Ear Plug Superstore - Official Blog

Indoor vs Outdoor Shooting Ranges

If you're a hunter or shooter, you probably already know that your environment affects how loud your gun sounds. Outdoor ranges are, in general, less hazardous to your hearing than indoor ranges. This is because the sound has plenty of room to dissipate. Indoor shooting ranges, which are enclosed and filled with surfaces for noise to reflect off of, bounce a lot more decibels at your ears with each shot.

Outdoor shooting ranges have other benefits, too, such as allowing for much longer-range shooting practice, and giving you the opportunity to learn how to properly handle and fire your gun in a variety of weather conditions.

Still, indoor ranges are popular, and (with hearing protection) they're generally a more comfortable place to practice your marksmanship. Fortunately, good acoustic sound-proofing can mitigate quite a lot of the reflected noise problem. Though most acoustic solutions dampen an average 60%-80% of that extra reflected noise, it's possible to carefully plan and sound-proof a gun range with acoustic features that actually remove 100% of reflected noise. So if you're not a fan of outdoor shooting ranges, no problem: just pick your indoor range carefully.

As a general rule of thumb, an indoor gun range will require an amount of acoustic-damping foam equal to the square footage of the range's ceiling. The foam should be spread around evenly on the walls and ceiling for the best results. You might very well be able to spot this sound-damping material the next time you visit your favorite indoor shooting range, but keep in mind that this kind of material is not always visible. If you're concerned about extra hearing damage from indoor shooting, talk to your range instructor or the range's owner. And when in doubt, always bring your own high-NRR hearing protection; electronic shooter's ear muffs work best for shooting ranges, where you need to hear voices clearly but you also need good protection from ongoing gunfire noise.

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom Bergman, Marketing Director

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Fact or Fiction: Silencers

"Silencers," also known as suppressors, have gained a lot of fame thanks to Hollywood: the action movie hero, equipped with a pistol and a silencer and facing overwhelming odds, sneaks through a warehouse full of bad guys, taking them down one by one with shots no louder than a soft, high-pitched ping or a quiet, muffled thump. This familiar film trope seems sensible enough at a glance. It's called a silencer; it makes guns silent.... right?

In reality, not so much. The whisper-quiet gunshot is pure movie myth. A typical suppressor actually reduces the sound of a gunshot by about 30dB, depending on which hardware you're using. And while that's a significant amount of noise reduction, you're still left with well over 100dB of sound AFTER suppression. That means a "silenced" gunshot still sounds just like a gunshot, it's still loud enough to damage your hearing (and it's still loud enough to be heard clearly from one end of the bad guy-filled warehouse to the other -- unless you have Bruce Willis style movie magic on your side).

So the name "silencer" is a bit of a misnomer, but suppressors do have other important benefits, especially for police and military applications. Suppressors can reduce recoil, improve accuracy, significantly reduce muzzle flash, and help diffuse the sound of the gunshot, making it much more difficult to pinpoint the location of the shooter. And a suppressor does reduce blast noise enough that firing a silenced weapon in a small enclosed space is much less likely to badly disorient you and seriously damage your hearing.

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom Bergman, Marketing Director

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Can One Gunshot Damage Your Hearing?

First off, a typical gunshot sound ranges from 2-5 milliseconds in duration. (To put that in perspective, it takes about 300-400 milliseconds for you to blink your eyes.) Now, the longer you're exposed to a sound, the more damage it can do to your hearing -- so hearing damage isn't just about volume, it's also about time duration.

This is common sense: 5 minutes of listening to a noisy chainsaw is obviously going to be less damaging to your ears than 5 hours of listening to that chainsaw!

So if a gunshot only produces 2-5 milliseconds of noise, is unprotected exposure to one gunshot really going to damage your hearing?

In a nutshell: you bet it will -- but only by a small amount. According to Dr. Clark, Ph.D., senior research scientist in charge of the Noise Laboratory at the Central Institute for the Deaf in St. Louis, one shot from a .357 magnum pistol, which dishes out a hefty 165dB for just 2 milliseconds, is equivalent to spending over 40 hours in a noisy workplace. However, noise induced hearing loss is usually gradual; many people describe it as "sneaking up on them" over the years. So one shot fired isn't going to noticeably damage your hearing: once the initial discomfort or pain in your ears subsides, you probably won't notice a thing. But each subsequent gunshot you're exposed to is another big dose of noise, and hearing damage is cumulative and permanent -- so over time, those hazardous doses of sound all add up to serious damage to your ears, and serious noise induced hearing loss. (Think: 52 shots fired would be the equivalent of a whole year spent working in a noisy factory, in terms of wear and tear on your ears!)

Don't panic: just invest in some hearing protection, use it whenever you're shooting or in other noisy situations, and you'll be able to keep the hearing damage that starts with "Whatever, my ears are fine!" from snowballing into "SORRY, WHAT DID YOU SAY??" a few years down the line.

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom Bergman, Marketing Director

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What Makes a Gunshot so Loud?

What Makes a Gunshot so Loud?

There are two components that create the impressive sound of a gunshot.

The first factor is the actual muzzle blast. A muzzle blast sound occurs because of the rapidly expanding propellant gasses that actually cause the bullet to accelerate; the gas expands extremely quickly, and the resulting pressure wave from that explosive expansion creates a whole lot of noise.

The second piece of the puzzle that makes gunfire so loud doesn't actually have to do with the gun: it's all about the bullet and speed. The vast majority of modern guns fire bullets at speeds that exceed the speed of sound. And just like a jet creates a sonic boom, bullets create a loud sonic crack when they break the sound barrier.

