hearing protection while hunting?

BMeyer

BMeyer

New member
After reading a post in the firearms section about a 16" vs 20" AR and the differences in noise I got to wondering how many of you wear hearing protection while hunting?

I saw at least on guy mention that he wears hearing protection while hunting too, and I am sure others do as well, especially if you can afford, and don't mind wearing, something akin to a Walkers Game Ear or some type of hearing enhancement/protection ear muff.

I always wear ear plugs when shooting guns at a target, but never when hunting. I wouldn't feel like much of a hunter if I couldn't hear what was going on around me. I am 38 and feel I have pretty good hearing. To be honest, I probably don't fire more than 100 rounds a year while hunting, and that includes what duck and goose hunting I do.
 
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I always wear ear plugs when shooting guns at a target, but never when hunting. I wouldn't feel like much of a hunter if I couldn't hear what was going on around me.



Same here. I've killed several game animals because I heard them before I saw them. I have heard good things about the Walker game ears, but I don't currently own any. Muffs at the range or target shooting, bare ears hunting.
A 16" AR without a flash suppressor ain't all that loud when you're behind it. I'm betting it's quieter than a 20" with a flash hider. Personally, I went with the target crown to avoid the noise as much as possible.
 
I put an earplug in my left ear after I sit down at my calling location. I have lost my high frequency hearing in my left ear and some of it in my right ear. I believe the greater loss to my left ear is from shooting right handed and calling with my right hand for many years. I checked the Crit'r Call that I used for decibels with a hand held decibel reader I checked out from work. All of my hand calls were between 121 and 126 decibels when I held the decibel reader next to my left ear. I have a high pitched squeal in my left ear at all times from the hearing loss. It is really annoying when I am in the totally quite desert and can't enjoy the total silence anymore. I wish I would have used the hearing prtection earlier but you don't think about things like that until you learn the hard way and it is too late. I think the calling is more damaging to your ears than the few gunshots that are taken. That is why I have gone to the electronic caller with remote now. I am trying to save the hearing that I have left. I have also worked in noisy atmospheres while wearing hearing protection at my job for many years but I still think that the reason my left ear is worse is from the shooting and varmint calling. I should probably wear an earplug in my right ear also but sometimes I hear coyotes trotting in from behind in the hardpan desert areas.
 
I have and use the Walker Digital Game Ears (muff) for both target and hunting. The enhanced hearing capibility with the game ear in the field is amazing. I already have hearing damage from years of flying noisey airplanes way too many hours so I didn't want it to get worse if I can help it. To bad we didn't pay more attention to our ears back when we should have been. I would rrecommend the digital game ears to all who can afford them. Once the hearing loss occurs there's no going back. Tinnitus, that high pitched squeal close to the same pitch as jet engines, drives me up the wall when it's very quiet. Gentlemen, protect your hearing!

LD
 
I'm in my early 40's and have noticed a bit of hearing loss from years of shooting. When target shooting I always wore ear protection but when shooting jackrabbits, quail hunting and predator calling I never did, always wanted to be able to hear em jump up behind me and really never thought it was a big deal. Recently I bought a pair of pro-ears stalkers and I've been pleased with them. They are cut so they don't interfere with a shoulder rifle or shotgun. I was kind of skeptical when I first used them but you can really hear with them. I only used them once predator hunting and didn't have any come from behind, my partner was watching that way anyhow, but I know I'd have no problems hearing one. I used them once quail hunting and picked up quite a few flushing behind me. I'll be getting a lot of use out of them this coming fall.
 
Having been shooting since I was about 6, and being on police firing ranges since I was 21 as a competitor and an instructor, I started noticing a hearing loss at about age 35 and we were always required to wear either the soft foam ear plugs or the older style ear muffs.

For the last 20 years I've been wearing custom fitted ear plugs or Pro-ears electronic muffs and still experience acute tinitis, where it sounds like I'm sitting in a field of crickets... the volume depends on barometric pressure changes.

The electronic muffs let me hear a lot more low level surrounding sounds that I can hear normally with the loss I've built up over the years...

It can only take that one gunshot to cost you a sizable percentage of hearing loss... Wear the protection.. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
I have lost about 40% of my hearing in my right ear and 15% in my left from when I was a young dumb infantryman /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gif , and that was only a few years ago. I carry a set of plugs, and will always wear at least one in my right ear. I don't need to lose what hearing I have left now. Not sure if that disqualifies me from being a "real hunter" or not, but I manage to take my share of yotes and deer every year.
 
What !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can't hear you. Huhhhhhhhh ???
Wish I knew then what we know now. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smiliesmack.gif
 
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Having been shooting since I was about 6, and being on police firing ranges since I was 21 as a competitor and an instructor, I started noticing a hearing loss at about age 35 and we were always required to wear either the soft foam ear plugs or the older style ear muffs.

