Damn, I must be a weenie! The 26" barreled #1 I like to use in the briar patches doesn't exactly knock one's proverbial socks off when it comes to recoil or noise, but I still prefer to use hearing protection - and I don't have near as much to protect as I did only 30 or 50 years ago. A shot or two with any centerfire I can put up with in battle, but I can't see the sense in not using hearing protection when one is in "premeditated" mode.
