Best Hearing Protection

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tegemu

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I went to my ear doctor yesterday and discussed hearing protection for me as a shooter. I told him that I usually wear the expandable foam plugs and muffs. I asked him if he thought some of those custom made plugs would be better. His response was that what I was doing, foam plugs and muffs, were the best option. The high priced custom plugs were not high in his esteem. They are molded to your ears but if not placed precisely, as they were molded, leave sound penetrating gaps, but the foam, which he says provide as good , if not better, protection, expand to fit perfectly. Another problem with molded plugs is that as time passes, the shape of the ear changes making the plugs ineffective. Food for thought.
 
Foam plugs are the best IMO. Not because of any advice I've heard from a doctor, but simply because they get the job done for me. My ears are very sensitive to loud noises -- the clanking of dishes, concert music, etc. I have absolutely no problems shooting with plugs though. Sometimes muffs aren't quite sufficient (at least not the ones I've tried), but the sound level is never uncomfortable when I'm shooting with plugs. I prefer to wear both plugs and muffs when possible though.
 
Your doc is absolutely correct.

I've seen a variety of custom molded plugs that were done on the same person by various providers. The best ones were those done by the techician in his lab, while ALL the others had gaps regardless of price.

Inexpensive foam plugs that are properly inserted give the best protection of anything out there regardless of price. Add good muffs in good condition (those ear cup pads do wear out) and you've got the best hearing protetction you can get.
 
+1 prior advice.

For maximum protection, I use new sets of the Howard Leight "Max" plugs (the orange ones, NRR 33) with good muffs over the top. Buy these in the 500-pair-ct boxes for about $20, throw away after a day of use.

I have a set of professionally-made (in the lab) molded plugs. They are without doubt less effective that the Max foam plugs. Also, any change in the shape of your ear or flexing of face/head muscles may create gaps which compromise their seal.
 
I usually, double up as well. The (subjectively) best sound protection I get from Mack's foam plugs (their skin colored). They claim 32dB of protection. I buy them by the box at target.

But what are good muffs? I've got these blue Silenceo muffs, they fold up nicely in a range bag (that's a must have features). Basically what are the highest protection I can get that still fold up nicely to fit in a range bag? Non-electroinc.
 
I like plugs best just for comfort—muffs always drive me nuts. Snag my hair and stuff (even now that my hair's short).

Sometimes ROs get a little twitchy when I walk in, so I generally lift up my hair and point to the plugs, but that's about the only downside.

I guess if you walk on and off a lot, plugs can be a pain.
 
i'm the wierdo at the range

who wears the following:

1. silicone plugs (protects 33 db hearing)
2. blue silencio muffs (protects 32 db hearing.. you NEED this if ppl are shooting .50 bmg right next to you)
3. 3M respirator (do you want to breathe 50yro corrosive primer powder?)
4. ANSI large frame wide-angle goggles (this is a must, esp if you shoot surplus guns & ammo)
5. sigarms blue baseball cap (I don't like getting brass burns on my face)

and sometimes, depending on weather

6. gore-tex german surplus flectarn hoodie (for wind and light rain)
7. mosquito netting (this is not for skeeters, but for the folks with aks and mini-14s tossing wolf cases upside my head)
8. swedish surplus alpenflage poncho (for heavy rain)

and soon

9. level ii body armor, police surplus from bulletproofme.com (for morons who like to sweep their muzzles)

the bottom line is, the only person responsible for your safety is you. personally, I would rather be the wierdo or the "pussy[cat]" at the range than the guy with hearing loss, burns, and other assorting ailments just because i wanted to look good to the 20 or so people there that I DON'T EVEN KNOW.

as for the range staff, once you establish that you group well, that you support the range, and that you are a stand up guy you will become only one more oddity at the gun range.
 
Perfectly good muffs can be had at Home Depot and Lowes. Get names you know like Peltor and Silencio.
 
hso said:
Inexpensive foam plugs that are properly inserted give the best protection of anything out there regardless of price.
Yep, the foam plugs have to be inserted properly just like the custom plugs. How many times have you seen some yahoo at the range looking like Shrek with the foamies sticking way out of his ears? I see it all the time. If they can't figure it out, I guess that's their problem. I can't stand muffs so they're not an option for me. Foam plugs are available with a high NRR (Noise Reduction Rating) and are cheap, cheap, cheap. But I frequently go to and from the shop at my range and re-inserting the foam plugs is a pain, not to mention all the crap that gets inserted in my ears from the dirty ammo I handle, so I go with custom plugs. I check them 3-4 times after I insert them to make sure they're in right, the same way I check my handgun 3-4 times to make sure it is unloaded before I begin my dry-fire practice. I'm just careful. I trust the fit of my plugs as I had an audiologist make mine and I've compared their performance against muffs with a NRR of 31. Another reason why I like them is they sit further inside the ear canal than foam plugs so they offer more protection. NRR is the most important thing so make sure that whatever you wear has a NRR of at least 30. A lot of the low-profile muffs have a low rating as do the fold-up muffs. Brand names have nothing to do with it.
 
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choochboost,

Brand names actually do make a difference. Most muffs in the US are great. Just don't get cheap unknown muffs and you're fine. All the major brands are pretty much the same for doing what they say they'll do. Cheap brands can't be relied upon to hold up or to provide the protection.

Peltor, Bilsom, EAR, Moldex, Tasco, Silencio all are dependable brands and produce muffs under gun maker's labels. Just stay away from cheap offshore manufactured no label muffs.
 
Gentex Wolf Ears

I bought a set of the blue Gentex Wolf Ears several years ago from Massad Ayoob's Police Bookshelf and have been very happy with them.

