You don't really need hearing protection with a 9mm

Status
Not open for further replies.
S

Snarlingiron

Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2006
Messages
1,364
Location
Fort Worth, Texas (Where men are men, and a lot of
"You don't really need hearing protection with a 9mm."

That's what I heard today at Academy. I cruised by the gun case just to glance about as I always do, and there was a young fellow talking with the clerk. He was saying that the .357's he had shot were pretty loud, but he didn't really think hearing protection was necessary with a 9mm. The clerk, to his credit, said, "You need hearing protection whenever you shoot. Without it you will experience hearing loss when you get older." I chimed in and said, "I am living proof. When I was a kid, (late 60's) we really didn't know any better. I wish we had, because now I can hardly hear anything. You need hearing protection if you are shooting."

Bottom line is mostly what we hear, and indeed experience firsthand in stores of this kind is guys behind the counter that don't have a clue about shooting, guns, ammo, or much of anything else. This guy seemed knowlegeable, and was dispensing good advice. My compliments to him.
 
Wow. I just had to look at this thread when I saw that monumentally stupid statement. Even a .22 will damage your hearing if you're not wearing plugs and/or muffs. Only way you can get away with not having hearing protection is if you have a can for your .22, and even then I don't think I'd risk it.
 
I don't use hearing protection when hunting with my .243. That is the ONLY time. It is not particularly loud, I only shoot one shot at a time, and any time I'm on the range practicing with it, I wear double ears (plugs and muffs). Same with any other gun I shoot.

Hearing is not replaceable. Silly to risk it.

Springmom
 
Firearms can damage your hearing? Lies.

/sarcasm

At first I thought you were serious until I read the first post.
 
The shopper at Academy was right. You don't need hearing protection to fire a 9mm, as long as you don't mind going deaf.
 
Last edited:
The clerk at Academy was right. You don't need hearing protection to fire a 9mm, as long as you don't mind going deaf.
Click to expand...

The way I read the OP, the customer made the statement, the clerk corrected him.
 
I only had to go shooting one time with out hearing protection to learn my lesson. I was in College and went out to the river with two buddies to do some shooting. All three of us shooting full house .357 Mag loads. My ears were ringing for two days! :what: NEVER AGAIN! That being said, I probably damaged my hearing more by playing in some of the Rock bands I played with.
 
Unless I am being shot at, I sure want to put on hearing protection when firing any gun. My hearing is so bad now that it wouldn't take many shots to completely deafen me.

Jim
 
i shot my .38 once without hearing protection. the two maurading pitbulls the neighbors had came after me. i was lucky they were gun shy. anyhoo, for about five minutes after shooting i was deaf and could only hear buzzing.
oh, and cougfan, my dad was in a punk band when he was in his twenties. his hearing was never the same after. its a good idea to wear earplugs.
 
bluestarlizzard Sounds like I may be a little older than your Dad. My bands played CSN&Y, Eagles, Grateful Dead, etc........ I was the long haired rock and roll musician that was also a card carrying NRA member. My friends didn't quite know what to think of me. ;) We used to play some gigs in Junction City, KS near Ft Riley. It was a tough town on weekend nights, but because there was a diciplinary barracks at the Ft. There were some real hard cases that would come get drunk in the bars that were one step away from Leavenworth. I kept my .357 Mag loaded in my gear bag while I was on stage. Picture a place where the band wished it had a chicker wire cage. :D
 
I teach woodworking, and part of that involves chainsaws. Often I will get students who decline hearing protection while using those saws. They say, "It's not that loud." I reply, "There's a reason for that."

Even if the sound of 9mm is painful in the beginning, it will get better with time. :uhoh:
 
I also would.

Have played drums for good part of my life (rock bands, marching/drumlines, etc...) and probably wasn't as good as I should have been in wearing ear protection, so I'll probably pay for some of that later on in life.
 
bluestarlizzard Sounds like I may be a little older than your Dad. My bands played CSN&Y, Eagles, Grateful Dead, etc........ We used to play some gigs in Junction City, KS near Ft Riley. It could be a tough town on weekend nights. There was/is a big disciplinary base at the Ft and if you get sent there it means you are one F***up away from Leavenworth. Some of these guys would come into the bars to get their drunk on and it could get very interesting. I kept a loaded .357 mag in my mike bag on stage. Picture a place where the band wished it HAD a chicken wire cage. :D
 
I wouldn't know. I've never fired a handgun bigger than a 22 without hearing protection. And even the 22's were only fired without when hunting. Those suckers are LOUD! I was surprised a the difference between a 22 pistol and a 22 rifle.

Maybe he doesn't need hearing protection, but I do.
 
"Even if the sound of 9mm is painful in the beginning, it will get better with time."

That says it all.:banghead:
 
The only firearm i used to fire without hearing protection was a .22 rifle. After temporarily losing my hearing with a .22 handgun i start wearing muffs any time i shoot.
 
*grin*
oh cougfan, my dad and his buddies would have ripped on ya'll. he once got it to a fight with sting. he was in a band called The Young Turds in the late 70's. they played in the D.C. area. if you ever see an albulm called :30 seconds over D.C. pick it up. their on it. needless to say he was never a deadhead. Fripp, marc bolan and the ramones rule in our house. (yeah, he was into glitter rock for a while in college.)
 
I fired a single 9mm Mak round without hearing protection once; I was at an outdoor range and I figured it wouldn't be so bad. My ears rang for 5 minutes.

What I wanna know is how the hell the guys in WWII (or WWI, for that matter) stood it, blasting away with .30 cal rifles and unprotected ears.
 
>>What I wanna know is how the hell the guys in WWII (or WWI, for that matter) stood it, blasting away with .30 cal rifles and unprotected ears.<<

actually, i think the guys in vietnam that went down in the tunnels with nothing but a 1911 had it worse. always give respect to your vietnam vets!
 
Did you reach over the counter and slap this guy. If not, go back and do us all a favor. Don't worry, he won't hear you sneaking up on him.
 
What I wanna know is how the hell the guys in WWII (or WWI, for that matter) stood it, blasting away with .30 cal rifles and unprotected ears.
Click to expand...
There's a reason many vets talk so loud!

What's scary is when the noise doesn't bother you anymore.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

M
  • Locked
Hearing protection....
2
Replies
31
Views
1K
ChiefPilot
C
H
  • Locked
Paranoid about hearing protection.
2
Replies
26
Views
2K
rondog
R
Z
  • Locked
Hearing protection issues
Replies
9
Views
687
Z_Infidel
Z
LaVere
  • Locked
Military Hearing protection
Replies
18
Views
2K
Jeff White
J
G
  • Locked
Best possible active hearing protection?
2
Replies
26
Views
2K
dwstone1227
dwstone1227
Back
Top