Nanaimo Barr
New member
stupid question time, when hunting, how do you deal with the problem of ear protection? do you wear earplugs all the time? do you not wear any and just take it? stop and slip on ear nuffs?
Hearing protection and hunting
- Thread starter Nanaimo Barr
- Start date
MeekAndMild
New member
Earplugs.
My son is 9 and has been hunting this season with a 20 gauge. I gave him the option of putting on hearing protection before he takes the shot or wearing it all the time. He prefers to leave protection on all the time, so he doesn't miss a quick shooting opportunity. I got him some stero ear muffs and he's happy, although he seems to point in a different direction than I do when we both hear something. (He's about 10-20 degrees off from reality.)
For big game hunting, with the possibility of taking only a couple of shots per year, I have never used hearing protection except for coup de grace shots, where I have time to put plugs on. I only know one person who wears plugs all the time while big game hunting, and I can't imagine how he can hunt effectively. I have used plugs in the past for shotgun hunting, but I haven't hunted with a shotgun in a while. I usually would put ear plugs in when I anticipated the possibility of taking a shot.
For big game hunting, with the possibility of taking only a couple of shots per year, I have never used hearing protection except for coup de grace shots, where I have time to put plugs on. I only know one person who wears plugs all the time while big game hunting, and I can't imagine how he can hunt effectively. I have used plugs in the past for shotgun hunting, but I haven't hunted with a shotgun in a while. I usually would put ear plugs in when I anticipated the possibility of taking a shot.
I usually wear a pair of Sound Scopes which I got from the hearing Doc.They make a mold of your ear canal and then construct them out of a hard plastic.They amplify sounds but shut out any sound above 95 decibels.For turkey hunting they are excellent.For deer hunting I keep the volume lower.Mine were 400.00 for the pair and I use them whenever hunting.Got ringing in my left ear and do not want to get it in the right one.
MitchSchaft
New member
Check this thread out. I posted the same question last month and found a great pair of plugs.
http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=126087
http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=126087
About the only way I could justify that is when dove hunting over a cut over corn field (yes it's legal if you grew the corn there and just bushhogged it) where the shooting is fast and furious and you quarry is almost always spotted by eyesight.
For deer hunting where hearing is important. or even rabbits and squirrels I cant see it................few shots a day at the most..........I know that they can harm your hearing but I know people that have hunted all their lives but not target shot whos hearing is still fine.
For deer hunting where hearing is important. or even rabbits and squirrels I cant see it................few shots a day at the most..........I know that they can harm your hearing but I know people that have hunted all their lives but not target shot whos hearing is still fine.
Hearing loss
I recently read that a person can lose as much as 40% of his hearing range by a single exposure event. I have lost a lot of my hearing range and have load ringing in both my ears. My right ear is the worst. Caused by a single event. I was walking just in front and to the left of a 90mm tracked gun that was supporting our attack when it fired. Thereafter I couldn't hear a phone ring with my right ear.
I fired on my service pistol time using only ear plugs for quite a while. In those days no one used earphones. This did further damage to both ears. As the years went by I continued to shoot and by the time I realized the extent of damage it was to late. In fact, during my youthful stupidity, I thought the hearing loss was like a merit badge or something.
PLEASE DON'T MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE! PROTECT YOUR HEARING. YOU TO MAY LIVE TO AN OLD AGE!
Marshall
I recently read that a person can lose as much as 40% of his hearing range by a single exposure event. I have lost a lot of my hearing range and have load ringing in both my ears. My right ear is the worst. Caused by a single event. I was walking just in front and to the left of a 90mm tracked gun that was supporting our attack when it fired. Thereafter I couldn't hear a phone ring with my right ear.
I fired on my service pistol time using only ear plugs for quite a while. In those days no one used earphones. This did further damage to both ears. As the years went by I continued to shoot and by the time I realized the extent of damage it was to late. In fact, during my youthful stupidity, I thought the hearing loss was like a merit badge or something.
PLEASE DON'T MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE! PROTECT YOUR HEARING. YOU TO MAY LIVE TO AN OLD AGE!
Marshall
Good Morning -- I wear a pair of Peltor Tac 6 muff type headphones. They have individual volume controls for each ear and shut down at any loud noise ( like a gun shot ). They also keep your ears warm when its cold out -- an added benefit for those frosty December mornings during black powder season.
Fabrat
Fabrat
I have got to admit...
