Thread: Dont take hearing protection lightly

Originally Posted by 6x47

Some little snippets for you:

- ACC only covers hearing loss from occupational exposure, not recreational shooting. The only exception to this is if you cop a one-off "accidental" event like a mate letting his big banger off very close to your ear.

- Tinnitus is not caused by excessive wax. It is an expected side effect/symptom of inner ear ( sensorineural) damage.

- You can't measure the true level of firearms noise with basic sound level meters. They will significantly under-estimate the peak level which correlates with the risk

- Noise alone will only damage high frequency hearing. You can still hear rumbling stuff at distance well but voices sound muffled/mumbly and you will be in serious trouble in noisy social situations.

Yes, decent hearing aids help but can never come close to replacing what you were born with, especially in background noise.

In case you're wondering, I'm a near-retired clinical audiologist who has fitted tens of thousands of hearing aids..

Ah. I am only going off what I felt like after the ear wax removal.

I did a few concerts and loud bike rides before I wised up and started wearing ear plugs.

Originally Posted by matto1234

I made a big mistake on sunday, i took the pup out to get him used to firearms. I fired the 22 about 20 times moved up to the 223 and fired around 10 shots which didnt bother the pup, he was happy as so i let off 4 shots with the 308 and called it a successful day. All rifles are suppressed and i didnt wear hearing protection as i expect the dog to be okay with it. Well that may be the biggest mistake of my life so far! Later that day my left ear started ringing and is still ringing and muffled today so my doctor said if its not any better by the end of the week im off to see the ear clinic to find out how much damage i really have done.

Im going to buy another set of baffles for my dpt can so i can make it as good as possible for the dog and im going to keep my fingers crossed that my ear is not permanently damaged at 22 years of age.

DONT BE AN IDIOT, WEAR HEARING PROTECTION IF POSSIBLE.

I tell you something better, don't wear hearing protection and start bow hunting
Obviously no good if you want to shoot those clearings the other side of the valley, but for bush stalking can be more fun (and frustrating at times) than rifle hunting.
It's quite a good feeling when the stalk ends with the zip of the arrow rather than a rifle shot.

Living with tinnitus for 8 years now it is a frustrating thing

Originally Posted by Boar Freak

I tell you something better, don't wear hearing protection and start bow hunting
Obviously no good if you want to shoot those clearings the other side of the valley, but for bush stalking can be more fun (and frustrating at times) than rifle hunting.
It's quite a good feeling when the stalk ends with the zip of the arrow rather than a rifle shot.

Living with tinnitus for 8 years now it is a frustrating thing

i miss my bow, i had a buckmaster 70lb compound, but then i came close to ripping my arm off and couldnt even pull back on a 20 let alone a serious bow. recovered now and want to get back into it.

Originally Posted by gonetropo

i miss my bow, i had a buckmaster 70lb compound, but then i came close to ripping my arm off and couldnt even pull back on a 20 let alone a serious bow. recovered now and want to get back into it.

I know a grunty PSE Reaper 4 sale.

Originally Posted by tetawa

When I was tested and visited the specialist in the early 1980's ACC accepted their finding of industrial deafness. 30 plus years later on my 4th reassessment the ACC specialist has decided that only 17% is due to industrial noise, the rest is hereditary, even though I'm the only family member with any hearing loss.

Don't be fooled by the scientific-looking percentages: they're numbers largely plucked out of mid air based on clinical intuition.

In the "old days", ENT specialists were largely inclined to say it was simply industrial deafness but in the last ~ 5yrs at least, ACC have hardened their attitude, especially what they expect of specialists. One good way to damage your industrial deafness claim is to say you've done a lot of recreational shooting. Pest control as part of a job, eg farmers, is OK though

Originally Posted by Apollo

Buy an ear candle at the pharmacy. $20, vacuums out excess ear wax.

My strong advice is Don't bother. It's quackery, pure and simple. Anyone who understands physics will immediately see it is.

The preferred method of wax removal these days is micro-suction. Syringing with water is higher risk and less efficient. ACC will pay for regular recalls by ear suction nurses.

