Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Hearing protection

Folks I apologize if this topic has come up recently but I do not recall. I was wondering what you all are using for hearing protection. Pros and cons, and what about electronic hearing?
Regards,
S.

Walkers Razor Slim - got 2 pairs, one for me and one for the wife. comfortable, reasonably priced and no problems after 3 years of use.

I use a custom pair of Ears best money I have spent on ear pro.

Foam ear plugs.

Peltor muffs

Howard Leight.

+1

Peltor makes hearing protection for *INDUSTRY* and in every independent test I've seen they exceed their claimed standards by a little bit, many others brands fall a bit short of their claimed decibel reduction.

You can still get every cushion, liner, nut and bolt, spring, etc to rebuild Peltor muffs made 20 years ago (maybe longer), and this includes their electronic ones (which I have).

I've tried many brands, and the Peltor are the most comfortable for me -although that, of course, is a personal thing.

If you get one of Peltor's electronic models, you can turn the volume up and hear a squirrel fart at fifty paces - and they cut out to still protect your hearing at the shot.

John

Sordin - once you've worn Sordins you'll never go back to anything else.


https://www.sordin.com/

Also use Sordins. Comfortable all day.

First off - no need to apologize about repeating a topic. At this point, if everyone just did a search for past information rather than asking the question there would hardly be anything new written on these pages. That's not what campfire conversation is about IMHO.

For hearing protection at the range I double up with quality foam ear plugs then regular earmuffs.

For the field I use those banded ear plugs. The pros - light, inexpensive, I can hang them around my neck and still wear my cowboy hat. They may be rated in the 20's vs. the 30's, but definitely better than nothing at all. The cons - I always find a way to break off the tips every couple of years.


https://www.amazon.com/banded-ear-plugs/s?k=banded+ear+plugs

I wear corded foam plugs and wear around my neck till needed. I look for something >30db, typically find up to 33db, and good foam ones seem to work a LOT better than any others for me. I have them in every case and in my truck counsel and tool bags. Some of the electric ones only go to 26db. At the range I have foam inserts in and put muffs on over. I lost too much hearing over the years and never shoot without protection -and won't let anyone else shooting my guns. At my old lease I used to prod guys to use protection but did not make myself the the ear muff police. It's your choice. One guy shooting a big revolver told me his hearing was so bad it no longer mattered. My reply was to ask him if that didn't make what little hearing he had left all the more precious?
To his credit he stopped for a moment, nodded, and asked me for some plugs.

I hope everyone uses them and has their kids do the same.

I have an inexpensive pair of electric and they are better than nothing for dampening but I do enjoy them walking about some times. It will train you how to be quieter.

I have Proears Muffs and behind the ear plugs. I can't say I am in love with either and will look into those Peltors.

I usually wear cheapo foamies paired with Caldwell electric muffs at the range. Makes perceived blast minimal, while still letting you hear a vehicle pulling up nearby or a person talking loudly.

In the field, I am trying to get away from the stuff that really rings my ears, mainly being short-barreled rifles, by threading them for moderately-priced suppressors.

I wish I had worn ear protection years ago. I wouldn’t need hearing aids now if I had.

Silencerco Omega

I hit a pig on the run the other day that kept on running. Only reason I thought I hit it was the impact sound of the bullet, only audible due to the suppressor I was using. When I went back and watched the slow-mo video (digital day/night optic with recording), sure enough, he stumbled a bit at the shot. I shoot stuff unsuppressed too, but sure prefer using the cans.

On a recent hunt, I used ear protection from AXIL GS Extreme. These are electronic, rechargeable, and do a great job of shutting down gunfire noise while allowing sounds at normal or amplified levels. I was shooting my 475 Linebaugh handgun, not exactly a quiet firearm, and was happy with the sound reduction. Also, comfortable to wear all day.

Thanks. gentleman, I will look into a few of these. I usually use the Howard Leight Quiet Bands but was wondering what else that was out there. I like the idea of the electronic protections in that it might allow me to hear better when still. Yes the suppressor is another option. Most of my barrels are 20-22" not sure if 22 inch is too long.
S.

WHAT?

As someone who has lost half of his hearing, and has tinnitus, I promise you, you want to keep what you have.

My question is, what is the best in-the-ear electronic plugs ya'll have found, in any price range?

Muffs get hot on a dove hunt.

Target shooting, foam plugs plus Caldwell electronic muffs. Hunting, nothing.

A while back someone said he doesn't ("use" or "need" - I forget the term he used) hearing protection for .22, only for bigger stuff.

IIRC one should use hearing protection for anything above 85 decibels. .22 runs about 140db.

