Handgun noise levels

CDR_Glock said:
44 Special can be subsonic.
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FWIW other than .32 Long (already under discussion), the quietest non-suppressed CF handgun I've ever experienced was a .44Spl S&W revolver with an 8-3/8" barrel using LHBWC target loads. It was really pretty remarkable. It was still louder than .22LR, but more of a "fwump" than a "BANG" or a "pop." :)
 
Simply hanging old carpets on the walls does that.
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I am nowhere close to 100% sure on this, but I believe this is not done at commercial ranges for good reasons. Fire being one possibility and absorbing airborne contaminants another. I think there is another I heard, but can't remember it so maybe not.
 
There is a lot of "lead dust" that goes downrange...( from primers firing, etc ) even if all you shoot in the range is FMJ bullets...

so hanging carpets on walls, etc...is not a good idea ! They would collect all kinds of lead dust...and make range cleaning difficult at best.
 
There are many ways to mitigate the sound in a range other than carpet. Hanging Celotex / acoustic absorbing panels is a much less expensive and safer way than old carpet.
 
"One shot, even from a suppressed(not legal in most places), .22 can cause permanent irreparable hearing loss"

You've got to be kidding. Yes...and even 1 cigarette can cause cancer and kill you.
 
.22 LR isn't as loud because you've got a relatively small amount of powder being burned. The centerfire cartridge with the most similar report is probably .25 Auto because it's burning a similarly small powder charge. .25's however, usually have quite short barrels so unless you're shooting a short-barreled .22 handgun like a Beretta 21a or NAA Mini, the .25 will probably still be noticeably louder.
 
Just shoot outdoors. Problem solved.

Seriously though. I stood 6 feet from a guy shooting a 6.5 Creedmoor outdoors and WOW, what large blow-by they have. Pretty sure my hair blew back.
 
"One shot, even from a suppressed(not legal in most places), .22 can cause permanent irreparable hearing loss"

You've got to be kidding. Yes...and even 1 cigarette can cause cancer and kill you.
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There is no joke here. Yes, smoking puts junk in your lungs. Some of it gets coughed up eventually and some enters the bloodstream. Much like shooting in a poorly ventilated indoor range where the air tastes sweet, it's certainly bad for you. However, it's a very different class of bad for you.

Hearing is based on sensitive structures within our ears. These structures can be permanently damaged by very loud noises, like gunfire (especially indoors). You might not notice right away but that damage tends to be cumulative. Here is an overview:

https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/noise-induced-hearing-loss
 
.32 S&W and .32 S&W long are very mild centerfire cartridges.
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Yep. Light loads in a .32 S&W Long (<700fps) are not much louder than a .22 LR std velocity. Not much more recoil either.
 
Hearing is based on sensitive structures within our ears. These structures can be permanently damaged by very loud noises, like gunfire (especially indoors). You might not notice right away but that damage tends to be cumulative.
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I don't think anybody here would question any of that. The statement at issue, however, is:

One shot, even from a suppressed(not legal in most places), .22 can cause permanent irreparable hearing loss.
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I agree with Northof50 - that's simply not true. Based on the HHS reference you provided, continuous noise needs to exceed 85 dB to result in damage. The threshold for an impulse noise like a gunshot is considerably higher (the MIL STD is in the area of 140 db, but there are complexities about how to measure an impulse noise that make a direct comparison difficult) - much higher than a suppressed .22 [rimfire].
 
T O'Heir wrote:
One shot, even from a suppressed(not legal in most places), .22 can cause permanent irreparable hearing loss.
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Do you have a citation for that?

I know, firsthand, exposure to 22 LR unsuppressed can cause permanent hearing damage, but I'd like to know who is saying suppressed 22 can do that and what mechanism they are attributing it to.
 
I understand that factory load .327 Federal magnums can be VERY loud out of the shorter 3" barrels such as the Ruger SP101. Being a high pressure round and a short barrel must be a noisy combination.

I'll find out whenever I take my new revolver out to the family land to shoot it (with a new pair of electronic Howard Leight ear protectors over some little foam earplugs).
 
"One shot, even from a suppressed(not legal in most places), .22 can cause permanent irreparable hearing loss"

You've got to be kidding. Yes...and even 1 cigarette can cause cancer and kill you.
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My tired eyes got confused between "suppressed" and "non-suppressed". Part of the problem is that I've seen the latter answered that way too many times in the course of my life. At least I got the link up. I know most of us have heard it a thousand times by now (and those that can't hear it anymore have learned the hard way). I don't mind repeating it though. Vigilance on safety practices goes a long way towards saving life and preserving quality of life.
 
Here's what you do.

Buy or rent the 10mm pistol of your choice.

Buy a box of Buffalo Bore 10mm 220 hardcast ammunition.

Shoot it at your indoor range.

Everything else with now seem mild. :D
 
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