N/A Bye Bye Scopes!

[MDriskill]

I had cataract surgery a couple years back, fixed-focus far distance lenses in both eyes. And my cataracts were kinda like sepia-colored sunglasses, so another benefit was that the world became not only brighter, but rendered in prettier colors! With fixed-distance lenses I still need progressive-lens glasses, which is fine as I was used to 'em. It was odd to go from having been near-sighted my whole life to suddenly being far-sighted though!

An iris with an adjustable opening is of great benefit, especially for older eyes; the OEM eye disks on match diopters tend to have tiny openings around 1mm, that are of marginal use outside a well-lit target range. Pre-surgery an iris was a necessity for me, too - I saw a black spot floating in the middle the aperture until I opened it up past 2mm.

An interesting halfway house between peep and scope is an iris with a 1.5x magnifying lens; those have a big enough range of focus that even before cataract surgery, I could shoot fine without my glasses. Here's a Williams with an old Gehmann magnifying iris fitted via an adapter.

 

[Michigander]

I am old enough to need trifocals, and still enjoy shooting with iron sights on both rifles and pistols. Are the sights perfectly clear? No, but apparently clear enough that I can shoot reasonably well with either open sights or target style diopter sights. I think shooting with iron sights is something you have to simply want to do, because scopes and red dots are undeniably easier to use, especially for pistols. Accuracy wise, with practice results with irons can be surprisingly close to what you can get from a scope. There was an open sights challenge here a while back, and with my FWB Sport I was getting groups of 1/2” to 5/8” with that rifle’s excellent open sights at 25 yards. With the same rifle scoped, groups are typically 3/8” to 1/2”, only a little better. The trick to learning to use iron sights is to use the proper type target, one with the correct size bull for the shooting distance. Give it a try, you might find the new challenge enjoyable.

 

[jkingrph]

I had cataract surgery a couple years back, fixed-focus far distance lenses in both eyes. And my cataracts were kinda like sepia-colored sunglasses, so another benefit was that the world became not only brighter, but rendered in prettier colors! With fixed-distance lenses I still need progressive-lens glasses, which is fine as I was used to 'em. It was odd to go from having been near-sighted my whole life to suddenly being far-sighted though!

An iris with an adjustable opening is of great benefit, especially for older eyes; the OEM eye disks on match diopters tend to have tiny openings around 1mm, that are of marginal use outside a well-lit target range. Pre-surgery an iris was a necessity for me, too - I saw a black spot floating in the middle the aperture until I opened it up past 2mm.

An interesting halfway house between peep and scope is an iris with a 1.5x magnifying lens; those have a big enough range of focus that even before cataract surgery, I could shoot fine without my glasses. Here's a Williams with an old Gehmann magnifying iris fitted via an adapter.

Like you I had the cataract surgery a couple of years ago and went from nearsighted now to farsighted. I'm 79 and been wearing glasses since I was probably 13 so used to the, really grab them first thing in the morning when I wake up. I went ahead and got some progressive lenses, opposited of what I used to have so I do not have to constantly look for reading glasses.

I like the Gehmann diopters and have quite a few of the plain adjustable aperature models, one as you show with the magnifier and find it better to adjust sharpness of front sight, and then on on my target rifle with that plus some colors.

Also like you , I have always been able to shoot any kind of iron sights, both pre and post surgery, except now I can shoot them post surgery as I can see the target without glasses, and the sights are far enough away from my eye to be in focus.

 

[Yogi_Rides]

Funny thing about the human condition, we always want what we dont have. While I used irons exclusively in my youth (My great uncle taught me to shoot & insisted I stick with irons) as soon as I could I moved to scopes for better precision. Now as I travel into the autumn of my years & with my vision begining to fade I am desperately clinging to irons. To my way of thinking, a well placed shot with irons is the very soul of shooting.

 

[Mycapt65]

Im going for an eye exam today as a precursor to getting lazic. My vision was spectacular ten years ago. Now it spectacles only. I hate wear glasses. They're not easy to incorporate into outdoorsmen activities. Hopefully this goes as well as yours.

 

[Bear-of-Grayling]

Im going for an eye exam today as a precursor to getting lazic. My vision was spectacular ten years ago. Now it spectacles only. I hate wear glasses. They're not easy to incorporate into outdoorsmen activities. Hopefully this goes as well as yours.

Ron, have them check you for cataracts also.

 

[Bear-of-Grayling]

I went in on a outside chance that I had cataracts. No reason really. Indeed I did. Could have had this done years ago.

 

[Mycapt65]

After today's eye appointment I'm wearing lopsided contacts and I can't believe how much better I can see without any glasses. My brain is still adjusting to the staggered magnifications but I've only had them in for under 2 hours. What a great feeling to be able to see near and far again without glasses. Now I'll have to refocus all my scopes and try open sights again.

That's it.
Be well.
Ron

 

[jccams]

After today's eye appointment I'm wearing lopsided contacts and I can't believe how much better I can see without any glasses. My brain is still adjusting to the staggered magnifications but I've only had them in for under 2 hours. What a great feeling to be able to see near and far again without glasses. Now I'll have to refocus all my scopes and try open sights again.

That's it.
Be well.
Ron

Good to hear Ron, need to see some new targets after you adjust.