I use the SoundGear Phantoms. I use them for competitive shooting and they work great. I checked with my health insurance provider and they cover hearing aides as long as I show hearing loss at an audiologist. They are custom molded and programmed for my level of hearing loss and they are sound suppressing as well. They bluetooth connect to my phone as well. Best part is, I did not have to pay a dime, not even for getting fitted for them. I love them.

Soundgear Phantoms

Peltor 6S when it's cool out. Foam when it's hot.

https://www.walkersgameear.com/raptor-headset/

Love this setup. I keep my ears stuffed with the best foam plugs for me. And, with the Raptor on my ear bones I can still hear the Squirrels scratching, barking or cutting up in the trees.

I started carrying ear muffs when I started using braked rifles a few years ago, not really entirely effective as sometimes you just don't have the time to put them on when a shot presents itself. I have since gone to hunting suppressed only and don't see me going back, all new rifles are set up for suppressors and that's what I plan on using until I can't anymore. Have one with another in process, a real game changer for me.

At the range I always use foamy plugs and depending on the pistol or rifle I’ll use Leights amplifying muffs also.

Hunting from our box stands I clamp the muffs on my leg and if I hear anything like birds or squirrels cutting up, I put them on and turn on the amplifying mode.

If nothing is going on I clamp them on the top of my head about an hour before sunset so it’s easy to pull them down quickly with minimal movement. In any event, about 1/2 hour before sunset I’ll put them on and turn on the sound so if anything shows up there’s no delay in shooting.

I learned my lesson about 10 years ago while sitting in a box blind. I shot a coyote with my 20” 30/06 carbine without any protection and I’ll never do it again.

navlav8r - cheap foam type ones ( not those soft plastic layered ring jobs) with the cord are great. Throw a few in your case and jacket pockets. Leave them hanging around your neck and you won't even know they are there and they typically offer greater protection than full blown muffs. I have these things everywhere. Once less piece of anything to lug around.

I use to shoot alot of indoor 22RF in my early years/ never use plugs or muffs/ hearing is shot now/ ear doctor told me that a 22RF is the worst to shoot as you don't know it's doing damage till its to late/ 82 lost in my left ear and 52 on the right/ I say alot of WHAT drives my wife nuts

I have electric ear plugs and electronic muffs. If I’m shooting with other people I’ll use one of those. If I’m by myself shooting targets, I mostly use foam ear plugs or regular muffs. If I’m hunting, the electronic ear plugs might be the best option for me.

Foam ear plugs are cheap and effective.

Usually only wear something afield when dove hunting. Always wear foam plugs, sometimes with muffs on top, at the range, depending on what’s being fired.

Tomorrow I’m going out turkey hunting carrying my S&W 5.7. Will have a pair of Walker plugs along JIC. That thing is plenty loud, not .357 loud, but more than I want to endure for even one shot unprotected. The Walker plugs aren’t great protection, and the cord annoys the crap outta me, but better than going cowboy.

Peltor. They are AMAZING. I use the. For everything. Ducks, deer, dove, etc.

I bought a set on Black Friday deal, two for one. They were good but would not recharge. I tried both sets and then returned them and got two more. And they would not recharge. No idea if it was me, or what but I could not get the four sets to recharge. Company returned my money. They were comfortable but I couldn’t make them work.

I've tried a bunch, some listed above. I wish I could find some that allow me to equilibrate while calling. It never sounds right with ear protection, and I've tried some expensive electronic versions.

The few shots a year I take at big game don't have much of an effect on my hearing. It's the thousands of rounds shot at birds every year that do real damage.

Love my Otto Noizebarriers. Spendy but wish I would have bought them years ago.

Just a set of brandless Mickey Mouse ears. Quick to pop on and off with no batteries to worry about.

Should my mind fail and I forget, some wadded up paper towel or toilet paper. Haven't tried any pistol cartridges yet.

Worst is a braked 30-378 that kills anything within a 200-foot radius when it barks.

These work pretty well for me when bird, duck and deer hunting. Pretty cheap to.

https://www.earplugstore.com/health-enterprises-acu-life-impact-ear-plugs.html

stxhunter wins the internet today!

Some pretty good options here: https://thebiggamehuntingblog.com/best-hunting-ear-protection/
For what it's worth, I wear the new AXIL XCOR ear buds and I think they're excellent.

Just got these and have been trying them. So far they seem pretty good.

I see they claim directional sensitivity. Can you really tell the direction of the sound as well as the natural ear?

Mickey Mouse ears left over from my flight line years. Wish I had made better use of them early on.

I would say that directionality is not as good as the natural ear, but pretty decent.

They can be cut and threaded unless they’re carbon.