Left Handed Guns

[gavmeister13]

Did any countries involved in WWII modify their guns to allow them to be fired left handed or were they able to be fired with both the left and right hands?

[Lustmolch]

The surviving weapons that I have seen all appear to be built to favour someone who is right handed. I don't know what the ratio of left/right handed people is but assume that the latter hold a majority.

Spike Milligan, in his series of war memoirs, recounted being taught to fire a Bren Gun, his instructor's patter included, in part:

"Left handed, are you? Well, I'm sorry but we can't get the gun rebuilt to suit you, you'll just have to learn to be right handed for the duration!"

[Christian Ankerstjerne]

The rate today is, I believe, about 10% lefthanded, however there are theories that it is initially about 50% before and immidiately after birth, but that people are 'taught' to be right-handed.

I don't know about WWII, but today I have heard that automatic weapons are not given to people who are left-handed, because they risk injuring themself on the ejected shellcase...

Christian

[paddywhack]

im left handed but i only use my left hand for writing i do pretty much everything else with my right hand including golf using the mouse and iv fired a gun to and i taught myself to be right handed while doing it!it not hard at all! just my pre tax cents worth!

[Ljunggren]

I´m right handed, but left eyed i e my right eyesight is very bad.
This makes it very awkward to fire any gun that has the bolt or cartride ejection on the right side.
When I was doing my military service I was issued a sniper rifle instaed of the standard automatic carbine and it work out fairly well.

[Matt L]

Before the war, at least in Germany, I left-handed people were still made to learn to write, etc., with their right hands (my Grandmother is ambidextrous because of it), so I'd say it's fairly likely there was never seen to be a need for strictly left-handed weapons. I've also never seen one.

Matt

[David Lehmann]

I don't know about WWII, but today I have heard that automatic weapons are not given to people who are left-handed, because they risk injuring themself on the ejected shellcase...

Christian

With the French Famas the issue can be solved in a few "clicks". The bolt face has extractor mounting points on both sides, so user can mount the extractor claw on the left or the right side of the bolt, which will result in the left-side or right-side extraction of the spent cartridge cases through the ejection ports on both sides of the gun. One of the ejection ports, which is not used at the moment, is always covered with detachable cheek piece, which can be installed on either side of the gun, as required. This allows to solve the problem of the left-hand use, which is essential for most rifles and even more critical with a bullpup configuration.

David