I've seen several people post that they wouldn't carry this or that caliber or ammuniton because if they ever had to fire it inside they're afraid of the damage it would do to their hearing.
Problems...
1. Dead people are deaf. Now I'm the last guy that will argue that bigger is always better, but although there are good reasons to drop down in power/caliber (shootability, recovery time are a couple) noise just isn't one of them. It will do you very little good to die with good hearing because you hamstrung yourself in the name of reducing noise pollution.
2. Even the mildest centerfire handgun cartridge will almost certainly cause damage your unprotected ears with just a single shot. It doesn't make sense to trade survivability for a little less hearing damage. If you could guarantee NO damage that MIGHT be a different story.
3. Hearing damage is a function of both loudness and amount of exposure. If you have to fire several rounds of your "quiet" ammunition, the damage to your hearing could equal or exceed the damage caused by one or two rounds of the "noisy" stuff you're worried about.
4. And MOST importantly, you can't control what your opponent carries. Mr. Murphy says that your opponent will be carrying the noisiest gun that he can bring along. Your efforts to pick a nice "quiet" gun will be wasted as soon as the BG touches off a round from his magnum. To make things worse, your gun (and therefore its muzzle blast) is directed away from you. Even if he misses, you'll get the full effect of his muzzle blast.
So go ahead a pick a gun you can shoot well. Pick the best ammo for the gun. Best means best balance of power, terminal performance and accuracy. And don't worry about your hearing in a self-defense scenario.
Chances are you'll never have to fire a shot without hearing protection. Even if you do, you'll be a lot happier pulling that trigger knowing that you have the best tool for the job than you would be pulling that trigger and wondering if you'll survive to enjoy the good hearing you might preserve if your opponent isn't carrying a magnum...
Problems...
1. Dead people are deaf. Now I'm the last guy that will argue that bigger is always better, but although there are good reasons to drop down in power/caliber (shootability, recovery time are a couple) noise just isn't one of them. It will do you very little good to die with good hearing because you hamstrung yourself in the name of reducing noise pollution.
2. Even the mildest centerfire handgun cartridge will almost certainly cause damage your unprotected ears with just a single shot. It doesn't make sense to trade survivability for a little less hearing damage. If you could guarantee NO damage that MIGHT be a different story.
3. Hearing damage is a function of both loudness and amount of exposure. If you have to fire several rounds of your "quiet" ammunition, the damage to your hearing could equal or exceed the damage caused by one or two rounds of the "noisy" stuff you're worried about.
4. And MOST importantly, you can't control what your opponent carries. Mr. Murphy says that your opponent will be carrying the noisiest gun that he can bring along. Your efforts to pick a nice "quiet" gun will be wasted as soon as the BG touches off a round from his magnum. To make things worse, your gun (and therefore its muzzle blast) is directed away from you. Even if he misses, you'll get the full effect of his muzzle blast.
So go ahead a pick a gun you can shoot well. Pick the best ammo for the gun. Best means best balance of power, terminal performance and accuracy. And don't worry about your hearing in a self-defense scenario.
Chances are you'll never have to fire a shot without hearing protection. Even if you do, you'll be a lot happier pulling that trigger knowing that you have the best tool for the job than you would be pulling that trigger and wondering if you'll survive to enjoy the good hearing you might preserve if your opponent isn't carrying a magnum...
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