Forgot Hearing Protection

tyro

New member
This morning, a four legged preditor appeared in front of my house-in-the-woods, threatening my pets. I put it to sleep with my 870. Problem is, I forgot to put on hearing protection. Will the ringing in the ears eventually stop? or will I just have to get used to it? Is there some kind of product to put in the ears daily, so that one does not have to be concerned about an unanticipated firing event damaging to the ears?
 
It'll stop, Tyro. Due to way too many rounds fired w/o protection, the odd explosion and rock music, I've tintinis bad enough that there's constant white noise sounds, kinda like spring peepers or crickets. Add in an intermittent high whistle now and then, it's a pain.

Use hearing protection religiously....
 
Thanks, Giz & Dave. I had my hearing protectors hanging right beside the shotgun. From now on, they will hang ON the gun :).
 
Tyro,

thanks for taking the time to post your experience.
I have a question. What was the barrel length of the 870 you used? Was the area you fired it in, in any way enclosed (e.g. porch, alleyway)?
The reason I ask is that I whenever I hunt pheasant for example, I may shoot 15 rounds in the field. I have never experienced ringing in my ears, from the shots I fire. I use a 28 inch barrel. I also shoot a lot of skeet with a 26 inch tube, but I wear plugs for this.
I have never fired my HD (18 inch) shotgun without ear protection, and was wondering if barrel length might affect perceived volume at the shooters ears. Indoors however, I doubt it would!

I also got to thinking that those electronic ear muffs MIGHT be a good idea for HD situations. They amplify sounds that an intruder might make, as well as attenuating gunshot noise. I realise that one would be foolish not to test them out for ambient noise in your house first, so you are not startled by ordinary noises that you wouldn't ordinarily hear.

Thanks,

Bowser.
 
Short bbls produce more blast noise than long ones, when all else is equal. One trap/skeet/sporting range I use bans bbls less than 23", based on the idea of less blast. Since they do not ban ported bbls, infamous for their noise and blast, IMO, they haven't thought things through very well.

The electronic muffs are a good idea, sole caveat I have is keeping the batteries charged and fresh.
 
Hmm, had to be because of the porch roof reflecting the noise back. When I go dove hunting many rounds are fired (fast little bugars) and I experience no ringing. I'm 21 so my ears haven't gone away yet either. I do notice that rifles are much louder at a covered firing range than an uncovered one.
 
BETTER USE HEARING PROTECTION WHEN SHOOTING SKEET I ALWAYS USE IT BUT WHEN IN THE FIELD SELDOM. ONLY WHEN DUCK HUNTING BECAUSE I CAN SEE THEM BEFORE. THOUGH ONLY ON MY LEFT EAR WHICH IS THE ONE THAT FACES THE MUZZLE( I´M RIGHT HANDED).

GRAND FATHER LOST HEARING BECAUSE OF HUNTING AND HIS FATHER ALSO, AND BELIEVE ME IT MORE PAINFULL TO SOCIALIZE WITH THEM (DEAF)THAN YOU BELIVE. I DON´T WANT TO CAUSE THESE PROBLEMS TO MY FAMILY.

KEEP BLASTING!
 
when I first went trap shooting with my new 870 20 ga i did not have hearing protection on the very first shot. Quickly I learned that hearing protection is necessary for every shot. damn my ears rang after only one shot, like damn Black Flag concert. Every shot you should have hearing protection, or you will be like the 50 yr old guys I met, deaf. Deaf at age 50 yrs, that sucks, hard.
 
Due to heavy metal music and thinking that I didn't need protection when went hunting and to the range, I have Dave's problems and I'm only 26!

I thought I knew everything and that I was bullet-proof back then. Now I'm paying for it.
 
Although I was a "grunt", I can't believe there aren't any current or retired "steel rain" guys out there to pass along this useful tid-bit. When you see those guys fire they stick their fingers in their ears and actually yell as loud as they can. Reason being, it equalizes the pressure in your ears.
Protection first; but if you're ever in a situation where that's not possible hum. The louder you hum, or yell, the more you'll hear afterwards. You can use the maniac method and go "AHHHHHH" when you pull the trigger or you can do nice steady "hummmm" and still maintain accuracy. Try it.
 
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