technique is good you should get the same group and very similar scores, possibles, (50's) with the card backwards are very achievable for a good shot.
    An iris merely complicates the focus, as it draws the focal length back out towards the target, the few shooter who shoot well with an iris have their focal lens set up with the iris, but really its a complication most good shooters have tried and rejected, its best avoided.

    Now rifle shooting is a different kettle of aquatics, you are looking through an aperture (which changes your focus), you wish to get a sharp focus on the foresight, and a good enough view (carefully chosen word, not focus) of the aiming mark, which is at infinity, as we are talking of a very precise aim to achieve the top score (10.9), so we have two focal lengths that we need to gain focus on at the same time in a perfect world, and that is impossible with the human eye so we work on the best comprimise.

    The accepted technique is to have the foresight in sharp focus, its the bit we move and control to achieve the good shot, the aiming mark is fixed, and we judge the white gap in the foresight around the aiming mark, as long as we have a good enough "view" of that aiming mark and we see it as
    round we can achieve a perfect aim. If your focus goes to the aiming mark you are doomed, as you will loose the precision of the equal ring of white around the fore sight element, the shot can go any where, its the biggest reason for flyers with the shooter convinced it was a good shot!

    The compromise focal length as Tim has correctly stated is 2 mts and that relates to a +0.5 diopter correction on long vision to achieve that, so your long prescription is +1.5 so your shooting prescription is +2.00. Beware to do the correct maths if you have a minus prescription i.e. -1.5 your shooting prescription is -1.0.

    I read into the OP's question being around what do you do if you have perfect vision? With perfect vision you may happily see perfectly well both rifle and pistol, then the lens works more as an assist to discipline to focus on the sights with pistol, I always used a pistol lens when I shot pistol at top level and with perfect eyesight, and I knew many others who did the same.

    My concentration is now with rifle coaching, and with rifle a +0.5 can help those with perfect 20/20 or infinity vision, it can reduce eyestrain, but its a personal choice, I know several top level rifle shooters who have perfect vision, but use a +0.5 lens. I know one who at a cataract operation had the right eye lens coutesy of Bausch and Lomb set at the perfect 0.5 rifle variance, now that's dedication, and she shoots 100's! We currently coach a young rifle talent with infinity right eyesight, who has constantly complained of blurred picture and eyestrain from aiming, we have tried a +0.5, problem gone. Her long vision was so good it was a struggle to focus at 2 mts.

    Although there are some simple possible answers, its a complex subject, our eyesight is valuble and critical to us, and it is always best to talk to a qualified optician, and idealy one who is experienced in the foibles of shooting vision.

    Good Shooting
    Robin
    Walther KK500 Alutec expert special - Barnard .223 "wilde" in a Walther KK500 Alutec stock, mmm...tasty!! - Keppeler 6 mmBR with Walther grip and wood! I may be a Walther-phile?

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •