May 3, 2024 5 min read

By Dave Bates

For the Observer-Reporter

From my earliest trips to the range, I can recall Uncle Jim wearing a pair of green Cross shooting headphones any time he pulled a trigger. They were the red and black plaid Woolrich hunting coat of shooting phones. More vividly, I can recollect some budget-conscious old-timers stuffing cotton balls and .45 casings into their ears whilst they shot.

I can also attest to many wearing no hearing protection at all. Call it a right of passage but a lot of fellows even scoffed at the idea of wearing any sort of hearing protection while shooting. How silly it seems by today’s standards, and with all the scientific knowledge we have at our disposal, how we could continue such outdated practices, possibly resulting in significant hearing loss at a relatively young age. I can shamefully admit that as a lad I thought I was being “tough” like the “men” by not wearing ear plugs or phones when they were right in front of me. Peer pressure is a dangerous, most powerful influencer. Mom and Dad bought the ear phones right along with the Christmas gifted .22 but I was wont to fall into the common sense line.

Is it any less intelligent to smoke or vape when the consequences are known yet disregarded? In my youth, just about every adult I knew used tobacco – snuff, side chew, cigarettes, pipe or cigar. As products of the World War II era they had been indoctrinated by big tobacco and smoking was promulgated by peer pressure and those seeking to be cool. Most signed up for the habit. By the time the damage was realized and recognized many were on their way to an early grave. Frequently, in my formative years, I’d watch someone I cared about huff and puff their way up a neighboring hillside only to stop for a cigarette and “get their wind back.”

Message received.

These days, watching a kid with an e-cigarette makes my head want to explode, especially when it’s an athlete. There will come a time when they wished they had not used such poor judgment. But I digress. I am not running an anti-smoking campaign today.

So how are we able to stave off potential hearing loss? Maybe more than you think. Many of us old-timers are experiencing some hearing loss. Mine hasn’t gotten bad enough to head to the audiologist but I’d bet a dime to my beloved donut that we may have heard the Mrs. comment on our hearing or lack thereof, loudness of the television program we are watching, problems with conversations across the room or from another room, etc. I know I have.

N A whisper measures about 30 decibels.

N Average conversations register around 60-70 decibels.

N Loud room or party conversation roughly 70-100 decibels.

N Lawn mower – 90 decibels.

N Rock concerts average 120-130 decibels.

N 9mm round/12-gauge shotgun – 160 decibels.

N Research says that damage begins to occur at levels near or beyond around the 120-decibel mark. These numbers are just for comparison sake and are by no means definitive in our statistical analysis. What I’m getting at is this: Is it worth taking a chance with your hearing, especially if the resultant damage could be permanent? Would it not seem silly, in this day and age, not to protect ourselves from potential hearing loss? Gunfire is at the upper end of the scale. How long can we go on ignoring the obvious?

And what is the fix? Earmuff shooting phones, gooshy little roll-up foam ear plugs, rubber inserts with baffles, noise canceling electronic ear phones, custom ear protection, hearing aids specifically designed with the shooter in mind. The parade of products is endless.

I’ll leave the research to you. What works for you might not be best for me or the next guy.

This article is not a product-driven recommendation like I throw out to my readership from time to time. Fortunately, I have not reached the point of severe hearing loss so I have not started down that path yet. I am not recommending any particular brand or model of hearing protection. I am simply advising everyone to wear some sort of hearing protection when shooting. And by all means, if you are shooting with kids, protect their hearing from the get go, before damage occurs. Any form of protection is certainly better than no protection but this is a case of you can run but you cannot hide. Hearing loss may well win out in the future for most of us, but there is no use in giving it a head start.

I have a hard enough time connecting with a speeding grouse these days. Being unable to hear flushing partridge makes things a lot tougher. I need all the help I can get. I’ll take my chances with hearing protection every time.

Dave Bates writes a weekly outdoors column for the Observer-Reporter. He can be reached at alphaomegashootingsolutions@gmail.