For the last 20 years I've been wearing custom fitted ear plugs or Pro-ears electronic muffs and still experience acute tinitis, where it sounds like I'm sitting in a field of crickets... the volume depends on barometric pressure changes.

The electronic muffs let me hear a lot more low level surrounding sounds that I can hear normally with the loss I've built up over the years...

It can only take that one gunshot to cost you a sizable percentage of hearing loss... Wear the protection.. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif



Turtle is wise. If you ask any real doctor about what muzzle blast from any gun and what it does to your hearing they will tell you exactly what Turtle said above :
"It can only take that one gunshot to cost you a sizable percentage of hearing loss... Wear the protection"
I use hearing protection everytime I shoot hunting or not. I wear the electronic hearing protection that amplifies sound while hunting and blocks muzzle blast. I wasn't smart about it when I was younger but I have learned my lesson.
 
I use ballistic plugs. When a shot is fired the pressure from the soundwave is supposed to block the hole in the middle. It sounds good in theory but in practice the benefit is very minimal.
 
I was told once if you hear ringing after any loud noise you have caused some damage to your hearing.

DO NOT LIMIT PROTECTION WHILE SHOOTING. Chainsaws, tractors, lawn mowers, power tools, air tools etc will do damage and throw on some glasses to protect your eyes also. We will not be doing to much shooting if you can not see.
 
I was just thinking of this last night before I went to bed. I work for a landscaping company and between weed trimming and mowing I am concerned about my hearing. I do alot of mallard/crow hunting as well as hope to pick up on predator within the next couple of months.

What electronic hearing muffs are preferred? Walkers game ears has a set thats camo'd that I was looking at, with a pretty price tag. I have usually just used the foam plugs when shooting clays. Never while hunting or mowing.. Should I just resort to foam for mowing, and pick up a pair of walkers game muffs? Or are there other brands that might be local to me?

I saw some cheapies at wal-mart that canceled out shotgun blasts, but they weren't recommended for continuous noise environments ( mowing / trimming ).
 
I never shoot a gun without protection anymore. We only have one set of eyes and ears. What is the price of wearing hearing aids all day when you get older? Most likely a lot more than hearing protection today.

I've got in-the-ear molded electronic plugs. Got them from a gun club member who owns a hearing aid business. I got in-the-ear because they work better in the cold north under a stocking cap. Now I can protect my hearing and still hear my electronic call, a pheasant flush, or a deer walking by. Well worth the $1000.

As the audiologist said, "pay me now or pay me later". I'd rather pay now and wear them when I want to, rather than pay him a lot more later and have to wear them all the time forever.

Decide what works for you, get it, and wear it. You will be glad you did.
Drano
 
I've got nasty ringing in my ears, so much so that the last time I had them checked, the lady put the phones on my ears and went behind me to start with the testing, next thing I know, she is back infront of me taking the phones off my ears to test them to make sure they were working properly, they were!!

I now don't shoot any gun without hearing protection. I bought the Walkers quad muff and after some getting used to, they aren't all that bad to wear while calling. Not the greatest, but much better than the alternative!

Before these, I tried a single Walkers game ear, BUT I soon learned that with only one, I was limiting myself greatly because our hearing works much better in stereo, so with only one Walkers game ear, I had no way in knowing where the sound was that I heard. Try this: plug one of your ears, close your eyes, and then have someone move around in the room and talk to you. You won't be able to tell which direction they are standing from you!
 
In my next life Ill do better. Im sure I have lost some hearing from shooting, or chainsaws or something but its gone. I use ear muffs when Im shooting but not when Im hunting........
 
I lost my hearing in my left ear thanks to a RPG.I now have to wear a hearing aid.Thats realy the least of my injurys but its the one that the hardest to live with.I wear a set of cheap power muffs and hope to get some in the ear type digital game ears by walkers or EAR .They are expensive and the VA dosent cover them.Please guys and gals take care of your ears it sucks not to have theam espesialy up here in bear country.
 
i dont know about you guys, but i never hear or feel a shot when im hunting. Doesnt matter if im using the 12gauge or the 300mag, i dont hear a thing lol. target practise is a differnet story..

I always try to wear hearing protection when target practising or even using power tools i try to wear somesort of hearing protection


better safe then sorry
 
Wear protection!! No coyote, deer or aother game animal is worth the loss of your hearing. I have electronic muffs from Dillon Precision that protect my ears and enhance my hearing. They are not as accurate directionally as not wearing them, but the trade off is worth it. As many others have stated, most of us who have shot a lot have hearing loss, don't let it get worse!
 
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i dont know about you guys, but i never hear or feel a shot when im hunting. Doesnt matter if im using the 12gauge or the 300mag, i dont hear a thing lol. target practise is a differnet story..



When I was younger, and got all hopped up on adreneline I never heard the shots either. But my ears rang like heck later, indicating damage done none the less.

But as time passes and you calm down, you will hear shots on game as loud as at the range.

Wear something like these and you will keep your hearing.

Picture.jpg
 


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