The muzzle blast and the supersonic crack happen virtually simultaneously (at least as far as our human ears can perceive!), combining to form one big bang.

 

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom Bergman, Marketing Director

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How Loud are Different Guns?

Everyone knows guns are loud -- but exactly HOW loud is a very good question.

First off, it's important to understand that sound and distance have an important relationship: as you move further away from the source of the sound, the sound levels drop off dramatically. So if you're one yard away from a gun being fired, you might get 150dB of sound. If you move back another yard, so that you're two yards away, you only get 1/4th of that sound. Move back to three yards away, and the noise dose is reduced down to 1/9th! This is called the Inverse Square Law. The key point to remember is this: how loud a gunshot is -- and how it will affect your hearing -- depends on how close you are to the gun itself, and taking a few steps away can dramatically reduce the dose of noise you get.

Of course, you're probably most interested in how loud YOUR own gun is when YOU are firing it! Check out this data Dr. Krammer, Ph.D., of Ball State University, Indiana has collected on how loud different types of guns are, from the point-of-view of the actual shooter:

Shotgun Data

.410
(.409")	28" barrel	150dB
(.409")	26" barrel	150.25dB
(.409")	18" barrel	156.30dB
20 Gauge
(.614")	28" barrel	152.50dB
(.614")	22" barrel	154.75dB
12 Gauge
(.729")	28" barrel	151.50dB
(.729")	26" barrel	156.10dB
(.729")	18" barrel	161.50dB

Centerfire Rifle Data

.223 with 18" barrel	155.5dB
.243 with 22" barrel	155.9dB
7mm Magnum (.276) with 20" barrel	157.5dB
.30-06 with 24" barrel	158.5dB
.30-06 with 18" barrel	163.2dB
.30-30 with 20" barrel	156.0dB
.308 with 24" barrel	156.2dB
.357 with 18" barrel and muzzle brake	170dB

Centerfire Pistol Data

.25 ACP	155.0dB
.32 LONG	152.4dB
.32 ACP	153.5dB
9mm (.354)	159.8dB
.380	157.7dB
.38 S&W	153.5dB
.38 Spl	156.3dB
.357 Magnum	164.3dB
.41 Magnum	163.2dB
.44 Spl	155.9dB
.45 ACP	157.0dB
.45 COLT	154.7dB

Aside from distance, gun type, bullet size, and barrel length, there are other factors that can change how much noise exposure you get from a gunshot. While the blast noise from the gun actually being fired lasts only an instant, that noise can and will be reflected off the ground and other objects, significantly increasing the dose of noise you're actually subjected to. (Consider: the difference between firing a weapon in an open field, versus firing a weapon indoors in a small room... ouch.)

Also, direction makes a big difference in how loud a gunshot is, in terms of how much sound actually reaches your ears. The sonic crack component of a gunshot sound travels in a cone shape pointing forward and spreading outward from the barrel of the gun.

That means it's best to stand well to the side and a bit behind someone who is shooting, to reduce the punishment your ears take from your buddy's gunfire. (Obviously, standing directly in front of the gun would smack you with the biggest and most damaging dose of noise the gun can produce -- but of course, if you ever find yourself in that situation, impending hearing damage probably won't be your biggest concern!)

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom Bergman, Marketing Director

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Special thanks to Vassilis of Thessaloniki, Greece for providing a correction here: The Centerfire Pistol Data table previously contained an error, and he was kind enough to point it out! The above data has now been corrected, so what you see here is accurate. Thanks again, Vassilis -- and a big thank you to all our readers: we love your feedback, your corrections, your questions and your comments in response to our newsletter and blog articles! YOU are an important part of making EPSS great. We appreciate you!

 

Welcome Maggie to the EPSS Baby Ear Muff Wall of Fame!

Welcome Maggie, our newest addition to the Baby Ear Muff Wall of Fame!

Sarah writes, "We took 8 week old Maggie to an outdoor Sugarland concert at the zoo in OKC." Living here in Oklahoma, we at EPSS have been to the OKC zoo for a concert or two -- it's a very loud venue! Kudos for protecting Maggie's little ears, Sarah, and thank you very much for sending in this wonderful photo of Maggie.

Way to go, Maggie and Sarah!

If you haven't already protected the little ears in your own life, check out our ear muffs for babies and children.

And if you do already have hearing protection for your little ones, I invite you to have your own child join the EPSS Baby Ear Muff Wall of Fame -- just use this handy and secure form to upload your photos.

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom Bergman, Marketing Director

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We took 8 week old Maggie to an outdoor Sugarland concert at the zoo in OKC.

Tyler Joins the EPSS Baby Ear Muff Wall o' Fame!

Welcome Tyler, our newest addition to the Baby Ear Muff Wall of Fame!

Here, Tyler enjoys the fireworks while wearing a snazzy patriotic outfit, an adorable smile, and a pair of light-weight baby ear muffs! What a great picture! Big thanks to you, Mechelle, for sending in this photo, and kudos for protecting the little ears in your life :)

Way to go, Tyler and Mechelle!

If you haven't already protected the little ears in your own life, check out our ear muffs for babies and children. And if you do already have hearing protection for your little ones, you're welcome to have your child join the EPSS Baby Ear Muff Wall of Fame -- just use this handy and secure form to upload your photos.

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom Bergman, Marketing Director

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