 

[crowski]

Bear glad for your success.
I wore glasses till June, needed for distance and reading. I couldn’t see my front sights, same deal.
Had the 12 min. light show in each eye plus a lens. I never have to wear glasses again for reading or distance. Still feels weird not having them but so much better. Highly recommended. Good luck. Crow

 

[JungleShooter]

𖦏 Some really like the traditional ways to aim.

𖦏 Some really like traditional guns (tremendous photos in the OP).

𖦏 To some, shooting with iron sights is "the very soul of shooting" (post #24).



Wow.
I guess I was born in a different galaxy.
To me, a fully featured scope is such a marvel, such a perfect tool— it doesn't even need a gun attached to it for me to salivate.


➠ I'm glad there's space for all of us in this huge airguniverse.

Matthias



PS:
The answer is: "YES, of course."
(The answer to the question if I own more scopes than guns, that is....)

 

[SpiralGroove]

When I was a young man, (I’ll be 69 soon) a half century ago, my vision was 20/10 in each eye. I recently had Cataract surgery. I opted for a lens called a LAL. Light Adjustable Lens. Pricey devils. 8K to be exact. My vision in my dominant eye (left) is now 20/15. My right eye lens was adjusted for reading and is 20/20. I can see the fiber in the paper WITHOUT GLASSES! I’ve been scoping guns because I just couldn’t see the front sight clearly any longer. Not now. Another reason to keep the iron sights option open when deciding on a particular model. These three pumpers went from this-to-this today. And more to come!View attachment 512865View attachment 512867

Hey Bear,
This topic is very timely for me as I may have cataract surgery in 2025. My night vision is just terrible seeing halo's around head lights and glare can really be a pain.
I know medicare won't pay a dime unless you get standard lenses, but the LAL or other hybrid lenses may well be worth paying $8K out-of-pocket.

I haven't used a peep sight for 40 years and would love to enjoy anything close to 20/20 vision w/o glasses. I've been near sighted my whole life and would find it strange to need glasses for reading.

$8K likely wouldn't break the bank, but looking for assurance I will receive a good outcome ............ before ponying up the cash.
Trying to do my due diligence so I can make the best choice.

Thanks for everyone's comments .

 

[crowski]

Hey Bear,
This topic is very timely for me as I may have cataract in 2025. My night vision is just terrible seeing halo's around head lights and glare can really be a pain.
I know medicare won't pay a dime unless you get standard lenses, but the LAL or other hybrid lenses may well be worth paying $8K out-of-pocket.

I haven't used a peep sight for 40 years and would love to enjoy anything close to 20/20 vision w/o glasses. I've been near sighted my whole life and would find it strange to need glasses for reading.

$8K likely wouldn't break the bank, but looking for assurance I will receive a good outcome ............ before ponying up the cash.
Trying to do my due diligence so I can make the best choice.

Thanks for everyone's comments .

If you’re close to the Canadian border get it done here. Mine was $9000. which is app $6000 US. Difference of a few springers.
There were two options. For distance $6000 for both distance and reading $9000. Taxes in.
This has to be the simplest procedure on the planet. The toughest part, finding a vein. Absolutely painless with instant results. Crow

 

[Yogi_Rides]

$8K likely wouldn't break the bank, but looking for assurance I will receive a good outcome ............ before ponying up the cash.
Trying to do my due diligence so I can make the best choice.

Thanks for everyone's comments .

For me its not about the money. My wife has had her eyes done twice, but rather the potential consequences..

Before surgery you have to sign a waiver that if they mess it up you could walk out blind & have no recourse (they warned you). Sure they have done millions of procedures now & have it down to a science so the risk is low but, I am a big guy (6' 5") and would be pushing the margins of what they typically do. I can see mostly fine now with glasses & am unwilling to take the chance of even partial blindness for the convenience (and vanity) of giving up my glasses.

 

[Bear-of-Grayling]

but the LAL or other hybrid lenses may well be worth paying $8K out-of-pocket.

Best 8k I have ever spent. The LAL is the way to go. My wife just did hers without the LAL. Per a friends advice. Her call. She’s regretting it.

 

[jkingrph]

Best 8k I have ever spent. The LAL is the way to go. My wife just did hers without the LAL. Per a friends advice. Her call. She’s regretting it.

We were quoted $5000 for each eye for the fancy lens implants. My wife and I both needed it about the same time, so that would have been close to $20,000, we went with the plain lenses. I can buy a lot of reading glasses for far less than that over my remaining years, plus the VA covers a pair of standard bifocals each year. My wife was lucky, she was farsighted to start with and she continued using the same glasses she had before the cataract surgery.

 

[JungleShooter]

Nothing like a derailed airgun scope thread....!

 

[jlharden]

Not derailed yet! Being able to see is a mandatory component of shooting anything at what you intend to. With extreme myopia, failing nearfield vision, and pigmentary glaucoma I read these types of threads with complete attention. If it doesn't apply to you, consider yourself lucky.

 

[JungleShooter]

If it doesn't apply to you, consider yourself lucky.

➠ Yes! I am.
Or rather, I consider myself blessed.

Carry on.
It won't be long till I might have to reread this thread with a different level of interest.

Matthias

 

[jlharden]

➠ Yes! I am.
Or rather, I consider myself blessed.

Carry on.
It won't be long till I might have to reread this thread with a different level of interest.

Matthias

In all sincerity, I do hope you stay blessed! For the others; where there's a will there's a way, they say! Lot's of people adapting and overcoming adversity. You have to love a group like this.