Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire can a person 'hear' a bullet coming at him?

Suppose this person is extremely perceptive, but still a normal person, no spidey sense. No Jason Bourne-like abilities either. So, heightened-but-within-the-realistic-bracket senses. How realistic is it for him or her to hear a faint ..something that alerts him of the danger? Hollywood movies show bullets speeding at you with a buzzing sound, but we all know Hollywood is to realism what North Korea is to democracy. So I'd like to hear what people who are more knowledgeable than me has to say of this issue.

bullets traveling faster than 1100fps arrive at their destination before the sound does.

Years ago, someone fired a 22 round that went over my head. I could hear it as it went over. That's a pretty slow moving bullet, though. A large cal. hunting bullet is moving at more than double the speed of sound. You certainly won't hear the shot but I don't know about the sound it makes in the air.

One deer season, I had one buzz past my head and hit a tree behind me, then I heard the sound of the shot a long way off! I hit the ground fast in case there were more coming! Kinda ruined that opening day for me!

Have heard them whizzing over my head. Subsonic by then. You can hear them get louder though they don't get loud so I suppose you can hear them coming. Couldn't locate them from the sound. knew they were over my head because of the terrain. Was another deer hunter perhaps a half section away. as in bang, wait for it, zing. It's my habit to be below the crest of a ridge for safety when sitting. The other guy was on the other side of the ridge and didn't know I was there I'm sure. (Wonder if he would've seen me if I was on the crest of the ridge?)

"military crest" is a good choice there, I believe.

I don't know about "coming at", I'd doubt it, but serving pit duty at long range BPCR matches 800-900-1000 yards, you can definitely hear those big subsonic slugs passing overhead.

With supersonic bullets it's more of a snap, almost like a .22 pistol shot.

I'm sure combat vets know the sound well.

Paul

If the bullet is faster than the speed of sound, you'll not hear it until it passes you.

You won't even hear the report until afterwards.

Hence the saying "You'll never hear the shot that kills you."

You can sure hear them as they go by as a miss though.

And still you need to be careful. Same area I was sitting high glassing for deer, I knew their pattern. Saw a guy downrange of where deer would cross. Saw him because 1) I had binocs, 2) he was moving and not too stealthily, and 3) he had sufficient fluorescent orange which stood out like a spotlight. Makes you a believer in wearing plenty of orange.

This thread reminds me of the very reason I refuse to hunt public land in Louisiana. Years ago, a friend and I was walking across a pipeline on a Wildlife Management Area. This was back before the days of 'hunters orange' It was around noon time and as we walked across, something hit the ground in front of and to the right of my friend...... and then we heard the 'boom'. We both looked toward the sound and probably 400 yds up the pipeline on a hill, was a fellow standing there with what we believed was a raised rifle. We both yelled and took a few quick steps into the woods.

After getting rid of the shakes, we both vowed never to hunt on a Wildlife Management Area again. I dont know about him, but I've never hunted on one since that day.

To answer the question.... We heard a noticeable thump as the bullet hit the ground. Loud enough to hear it as we walked. About the time it took to wonder what it was, the 'boom' hit us. I'm gonna guess a couple of seconds between the 'thump' and the 'boom'. Immediately we both knew what it was or believed we did. And NO, we didn't hear any 'bullet in flight'.

You will never hear the sound of the bullet that kills you! memtb

You hear even the supersonic rounds, the only difference is that it has already passed by the time the sound reaches you.

I've always heard that and from what I experienced, I believe it.

No, you cannot hear them coming, nor can you hear the report before you hear the bullet. With only a few exceptions, it's impossible.

(The exceptions being a bullet that is fired at less than or only a bit above the speed of sound, in which the sound wave of the report has time to pass the bullet in flight.)

Not just no but hell no

Towelheads at 1000 yards or so killed in the sandpit probably heard the shot

Bullets do not "whiz". But people who hear one go by inches away often do. Involuntarily.

OK for all you fans out there, [Rocky, hold off on this one]..... what makes the bang when a firearms goes off?
(It is not the powder igniting) If what I was taught is true, it may surprise some folks)

rofl, I would be one of those guys.