HD scenario hearing damage shotgun vs revolver?

hearing protection is why i prefer .45 hydrashoks over smaller calibers such as 9mm. as most 9's are seeing supersonic speeds and the 45 under 1000fps there is no sonic boom/crack and thus less chance of tonerites

but if you slow down the 9mm to subsonic, its just like a .45 but half the wieght/power... and thats not cool
 
Very good eslude. Auditory exclusion will not prevent mechanical hearing damage.

I don't recall Grossman's book having anything on "biomechanical shutdown" as opposed to auditory exclusion, but I guess it might. It has been a while since I have read his work. Even so, it isn't like he is an audiologist. Auditory exclusion along with other distorted sensory aspects such as tunnel vision and time dialation do NOTHING to stop reality. Tunnel vision does not protect the rods and cones of the eye from light and time dialation doesn't actually make things move in slow motion. Just because the guy swinging the baseball bat at your head looks like he is moving slow, the impact will reflect reality.

It is the damage of too loud sound that physically damages sensory cells - mechanical damage. These don't repair themselves. Just because the noise didn't seem loud during the event does NOT mean it didn't cause damage.
 
I must agree that there are more important things to worry about in a defense situation than how loud your gun is. Any worthwhile calibers are all loud. The differences are just splitting hairs.

In regards to the initial question, I shoot shotguns and my .45 auto indoors all the time while eliminating varmints. The pistol has always sounded much louder than the shotgun. I've never shot a .357 like this, but I would think that any revolver would be worse because of the barrel/cylinder gap. I truly regret firing my .454 at a raccoon in our feed room...

The more important thing is to not let the sound affect your shooting! You must not be afraid of the noise to the point it makes you flinch. I've taken buddies along who were absolutely unable to function because of the report, while I was completely unaffected. I had to come up behind one of them and put my hands over his ears for him just so he could continue shooting my .45 (with mild loads) at a coon that was getting away. That's not how you want things to happen when you're fighting for your life!
 
DNS, check the page I quoted in my first post. He does talk of a bio-

mechanical shut down that prevents hearing damage. You are correct, he is

not an audiologist. But I do know he has interviewed more audiologists than I

have along with gunfight / combat vets, and has tapped into other

researchers results. I'm not suggesting anyone base there defensive plans

only in that.

Read the end of my first post. What I was getting at was that

the effect of the tool is more important than the report, and if realy worried,

wear muffs. I simply used research to back up my position.
 
Solution?

Just have your ear muffs or plugs next to your HD firearm. You might as well have your shooting glasses located there too. Shooting gloves or recoil vest should also be kept nearby. What the heck, might as well have a shooting rest available to steady the shot.
 
I guess the safest thing will be for me to get rid of my HD shotgun and switch to something more gentle on my hearing. I think I will simply use my bow and a couple of arrows. I also won't have to worry too much about overpennetration through walls either.
 
Easy On The Ear Weapon

Get a Daisy, Red Ryder rifle. The report is easy even on the most delicate ears.

Some of you may question the effectiveness of such a weapon. But I am sure most of you have seen The Christmas Story movie. You saw what the kid did to those BG's in that daydream sequence.
 
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