Thread: 16" vs 22" barrel noise level

Hi everyone,

I am planning to buy a smaller and lighter gun to hunt considering how difficult maneuvering through the bush is. A few disadvantages the shorter gun will have are:

*It will lose some velocity/energy
*The recoil will be greater
*It will be louder

I am not too worried about the first two issues. Can anyone advise how much louder are we talking about? From the research I have done, there seems to be a 5dB of noise increase from 24" to 18.5".

.30-06 in 24" barrel 158.5dB
.30-06 in 18 1/2" barrel 163.2dB

I have no idea what the number means, has anyone experienced the two different-sized guns and would you kindly please explain how big of a noise increase it is and if there are any other disadvantages that I am not aware of?

Much appreciate your input and help.

Alex

Sorry for the re-post, I just realised I might have posted this in the wrong category (Firearms, Optics and Accessories)

Ear protection is mandatory either length

I don't have any actual data for you, only anecdotes. I have a .308 with a 14.5" barrel and it's so offensively loud that even at the range when testing it unsuppressed and with everyone wearing earmuffs it annoyed others enough for me to get some feedback

In the real world I run it with a Kaimai "Super Stealth" suppressor when out shooting furry things and the odd shot without hearing protection is not loud enough to bother me.

On the decibel scale, a sound 10 times more powerful than 0 dB is 10 dB. A sound 100 times more powerful than 0 dB is 20 dB.
A sound 1,000 times more powerful is 30 dB. So the difference in your example is actually quite a lot. You should consider suppressing your rifle if not already, you could shave 20 - 30 dB depending on the suppressor. That will make the biggest difference and will save your ears most importantly, along with reducing recoil.

308 liteweight 22?” barrel noisey but bearable. Win. 308 18” quite a bit noisier, ok for 1 or 2 shots at a time. Bergara 16.5” barrel offensively loud and a flamethrower. Bergara wears a suppressor all the time.

Also why many of us reload, can produce a load for application. Ex Bergara 308/ 8 twist, bush shooting, heavy pill no need to go crazy with speed, all powder burnt in 16 inches of barrel.

Why do you want a short barrel 30-06, aren't there calibres more suited to short barrel? Like 308

Originally Posted by Alex_Z

Hi everyone,

I am planning to buy a smaller and lighter gun to hunt considering how difficult maneuvering through the bush is. A few disadvantages the shorter gun will have are:

*It will lose some velocity/energy
*The recoil will be greater
*It will be louder

I am not too worried about the first two issues. Can anyone advise how much louder are we talking about? From the research I have done, there seems to be a 5dB of noise increase from 24" to 18.5".

.30-06 in 24" barrel 158.5dB
.30-06 in 18 1/2" barrel 163.2dB

I have no idea what the number means, has anyone experienced the two different-sized guns and would you kindly please explain how big of a noise increase it is and if there are any other disadvantages that I am not aware of?

Much appreciate your input and help.

Alex

Sorry for the re-post, I just realised I might have posted this in the wrong category (Firearms, Optics and Accessories)

It isnt linear. Every 3db is double the sound pressure/level.

This an excellent video to explain about noise.

https://www.worksafebc.com/en/resour...-hearing-video

When hunting i don't often fire a shot. So, I just carry a set of ear plugs and use them if practical.

Doesn't matter what length with no hearing protection they will both damage your hearing severely. My advice to all new and old hunters alike is to suppress the rifles you hunt with. Suppressors are cheap, light and effective.

To the subject matter. If it's a 30-06 like your example and you intend to shorten it. Sell it, buy a .308. Cut it to 16", not 18". Put a DPT suppressor on it. 4" forward means it'll handle like a 20" barrel.

Regarding sound we have as regular hunting rifles a 22" 6.5PRC and 22" .270win and two 16" 308win. All with DPT suppressors. The 308s are considerably louder than both the .270 and 6.5PRC (way more powder than 308 but 6" more barrel). The .308s still don't make your ears ring and seem quite tolerable to unprotected ears - I suspect they still damage hearing but several orders of magnitude less than unsuppressed.

Originally Posted by Oldbloke

It isnt linear. Every 3db is double the sound pressure/level.

Ah, no. It's double the intensity. You need 6dB to double the SPL.

All academic anyway. If the -peak- SPL exceeds 140, you going to suffer damage with impulse noise. 16" v 22"- both are going to do your hearing in eventually if there is no can or ear protection.

Trust me, as a retired audiologist, I've fitted HEAPS of hearing aids to old shooters. It's no fun having that sort of loss.

I hunted for 20 years with 24-26" barrels (unsuppressed) without hearing protection, and am advised – as above – that I damaged my hearing from the occasional shot, and no doubt I did, but it was without any obvious discomfort at the time, as long as out in open spaces. I then had a replacement barrel fitted at 19", did one hunt with it and subsequently had it suppressed. You will know immediately about that 5" reduction from 24" to 19" without a suppressor — mark my words — not just 20 years later at the Audiologists.

With the suppressor I'm back to an overall length of 24", so with a lesser blast originating at the same distance from my ears. That particular rifle perhaps handles much the same in the tight stuff as in its original configuration, though somehow it doesn't feel quite as nice as a 24" bare barrel if my recollection serves me correctly.

So I agree with the items in your list; less velocity traded off for less noise and less recoil, while you may be disappointed if expecting significantly better handling from chopping and adding a suppressor, even if to the same finished length.

It's not just the length of the barrel - a point that a lot of people miss. If you shoot and there is a bank to one side of you, you will experience more sound pressure than if it is entirely open terrain. If there is a lot of bush in front of you the same - and lot of sound energy reflects back to you so your ears experience more sound pressure. Effectively, an unsuppressed rifle will damage your hearing and you will experience more hearing damage in tighter country than open terrain such as shooting off a ridgeline into a gully vs shooting along a bank or in thick bush. Even shooting with a suppressor in tight country might mean you have enough energy reflected back at you to damage your ears and give you a good ear ringing.

I currently have a 22inch .243 with a basic suppressor and the noise is very comfortable with no ear protection. I guess I will have to buy a quality suppressor to make the bang increase as little as possible.

Yes, the muzzle blast is as much of an issue as the sound. Ears you can protect (with intention) but blast without a suppressor you can’t.