Posted: 2/17/2012 10:14:12 AM EDT
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What are you guys planning on doing for ear pro if the SHTF? Use nothing? Regular ear plugs? Ear muffs? Electronic ear pro? The reason I ask is because I have damaged my ears from shooting without ear pro. Right now I just use the Winchester ear plugs that are on a string and just slip in. |
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Surefire EPs have been great for me. Better than foam, low profile and you can still hear what's going on around you.
I did wear them in the woods first time I went hunting but it made it too quiet. If you need to be keenly aware of your surroundings, electronic ear pro is your only and best option. Still, there's nothing lo-profile about a set of muffs on your head. |
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These are the best I've found, and cheap. Howard Leight MAX The best price I've gotten them for was around $45/500. They are marketed as disposable, but easily reused quite a few times if kept clean. |
If you go the route of electronic muffs, Howard Leight makes a very good set for the money-I like them better than my old Peltor 6S muffs. If you want the best electronic shooting muffs available I would strongly suggest the Sordin Supreme Pro-X with the upgraded gel inserts (the "X" version is completely waterproof). Sordins are made in Sweden, and are the nicest, most comfortable electronic shooting muffs I've ever owned. Their listed noise reduction rating is actually deceiving. It appears a bit low at first glance, but my headset with a NRR of 21 actually blocks more noise than my Clark passive muffs with a NRR of 28...go figure 
I like the Sordins so much that just this week I took delivery of a Sordin WW Bluetooth communication headset. It has all the capability of their regular electronic muffs, but it also has a boom mic and wireless capability. You can pair it with your Bluetooth enabled phone or two-way radio. A few days ago I talked to another ARFcommer while wearing the headset, and he helped me get it adjusted for the best sound quality. They are expensive, but I use them every day in the server room at work, and look forward to using them at the range and with my portable ham radios 
If you are interested, www.srstactical.com is where I buy all of my Sordin and Peltor ear protection. Their service is excellent, and they test all electronic muffs before they go out the door. Really nice people who take really good care of their customers. ETA: I'm not related to SRS in any way-I'm just a very satisfied customer  Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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highly recommend electronic ear pro. peltor and sordins. you can generally get the 'tactical' style sordins cheaper than the 'tactical' style peltors.
i own both. cant go wrong. its one of those things...when you dont have it you dont think you need it. but once you have them, you realize their worth. |
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highly recommend electronic ear pro. peltor and sordins. you can generally get the 'tactical' style sordins cheaper than the 'tactical' style peltors. i own both. cant go wrong. its one of those things...when you dont have it you dont think you need it. but once you have them, you realize their worth. Yeah, I agree with you completely Brutus. For me, the capability of the electronic muffs really shines when you are teaching a newcomer how to shoot. It's very reassuring to a new shooter when you can have a normal conversation-and not shout at each other. From a "tactical" perspective, being able to magnify the ambient sound around you is a big plus. When my muffs are turned all the way up I can hear whispers and floorboards creaking from clear across the house. I put the word "tactical" in quotes when describing myself because I am probably the most low speed, high drag person on the planet...and most assuredly un-tactical  Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Quoted:
These are the best I've found, and cheap. Howard Leight MAX The best price I've gotten them for was around $45/500. They are marketed as disposable, but easily reused quite a few times if kept clean. ETA: Not the "best", but great bang for the buck, comfortable & fit with an ach helmet. |
| I have a variety. I have passive ear muffs, electronic, reusable ear plugs and foam (for give aways). I think the most durable will be reusable ear plugs. There's really nothing to break or wear out. Ear muffs have a tendency to break given enough time/drops, but are my preferred solution. They are cheap enough to have an extra set or two as reserves. |
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A buddy of mine went to a hearing Doctor and got custom ones made that are self attenuating. You can hear normal conversation but when a firearm goes off something about the durometer of the gel used causes them to block that sound. It only cost him around $80. I have just received some Peltor SportTac muffs from my wife for Christmas, so I won't be looking into those soon, but I will be looking eventually.
jim ETA no batteries and custom comfort seem pretty good things post shtf. |
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I love my Howard Leights, I use the impact sport model. Low profile so they don't get in the way and affordable.
HL Impact Sport |
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I love my Howard Leights, I use the impact sport model. Low profile so they don't get in the way and affordable. HL Impact Sport +1 I work at a range and all day I wear them, they allow me to talk and hear "pull" calls and they block out the gun shots |
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I wear hearing aids so hearing protection for me is problematic. Muffs -passive or active- are a no-go as enclosing or occluding hearing aids in any manner creates feedback. The only option for me is to remove my HA's and use conventional plugs or muffs. I prefer the Surefire EP-3 for their fit and comfort. Glad to see you're thinking about your hearing; take care of what you have.
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I wear hearing aids so hearing protection for me is problematic. Muffs -passive or active- are a no-go as enclosing or occluding hearing aids in any manner creates feedback. The only option for me is to remove my HA's and use conventional plugs or muffs. I prefer the Surefire EP-3 for their fit and comfort. Glad to see you're thinking about your hearing; take care of what you have.