Typically I will wear them solo with the mics on for ourdoor ranges, but turn the system off and double up with plugs if using an indoor range...and I rarely do the indoor range thing.

Even if you don't care for the electronic function I have found they seal themselves against your head and ears much more effectively than any other set of muffs I have tried.

A few months ago I had my ears checked and brought them along. I asked the ear doctor (who was also a shooter) if they were a good choice.

He picked them up and said, "Jesus, where did you get these? They're built like a tank! If you stick with them you will have nothing to worry about."

BTW...my hearing was above average and my ears very healthy.

Where do I get one of those 3M Respirators by the way?
 
here you go

http://www.sosproducts.com/

they sell all sorts of stuff and they are right by me. if you want something from them and you want my own opinion of it, just let me know. i've pretty much fondled everything in that store.

i will not shoot at my indoor club anymore without a respirator. too many times i've gone home with black snot and that foul sweet taste of lead in my throat.

when i'm outdoors, i don't use the respirator unless i'm shooting surplus. 50-60 year old ammo can be a mite unpredictable, and mroe than once my mask has saved me from getting hot flecks of powder embedded into my face. my buddy got a nice 1 sq cm piece of skin ripped off his face a few weeks ago from a fleck of bad powder out of wwb .40 at my indoor.

a shooting cap is also very important. you can go without the cap if there's no wind, you're shooting alone, and there are no walls or ceilings to bounce brass back at you, but otherwise going without is just asking for a piece of hot brass between your eyelids.

goggles i've found are invaluable as well. that same corrosive ammunition that has a tendency to unpredictably throw flecks of powder out can also produce pierced primers - a very bad situation for you if, say, you are using a rifle like the mosin nagant and hot gas comes rushing down the bolt and into your face.

of course, one should always try to prevent that very situation by doing headspace checks, something that i plan to invest in very soon.

if only that damn extractor on my mosin would come off...
 
Respirators are available at Home Depot and Lowes. Be sure to get P or N 95 or 100 rated filters.

If you have high blood pressure or any cardiovascular problems you should realize that using a negative pressure air purifying respirator (what you're looking at) puts a load on your cadiovascular system.

If you are concerned about the airborne lead levels at the indoor range ask the range manager what the measured airborne lead levels were the last time they checked them. If they are above 50 then ask how much. If 100 then half a day expsosure. If 200 then 2 hrs. If 400 then 1 hr. If 800 then 30 minutes.
 
Rite Aid sells little plastic buckets of foam plugs. I use them for concerts, and keep some in the range bag for anyone who forgot their own.

For shooting, I use black and red muffs sold by Browning.
 
When shooting pistols, I like peltor electronic muffs for comfort, and the ability to still hear what's going on.
With rifles, I've tried foamies, and I have to say I like my custom molded plugs better. Very comfortable, and very quiet--folks frequently have to tap me on the shoulder to make the line safe, I can't hear 'em otherwise. Also the customs are easier/quicker to remove and replace as well.
 
I use AOSafety 80 pack orange and purple foam earplugs that I buy at the hardware store rated NRR 32. I haven't noticed any additional benefits from wearing a pair of a muffs as well. These muffs are a ~$12-$18 dollar pair of regular muffs.

Although they don't seem to reduce report sound, are they actually? Should I wear them to gain any benefit?

I thought that I had read here that noise reduction is not additive, that is, 32 earplugs plus ~20, or what ever the muffs are, is not 52 reduction, it remains 32.

thanks and have a great day,
cavman
 
Zak said, "I use new sets of the Howard Leight "Max" plugs (the orange ones, NRR 33)"

...and I agree completely. As an auditor I visit dozens of manufacturing/testing facilitys annually, and get to try many many different kinds of earplugs. The Leight "Max" are the ones I prefer, by a wide margin. You can sometimes score them cheap on ebay.
 
cavman,

You add 5 dB for the lower of the two. 30 plug with 30 muff becomes 35 together.

Until recently the thinking was to add the two and subtract 5 dB.

If you wear muffs alone remember to subtract 5 dB for the ear pieces of your glasses. 30 mugg - 5dB for glasses breaking the ear cup seal = 25 together.

You still get to add 5dB for the muffs with plugs even if you're wearing glasses.
 
hso,

I did not know about the contributions of the glasses. Thanks for the info.
Also I had never heard about the 5dB part of the equation either.

I am going to start going muff/plug.

thanks and have a great day
cavman
 
This is sort of/kind of off topic but I just purchased some new hearing protection. I will be trying them out this weekend. I dont know if anyone here has used or even heard of these but I got some MSA Supreme Pro Earmuffs. If you dont know MSA is the biggest safety company in the world. Why did I chose these? Well I sell fire equipment and we are one of their bigegst dealers so naturally we get a very good discount.Here is a link if anyone cares--
http://www.msanorthamerica.com/catalog/product17474.html

http://media.msanet.com/NA/USA/Head...tection/SupremeProMuff/0900-51-SupremePro.pdf

If anyone is interested pm me and Ill give them to you at my cost. Ill review them Monday.
 
cavman,
You add 5 dB for the lower of the two. 30 plug with 30 muff becomes 35 together.

Wait. So If I double up, my total is "add 5db to the lowest of the two"? That makes no sense to me.
Example:
32dB plugs + 20 db muff = 20 (lowest of the two) + 5 = 25. That would mean I'm better off with just plugs at 32db. How could adding 20db muffs to 32db plugs give me less protection?

Another example:
20db plugs + 20db muffs = 25db. Now, let's change the muffs out for 30db ones. I still get 25. Swapping out better muff while doubling up would yeild no benifits?

I must have misunderstood.
 
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