Shooting without hearing protection?

[old bear]

so how do the police at shootouts get away with it?

They DON'T. As others have explained hearing loss is GENERALLY a cumulative event. As also explained the report of any firearm will not be as loud outside as the sound Dissipates unlike an indoor range where any sound will echo off the walls.

Several guys talked about firing one at the range without ear protection and becoming disoriented after just 1 shot. One guy said he shot a .357 and his ears rang for the next 24 hours.

With all due respect, if these are the kind of folks you are getting your shooting information from, I'd suggest you look elsewhere. Any one who opts to use any firearm without proper hearing protection is a fool. The aforementioned does not refer to emergency use of a firearm.

 

[ESW]

I have permanent ringing in my left ear. I hear it every day. This was caused but one day of shooting my .45 acp for about 25 rounds with no ears on. Wear your ears! You won't neccassarily go deaf, but you can do audiotory nerve damage quite easily. Every male in my family has it and all of us can trace it back to a day when we had our ears off.

 

[2152hq]

I never owned a set of ear protectors for shooting till about the mid 70's.
Worn then only if you found yourself on a crowded range with many shooters.
Otherwise, the bulky things were off.
.22, centerfire, rifle, pistol,,,,didn't matter.
Clay target, plinking, hunting, ect,,no ear protection.
Pure stupidity in 20-20 hindsite.
My older brother was the same way. Plus he went thru USMC Boot Camp and said they never worn ear protection on the range. Shot the M14s all the way through. Now wears 2 hearing aids.

We both started shooting indoor Bullseye pistol in the early 80's.
It was required for the course, as was eye protection, and one shot indoors w/o any would convince you that you'd need them anyway.

That was the way it was with most people then.
When it was qualification time for the Sheriffs Dept on the revolver course,,hearing protection wasn't a necessity,,wasn't mentioned.
I recall a few seasoned looking types sporting hearing protection at the time, but most of us youngins did have or feel we needed such a thing. Early 70's.

Ringing ears, periods of deafness,,,so that was just part of the shooting game.
Now the always present crickets and 'white' noise,,,,never any real piece and quiet.

Exploding entire rolls of caps on the side walk with Dad's ballpeen hammer as kids probably gave the degrading process a good start.
Loud machinery, other peoples music, ,,,Lot's of things happen to damage hearing.
A hearing aid now improves the left side ,,but even that I find a pain to wear anymore.

I've learned to live with it. It's kind of interesting to get your fast food order and see what your "OK" and head nod was in agreement to from the fast talking 16 y/o behind the counter.

Do the best you can to protect it and your eyes.
It's really an uncomfortable life with out them.

 

[Dalkowski110]

I use plugs and muffs. If I didn't, I'd already be deaf thanks to my collection of old European bolt-actions in rather hefty calibers...

 

[walkin jack]

Here's a little trick I've more or less perfected since I've started loosing my hearing, It works really well with the wife since we know each other so well and for so long (41 years). There is a little more risk involved with casual friends and strangers.

When she says something to me that I miss, rather than say huh? every time I sometimes fake it. I will match her facial expression (smile for smile, frown for frown, blank for blank) and nod or shake my head as I think appropriate. I know it sounds simple but it takes years to perfect this system. I've gotten good at lip reading too and that helps.

I have gotten pretty bold in my "guess-what-she-said" game and sometimes I will give a verbal response. I get it right most of the time. But when I get it wrong she will cross her eyes and stick out her tongue. I just cross my own eyes and stick my tongue out at her.

It's how she makes fun of me without hurting my feelings and how I let her know that it's okay if she "catches" me and I'm not insulted.

Strangers and casual friends are somewhat less gracious so I don't try it that often with them.

 

[scooter123]

There are some who believe that we have "muscles" in our ears that automatically seal them in response to gunfire, so a few isolated shots won't cause any damage or even cause ringing in the ears. DO NOT believe this BS, because they are completely and totally WRONG.

There are others who will state that if your ears only ring for a day or two that there isn't any lasting damage and your ears will "heal". DO NOT believe this BS, because they are completely and totally WRONG.

Gunshots can, will, and have caused permanent hearing loss. If you hang around older police officers that have had an "active" career you will find that many of them suffer from a distinct and measurable hearing loss. You'll also find that many of the younger officers have been "wized up" by the old hands and use electronic In the Ear hearing suppression.

While this hearing blockers aren't cheap they do provide enough protection that some cities are now equipping their police forces with this type of protection. The US Army is also equipping some of our troops with this protection simply because it's cheaper to pay for these expensive ear buds than to pay for a disability due to hearing loss. BTW, depending on brand and suppression these ear buds can range from 2000 to about 3000 dollars. Big positive is they provide protection without limiting the ability to hear small noises when guns aren't being fired.