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Specific model of Sordin you use? Ballpark price? Thanx Mac
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If you go the route of electronic muffs, Howard Leight makes a very good set for the money-I like them better than my old Peltor 6S muffs. If you want the best electronic shooting muffs available I would strongly suggest the Sordin Supreme Pro-X with the upgraded gel inserts (the "X" version is completely waterproof). Sordins are made in Sweden, and are the nicest, most comfortable electronic shooting muffs I've ever owned. Their listed noise reduction rating is actually deceiving. It appears a bit low at first glance, but my headset with a NRR of 21 actually blocks more noise than my Clark passive muffs with a NRR of 28...go figure
I like the Sordins so much that just this week I took delivery of a Sordin WW Bluetooth communication headset. It has all the capability of their regular electronic muffs, but it also has a boom mic and wireless capability. You can pair it with your Bluetooth enabled phone or two-way radio. A few days ago I talked to another ARFcommer while wearing the headset, and he helped me get it adjusted for the best sound quality. They are expensive, but I use them every day in the server room at work, and look forward to using them at the range and with my portable ham radios
If you are interested, www.srstactical.com is where I buy all of my Sordin and Peltor ear protection. Their service is excellent, and they test all electronic muffs before they go out the door. Really nice people who take really good care of their customers. ETA: I'm not related to SRS in any way-I'm just a very satisfied customer
Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Macgyver, my Sordin shooting muffs are model 75302-X (Sordin Supreme Pro-X) and they run about $250, with the gel inserts costing about $35 more if I remember correctly. My new Sordin Bluetooth communications headset is model number 75318 and they were $489-plus the gel inserts.
No doubt they are expensive, but my hearing has degraded so much over the years I had to do something drastic to preserve what I have left. The server rooms I work in are so loud that my ears ring for a couple of hours at the end of the day, and the audiologist who tested me last month confirmed that I have permanent damage because I wasn't doing enough to protect my hearing. So far the new communications headset is working great-my ears aren't ringing and the headaches have stopped Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Quoted:
Macgyver, my Sordin shooting muffs are model 75302-X (Sordin Supreme Pro-X) and they run about $250, with the gel inserts costing about $35 more if I remember correctly. My new Sordin Bluetooth communications headset is model number 75318 and they were $489-plus the gel inserts. No doubt they are expensive, but my hearing has degraded so much over the years I had to do something drastic to preserve what I have left. The server rooms I work in are so loud that my ears ring for a couple of hours at the end of the day, and the audiologist who tested me last month confirmed that I have permanent damage because I wasn't doing enough to protect my hearing. So far the new communications headset is working great-my ears aren't ringing and the headaches have stopped
Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile I had to work a full day in a server room a couple weeks ago, and even with my semi-sound-blocking earplugs(listening to podcasts) I couldn't wait to get out. It felt somewhat like taking a breath after being underwater for as long as you can stand. I had to step outside for phone calls. All that to say I feel for you, I couldn't stand it! I use the Howard Leight Impact Pro's mentioned earlier in the thread. Better than the Peltor 3 Tactical ear muffs(I think that's the correct model) that I tried at the range. I traded with the Peltor owner for 15 mins or so and we both liked mine better! BTW I always wear double hearing protection for classes/range time, too. Foam plugs plus electronic with the volume turned up. I REALLY care about my hearing! Plus my eye pro always screws with my ear pro, if only a little. edit: With the above plugs and muffs combo I can hear a little better than no ear pro at all, while having the best protection possible(for the $$). |
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Thanks for the kind words Ron
The toughest part about working in that environment for me is sufficiently protecting your ears while maintaining the ability to talk to other people-be it face to face or on the phone/two-way radio. When working alone it's fairly easy (like you said): you combine plugs with good muffs to block out the noise. If you are working next to someone however you will yell yourself hoarse trying to be heard. Here in our NH office we have a Sensear brand ground crew type headset with a noise cancelling mic hardwired to the phone. It works astonishingly well, but they are hellishly expensive-more than double the cost of the Bluetooth Sordins I just picked up
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I have these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-Hearing-Ear-Protection-Peltor-Tactical-6S-Style-/170781976319?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27c36626ff Also have several pairs of the surefires in my bags. |
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http://www.cabelas.com/product/Walkers-High-Definition-Digital-Game-Ear-III/708676.uts
Any opinions on devices like this? Seems to offer the best of all worlds, small, comfortable, can be worn under other head gear, amplifies sound but protects hearing. But not cheap. |
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Back in the Army days, I was a 13B Cannon Crew Member..........................plus afterwards having a job that required a lot of range time, has left me with pretty degraded hearing. Better described as CHS. I have several pairs of the Surefire Sonic Defenders in the safe, and always on me, kinda a daily carry item.
Realistically, when you get into a situation, the last thing you will probably remember is hearing protection, and rightfully so. Long & Short term hearing protection is important, but often sacrificed. If you find yourself without protection, as I have, I have found cigarette butts can be used, as well as spent cases from a .38 SPL, however neither worked as effectively as desired. -PC- |