For anyone looking for a good cost to value ratio on earmuffs take a look at the bunnings bluetooth/radio/mic tactix muffs https://www.bunnings.co.nz/tactix-bl...uffs_p05810828

I've been using them for a year now for everything - bluetooth is set to my phone so I don't miss calls, either the earmuff or phone mic pics up my voice so I don't have to take them off to answer a call in a noisy shop, I can listen to music from my phone or radio, and there's a push to activate mic so you can talk to someone without taking them off as well (new models may not have this). Heck... I've been known to wear them around the house when I want to listen to something without disturbing others.

Charge via android cable. Don't run them flat and don't leave them charging forever to keep the Li-Ion battery from degrading, but so far not a single complaint about them. I wear them up to 8 hrs/day and am thinking of mounting a second pair to the hard hat too (I don't think they're waterproof... that might be a problem for later )

I wear them for shooting at the range as well and don't find them terrible - any earmuff is a bit of a pain with cheek weld on some stocks, but it's ok. I sometimes throw some ear plugs in as well if someone's shooting something big with a brake nearby, but generally I find them pretty good. The mic doesn't cut out at high volumes so I generally keep the mic volume on low just in case someone fires off a round.

Edit - no I don't work for bunnings, or have shares in them Only thing to add is that I don't know the decibel reduction rating on them.... I figure it's probably not as high as other brands?

It says class 5, so they should do the job.
I reckon fit has as much to do with protection as rating, poorly fitting class 5's probably give less protection than well fitted class 4's.
Comfort is very important too. Whatever the rating, none of them give any protection if they aren't being worn.

Originally Posted by 6x47

My strong advice is Don't bother. It's quackery, pure and simple. Anyone who understands physics will immediately see it is.

The preferred method of wax removal these days is micro-suction. Syringing with water is higher risk and less efficient. ACC will pay for regular recalls by ear suction nurses.

You must have missed the part where he said his suctions are no longer funded. I dare you to go watch ear candling videos on youtube.

Originally Posted by 6x47

Syringing with water is higher risk and less efficient.

I had been using a 12ga on rabbits, and put cotton wool in my left ear to kill the noise (ear plugs weren't as common 30 years ago as now). Some of it must've stayed in my lug hole afterwards.

A few days later I got into a mud fight at the riverbank, and copped a handful in the side of my head at close range. Some of the mud also stayed behind and mixed with the cotton wool to form a pretty effective seal that vibrated at certain frequencies.

I found this out one morning a day or so later while playing bass in church. Any time I played a low G the cotton/mud mix vibrated with a loud WWHHAANNGGGG noise that made it very hard to concentrate on playing the song. Which was awkward, because there were a lot of G notes in it .

Off to the doctors a few days later. After the usual chitchat he pulled out a syringe big enough to innoculate a mastodon with, filled it with water, stuck it in my left lughole, and fair leaned on it. He was not gentle at all.

I was looking out to the right hand side, waiting for a plume of water to spray out the other earhole, but to my surprise it it never came .
A fair fackin' torrent of mud, water and bits of cotton wool did come out my left one though.

Syringing hurts.

I think my wife ear candled me because I don't hear her so well. I'm deaf in the frequency of her voice. No recollection of what she said at all. English is her third language and she is fluent, so its hard to notice when she switches to the sentence structure of one or the other of the two, all at a fair clip. I think I do OK.

On this subject has anyone used the moulded ear plugs made by Jaytod. I am thinking about getting some made so would like some commentary if you have used them.

What are your two best sound suppressing plug/earmuff options? I just bought a un-supressed magnum and this thread reminded me I backed over my earmuffs with a tractor.

No one mentioned percussion. When the first ultra-mags came out I lent between the muzzle brake and the cab of a ute on a spotting scope wearing plugs and muffs. Like getting punched in the head. Instant headache.

Originally Posted by Rushy

On this subject has anyone used the moulded ear plugs made by Jaytod. I am thinking about getting some made so would like some commentary if you have used them.

I have had a couple sets (not made by him) they are excellent, I used mine for Pistol Shooting and Sporting clays. Highly recommend that style.

Originally Posted by Rushy

On this subject has anyone used the moulded ear plugs made by Jaytod. I am thinking about getting some made so would like some commentary if you have used them.

I use them for pistol shooting also, we have a guy in the club selling them which makes it a bit easier. I normally have them under electronic earmuffs, with the volume cranked up for the best of both worlds. Really good noise reduction but can still have a conversation. I usually just run the earmuffs by themselves if im not the one shooting.

I can highly recommend the MSA sordins with the gel cups, really comfortable, waterproof and good noise reduction.