Deafness

[Scott]

Spent 12 years in the military and never wore plugs and did not for a long time. I lost 30% of my hearing and now I am very anal about hearing protection and carry about 100 pairs of foam plugs in my truck and about 4 sets of electronic muffs when I go shooting. I even wear them now when I cut the grass. As I got older I decided I would not rather be cool and wear hearing protection and keep what I have left.

Scott

 

[The B]

i've been able to improvise to keep working at the jobsite.. EBW (Emergency Butt Wipe [toilet paper]) works well enough, usually, in a pinch.. i've also cut up t-shirt before (i've also cut up T-shirt to use as EBW!), i've chopped the ends off pen-caps, used cigarette butts, stuffed cotton in my ears. if you HAVE to be exposed to high dB noise and dont have ear-pro specifically, there's almost always something that can be used.

our current job includes nailing about 13,120 Tico nails through A-35s.. and all with a palm-nailer, and it's all enclosed areas with hard walls that bounce sound like crazy. the worst areas i've been doubling up ribbed plugs with ear-muffs, and i STILL have a headache by the end of the day. i don't require my guys to wear ear-plugs, because i know it's not possible to wear them all day, but i do order them to wear them when we're getting into the tigher spots. it's not because i'm concerned about OSHA or liability- i'm genuinely concerned with their ear-health. dang youngin's just don't know no better, and won't do it for themselves.. won't be convinced until they're my age and cant hear.

 

[Rammer80]

Well luckily i woke up today and i can hear perfectly.

 

[Sawdust]

WHAT?!?!?!?! WHAT?!?!?!? I can't hear a thing you all said!!





.

 

[deadeye]

I think you learned a very important lesson, hopefully. I have a constant ringing in my left ear and have about 30-35% of my hearing left in it. I know many of the younger generation get tired of hearing advice from the old farts but most of the advice stems from our mistakes and the fact we don't want younger people to end up like us. So heres another old fart telling you "DON"T FORGET HEARING PROTECTION" or at least wear some condoms on your ears so you don't end up with HEARING AIDS....................

 

[Rammer80]

HAHAHAHA that's hilarious!!

but yeah I listen to the widom of the older folk. History isn't learning what happened in the past its learning to not repeat it.

 

[spengo]

I forgot ear plugs once, but I was fortunate enough to have a friend with extras. Ever since then I always carry some cheap foam ones with me in a little plastic container. You'd be surprised how often they are useful all the time, not just when shooting.

There was another time when I was at the range by myself, nobody else there, shooting my CZ-75. One time after taping up the targets I was shooting at, I forgot to put my muffs back on before starting to shoot. Ow. Glad it was just 9mm and not my AR-15. :|

 

[tac]

remember that hearing loss is cumulative, and irreversible. every time you expose your ears to noise that causes tinnitus or temporary deafness, you've permanently lost some hearing. for some people, it takes years of ear-drum shattering noise to cause problematic hearing loss- but for other people, it only takes a few gun shots. most people are somewhere in the middle, and closer to the latter.

i have permanent hearing loss from my time in the Army, as every vet does. it's pretty miserable, and i'm not that bad off. but its almost impossible for me to hear what people are saying if there's background noise, and some people (usually female) i can hardly understand even when there is no background noise.

i'm a high-strung, deep thinking, anxiety-filled individual... if all i had to listen to all day, day in day out, was my own thoughts- i think i'd probably eat a bullet. i'd rather be blind than deaf. i'm a construction contractor now, and a very regular and high-volume shooter. if i don't have ear plugs, i don't work, and i don't shoot.. it's that important.

invest in an industrial size box of ear plugs.. it'll cost you $20 for a box of like 50 sets. stash them everywhere- in your truck, in your range bag, anywhere on or in your weapons you can fit them.. stick them in your hat, stuff them under your boot-laces, put them in your ammo boxes, etc, etc, etc.. make sure you always have hearing protection.

100% support for this post.

After over 33 years in the full-time Army, I have less than 40% of my hearing, sometimes, if I have a bit of a head-cold, less than 25%.

You guys playing at making loud bangs for fun just to find out how loud they really are will be paying for your fun in later life, that much is sure and certain.

Think of it as sticking toothpicks in your eyes to see how much you lose very time you do it - it is well fact established that hearing damage, like lead-poisoning, is accumulative, and one day that distant ringing noise in the background after a big bang is all that you are ever going to hear for the rest of your life, without electronic aids.

Rubber hands can be made to work pretty well if the originals get blowed off, but there ain't no such thing as a working rubber ear.

Your choice.

tac

PS - my wife, looking over my shoulder, reminds me of the club member here who lost ALL his hearing - permanently - from standing with his back to a guy who loosed off just one shot from a .300 Win mag. He had taken his muffs off to put a pair of safety glasses on.

 

[MarkAd]

Anit it the truth. I even wear earplugs when cutting grass. It is amazing how wonderful hoow good it if to hear when I am done cutting the grass.

 

[CEF1959]

remember that hearing loss is cumulative, and irreversible. every time you expose your ears to noise that causes tinnitus or temporary deafness, you've permanently lost some hearing. for some people, it takes years of ear-drum shattering noise to cause problematic hearing loss- but for other people, it only takes a few gun shots. most people are somewhere in the middle, and closer to the latter.

Well-said. Between rock-n-roll, guns, motorcycles, and airplanes, I've lost a lot over the years. It's one of the bits of youthful foolishness I truly regret.

 

[Rammer80]

Well i was at Browns this morning and im glad i had my ear plugs with. There was a Machine gun shoot so full auto everywhere and a Barret .50 set up going off as well it was still effing loud but without them idk if i could hear after that.

 

[Searcher451]

I learned a long time ago to carry a couple of extra sets of earplugs in the glovebox of my car. I also have two sets of ear protectors and a dozen sets of plugs in my range bag. I rached this state of being prepared after spending a short day at the range having forgotten my protectors -- and then paying for it for about three days afterward. It only took one time, but it was punishment enough.