...I've been hunting for many years and have never, EVER, in my life before last year heard of anyone wearing hearing protection while hunting. I've hunted with shotguns, rifles, blackpowder guns since I was 12 and never used hearing protection. I was an air traffic controller up til 4 years ago and have excellent hearing, as required by the job. No problems with my hearing at all.
But here's the interesting thing that I'd like someone to address. If I'm sighting a gun in, with the one exception of a .22 it hurts like heck if I forget to put my plugs in. But when I take a shot in the field, I never even hear the gun go off. It doesn't hurt, doesn't affect my hearing short or long term. Is it something in the brain that knows to shut my listeners down for a second or what? I've killed many, many deer, doves, etc and it's the same every time.
Last question, how does anyone that wears plugs while hunting kill anything? I guess, if you're a "sight" hunter that would make sense, hunting over fields or something. I prefer to hunt the woods and swamps. Maybe 50% of the time I hear a deer coming before I actually see it. It makes for a VERY exciting hunt that would be impossible if I wore plugs.
For those of you that wear 'em, are you mainly field hunters?
...I've been hunting for many years and have never, EVER, in my life before last year heard of anyone wearing hearing protection while hunting. I've hunted with shotguns, rifles, blackpowder guns since I was 12 and never used hearing protection. I was an air traffic controller up til 4 years ago and have excellent hearing, as required by the job. No problems with my hearing at all.
But here's the interesting thing that I'd like someone to address. If I'm sighting a gun in, with the one exception of a .22 it hurts like heck if I forget to put my plugs in. But when I take a shot in the field, I never even hear the gun go off. It doesn't hurt, doesn't affect my hearing short or long term. Is it something in the brain that knows to shut my listeners down for a second or what? I've killed many, many deer, doves, etc and it's the same every time.
Last question, how does anyone that wears plugs while hunting kill anything? I guess, if you're a "sight" hunter that would make sense, hunting over fields or something. I prefer to hunt the woods and swamps. Maybe 50% of the time I hear a deer coming before I actually see it. It makes for a VERY exciting hunt that would be impossible if I wore plugs.
For those of you that wear 'em, are you mainly field hunters?
MountainGun44
New member
I never wear hearing protection. Ever.
I have learned from watching many, many movies that the report of a large caliber handgun fired repeatedly in a confined space next to your ear is just not a big deal.
But seriously, I am not concerned about a single shot or two from a high-powered rifle while hunting, or shotguns fired at ducks or pheasants. Doves, where there is no stalking or listening for wingbeats...I wear ear plugs.
At the range, I double up with ear plugs and muffs.
Out in a field plinking I go with ear plugs. Even with a .22 rifle.
I have learned from watching many, many movies that the report of a large caliber handgun fired repeatedly in a confined space next to your ear is just not a big deal.
But seriously, I am not concerned about a single shot or two from a high-powered rifle while hunting, or shotguns fired at ducks or pheasants. Doves, where there is no stalking or listening for wingbeats...I wear ear plugs.
At the range, I double up with ear plugs and muffs.
Out in a field plinking I go with ear plugs. Even with a .22 rifle.
MitchSchaft
New member
I am a field hunter. I hunt small game, mainly dove or rabbit. I can easily go through 2 boxes of shells during a dove hunt. If I were to go deer hunting (or any other type of real hunting), I would not wear plugs.
I just had the same concern and almost sold my Taurus .44 mag. I bought for whitetail hunting. I was walking around at a gun show on Sat. and a guy told me to buy a set of electronic ear muffs if I really liked the gun. So I went to Wal Mart and bought a set of Remington 2000 electronic muffs. Man, these things are great! When I took them off at the end of the hunt, I thought I was deaf. You can hear squirrels munching on acorns at a 100 yards! Well worth the $100. An I still have my Magnum. BTW, at the end of the hunt, I did shoot the gun just to see how they work. Just like wearing earplugs.
Several years ago I got the bright idea that wearing my new Peltor electonic muffs might be of benefit when quail hunting - to be able to better hear the birds running in heavy cover. ' Had to get them OFF within the first few minutes of walking - the enhanced constant crunching of leaves and snapping of twigs from my own footsteps drove me nuts!
Salpalinja
New member
jrsower: I don't know where you zero your rifle in. If it happens in a range with walls then the sound will bounce from them and "multiply", but when hunting there usually is an open space or wood that will absorb the sound.
I only use hearing protection when hunting duck, while hunting big game like moose I use silencers.
BTW this is my first post in TFL
I only use hearing protection when hunting duck, while hunting big game like moose I use silencers.
BTW this is my first post in TFL
Al Thompson
Staff Alumnus
Salpalinja - welcome to TFL!