Now for a bit of bad news. Gunshots for many calibers produce noise levels that are right at the threshold for causing permanent and noticeable damage with just one or two shots. To be specific, a 9mm fired from an unported 5 inch barrel won't cause measurable damage in one or two shots provided that certain factors are present. One is that the gun is held at arms length, because noise levels fall off exponentially with distance. Second is that 9mm has to be fired in a large enclosure or out of doors, because reflected sound does increase the exposure level. What it boils down to is this, you'll want to make sure your carry choice has a barrel at least 5 inches long and you'll only want to use it outside without any walls nearby. Otherwise you will lose some hearing.

PS; since about 1980 I've been asking people to talk louder and I go to sleep and wake up every day with a ringing in my ears. In my case it wasn't due to gunfire, it was a misspent youth attending rock concerts and about 10 years of building and tuning racing engines that did the damage to me. However, I've lived with the effects of hearing loss long enough that I now do all can to protect whats left.

 

[eb2good]

They DON'T. As others have explained hearing loss is GENERALLY a cumulative event. As also explained the report of any firearm will not be as loud outside as the sound Dissipates unlike an indoor range where any sound will echo off the walls.



With all due respect, if these are the kind of folks you are getting your shooting information from, I'd suggest you look elsewhere. Any one who opts to use any firearm without proper hearing protection is a fool. The aforementioned does not refer to emergency use of a firearm.

No disrespect taken. It was a highly debated topic on another site and actually went about 50/50 on the topic. Being that a single shot can disorient someone (according to them) they felt shooting at least 1 to 3 rounds without hearing protection might possibly be a decent idea as to have yourself prepared for what it would be like in a real life situation. As one guy said "afterall, I wouldn't want to shoot the bad guy once, and then be so stunned I couldn't continue as he came and attacked me."

Now that seems a little extreme to me. I also am on the 50% side that would vote to NEVER shoot my gun without ear protection. I can however understand where they are coming from, I just can't bring myself to risk it over such a small chance I ever actually have to use my gun in a real sd scenario. My original post however, I was just more curious as to how cops and soldiers handled such an issue. Thanks for your time and reply!

 

[kennyb]

i shot for years with no ear protection...and my hearing is fine...i certainly wear muffs now however...

 

[snubbyfan]

Back in the early 80's I worked at an Airport and never wore hearing protection. Standing next to a 747 as it revved up it's engines in preperation to taxi out to the runway can indeed be considered ear splitting. I of course had to be "cool and tough" and not cover my ears. That along with cranking up my 7 band power booster equalizer through my Jensen Quadrax speakers took their toll on my ability to hear certain frequencies. Females sometimes speak in these frequencies, I'll see their mouth moving and won't hear them or I'll just hear bits and pieces and it'll almost sound like Chinese. Lucky for me my wife doesn't speak in these frequencies and can "translate" for me. I've learned my lesson and always wear hearing protection at the range or while woodworking.
This experience has helped me to relate to my Dad's hearing loss. He was in the Army 3rd Infrantry division all through WWII and also served in the Korean conflict and had frequency hearing loss. He'd ask somebody to repeat themselves and they would just say the same thing louder, they couldn't understand that he just couldn't hear certain frequencies. He finally did get hearing aids but they just amplified all frequencies rather than just the frequencies he needed. He did have an overall loss of hearing but it was even worse at certain frequencies.
My Dad was a great man, a war hero and one of the last of a generation of truly great men. He's buried at Arlington with full Military honors. I miss my Dad.

 

[kwselke]

First off, hi all, this is my first post on the forums.


I understand that a 9mm puts out almost 160db enough to instantly cause damage to ones ears. However, there are so many cops, soldiers, etc. that each and every day are involved in a shooting. Some of them have been in multiple shootings. How is it that they seem to be fine and not deaf in the aftermath interviews and such?

Thanks!

My father spent 70 days at Okinawa starting 4/1/45. He lost all hearing in his right ear shortly after WW-II. He has a humorous story about how the Naval Reserves sent him an annual questionnaire asking about his health and general readiness. He responded that he had gone deaf in his right ear. A few weeks later he got a letter back saying that his resignation had been accepted. They do not interview the folks that cannot hear the questions.

 

[carpriver]

Like others I have the cricket in my ears, I worked on the flight line, B-52a KC-135s and in Vietnam C-130. was exposed to gunfire, rockets and mortars explosions and had a claymore mine going off 3 ft. in front of me. I wear hearing aids so I can talk to my family, watch TV and listen to my music. My brother is a retired cop, was involved in a couple of shot outs in Detroit, He has some hearing loss too. At the range I wear ear plugs and muffs. Want to save what little is left. I miss the sound of silence.