Ammo WAY too loud, what happened?

3

.357shooter

Inactive
I carry a Sig P229 chambered in .357, which was loaded with factory Winchester 125 gr. FMJ flat nose ammo. A couple of days ago I fired one round and it was so loud all i could hear for about 15 seconds afterward was the ringing in my ears. I felt the recoil but never heard the gun fire. My shooting partner's hearing took a couple of hours to get back to fairly normal and it was a little over 24 hrs before voices didn't sound muffled to me.

I fire the weapon with this ammo fairly regularly with and without hearing protection and have never had any problems with the noise before. This round was WAY louder than anything I've ever shot before. Can anyone tell me what went wrong?
 
I fire the weapon with this ammo fairly regularly with and without hearing protection
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Well... stop it!:D

That's irreparable damage to your hearing.

I'd bet your judgement of a noise that sharp is highly subjective (as opposed to objective) and it was no louder than a .357 sig gunshot normally might be. Just a freak accoustic echo trick or something to magnify it this time, or a long time since you shot without protection.

Either way, put your muffs/plugs back on.
 
Outdoor. I wear protection whenever possible but in this situation we had to put down an injured deer. I'm in my 20's so it's definitely not age. lol
 
My first handgun was a ruger 44mag. After the first time I shot it, I didn't hear anything for a couple days, especially my right ear. I was only 21 then, but guns are getting louder the older I get, too!
 
Can anyone tell me what went wrong?
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:eek:

Well hello, they are your ears and hearing. I would say if you choose NOT to use hearing protection nothing is wrong.
We had a saying growing up, and it is, WHEN YOU'RE DUMB YOU SUFFER:rolleyes:

I wonder why everyone is yelling at me:confused:
Personal choice, maybe its me can't fix foolishness and stupidity
 
This happened to me about two days ago and I am concerned that it may have been a problem with my ammo. I fully understand that hearing protection should always be worn (and I ALWAYS wear it when I'm training or shooting at the range) but in real life situations you usually don't have time to put hearing protection on or may not have it with you when you have to fire your weapon.
 
ALWAYS carry a pair of earplugs!

Although you may not have the time to use them, having a pair as part of your firearms "kit" means you never have the excuse of not having any.

A markedly different sound to the shot (the report) is either a difference in the ammunition, or a difference in the acoustics. Firing a gun inside a house, or in a car makes the sound seem tremendously louder. In reality it isn't, but it seems like it to us, because the sound is reflected back to our ears differently.

Putting down a wounded animal, short range, muzzle pointed at the ground, is a much different set of variables than shooting at eye level, parallel to the ground at a distant target.

A much louder or quieter sounding shot at the range means something is odd with your ammo. The same change under field conditions might not mean anything. Any chance you saved the casing? If so, compare it to others. Anything unusual indicates it was the ammo.

I cannot recommend strongly enough that you use some kind of hearing protection EVERY time it is humanly possible. Some day, you will want to hear what your grandchildren are saying.
 
44 AMP is right on target. If you can’t remember to carry them on you or in your pockets keep a set in your car/truck. If you are in a life and death situation then your hearing should be the least of your concerns…I can live without it if I have to, but in any other situation my ears are plugged.

As-far-as the ammunition goes, check the casings as AMP mentioned.
 
Earplugs are light... cheap... take up no room. There's no reason not to have sets stashed in a car or truck, in a briefcase, wherever you might need them.

But if you don't have a set, anything soft that you can stick in your ears will be way better than nothing: wadded-up pieces of tissue or paper towel, upholstery or other foam, a piece of a page torn out of a phone book...

It doesn't have to say "Earplug" on it in large letters in order to work. Be creative.
 
You can ask "the Gunney" what caliber of brass cartridges he sticks in his ears.


Then go get good earplugs. As mentioned above, a set should be standard piece of kit for somebody who might have to make a non-emergency shot.

Bart Noir
 
I've shot all calibers both rifle adn pistol with and without protection like a FOOL... :D

Never did I go deaf for any period of time.

My "itis" ear ringing thing we all have a tiny bit of isn't as bad as some, but worse that others, and when shooting without muffs or plugs it get's much intensified, but I have never experienced partial or near deafness after firing without.

My theory is that I have a built in protection that some ears do not. Pretty simple. Just a theory, but personal fact nonetheless.

The first few moments after 5 or 6 rounds after unprotected firing and things are distinctly under water'ish, but never blocked. After about 15 minutes of unprotected sex.. I mean firing, and my natural buffer works, and I experience no more ringing than any other time, without the exception of the reports blocking out conversation for the instant they sound but no longer than that amount of time give or take 2 seconds of the under water type distortion.


That's just me though. I try to never shoot without it but if there's not enough to go around when we get to the firing hole, or if I've misplaced my muffs, I will be the first to forgo protection with regards to give it to the youngest first method I've always utilized in times if forgetfulness.
 
Koolmix - I've got news for you...

My theory is that I have a built in protection that some ears do not. Pretty simple. Just a theory, but personal fact nonetheless
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As a medical professional and certified hearing conservationist, I can assure you that your attitude about this is careless and WILL result in permenant hearing loss. What you have been experiencing is called a temporary threshold shift, but this will become permenant if you keep this silly behavior up.

Do yourself a favor and ask someone you see wearing a hearing aid if they could / would do things differently if they only knew the limitations of being deaf - I assure you they will all say they would. Don't be a fool.
 
I actually have hearing loss in my left ear because of a gun shot. IIRC it was from a 7mm STW, that I wasnt shooting. We had just shown up to the range as they called cease fire and were putting our weapons on the tables. The all clear was given to resume fire, and I had to lean over to the end of the table for my ear protection and I didnt see that my neighbor had already sighted for his shot. My ear was about three foot from the muzzle, which was equipped with a BOSS Accurizer, and BOOM!!!! RINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!

That was 10 years ago and I hate not being able to hear my kids very well when they talk.


Always be prepared with hearing protection....
 
Koolminx, Kayersteve is right... your "theory" will be disproved in the worst possible way if you shoot without hearing protection, and there are no "do-overs" with hearing loss. It's permanent. If you have tinnitus (that "'itis' ear ringing thing") all the time, the chances are that you already have some hearing loss... :(

44 AMP said:
Firing a gun inside a house, or in a car makes the sound seem tremendously louder. In reality it isn't, but it seems like it to us, because the sound is reflected back to our ears differently.
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That turns out not to be the case... in an indoor space, sound pressure level is the sum of the direct and reverberant sound. Increases of 10 db SPL aren't unusual, which is to say that the actual acoustic energy in a space with hard, reflective walls can be more than double that of the same sound source in a non-reverberant environment...

The sound actually is "tremendously louder," with predictable effects on the (unprotected) ear.
 
-itis

My "itis" ear ringing thing we all have a tiny bit of isn't as bad as some
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Tinnitus - if you are aware of it anyplace other than a sound proof room, the condition indicates some kind of pathology; it is abnormal.
Pete
 
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