Hearing Protection

[Frenchy]

I know there have been a couple of threads regarding hearing protection, but I wanted to get some feedback from anyone that has used any of the custom molded in-ear hearing enhancing and suppressing ear buds. I've been trying to be dilegent about wearing my Walker Razor Slim ear muffs, but they always find there way off of my ears and on the side of my head or left in my gear bag. But I had one shot ring my bell to the max last year. Definitely did permanent damage, and now have tinitus in both ears.

So with that said. I'm in the market for some custom molded ear plugs. I have been looking at the ones from Wildear and Tetra Hearing. They are certainly not cheap, but I have been saving since that day last fall that rang my bell. So I am going to spend the money on something that I think I will actually wear all day with out taking them out. These will be used mostly for waterfowl hunting, but would also be used during rifle hunts and any days spent at the range.

So let me have it...the good the bad and the ugly with spending this kind of money on hearing protection.

Anyone ever used one of these products.

Waterfowl CustomShield

In case there is any confusion, let’s set the record straight: duck hunting with unprotected ears causes hearing loss. As hearing doctors at TETRA, we see what years of waterfowl hunting does to our patients. Recent studies show that people with hearing loss are more likely to develop dementia...

tetrahearing.com

Product Page | wildear

www.wildear.com

 

[Nemont]

And before anyone complains about $1,000 to protect their hearing they should go price a set of hearing aids. Be safe out there

Nemont

 

[HSi-ESi]

I'm religious now of wearing something, at least foam plugs. Got my first pair of hearing aids at 34, and spent 5K on them - but they allowed me to hear my first kid talking to me (and crying if in a different room). My kids can't shoot or hunt without plugs or ear muffs - and that rule goes for me now too.

I haven't looked into the other options - just trying to protect what I have left.

 

[Wyohunt]

What? Huh?

 

[PAGOAT]

I wear custom ear plugs now but they do not have hearing enhancing. I keep them around my neck and when ready to shoot I slip them in. This works for deer, antelope and the range. Bird and rabbit hunting I don't wear them. Yearly hearing tests " and my wife " say I should be wearing them every time I shoot. I should look into hearing enhancing ones so I'd wear them all them time.

 

[D4570]

I have to use large font because I can't hear.
Some lose was from shooting but the most part was from WORK before there was a danger...
Anyway, I do have hearing aids and yes there very $$$$$, But I can't imagine having big chunks of plastic in my ears all day long hunting. I do use electronic shooting muffs (Walker razers with walky-talky ) as do all my kids and grandkids when we are hunting. Mine are two-fold,
One to stop the blast but the other is to hear when they whisper to me that I need to shoot at something I did not see.
Most the day there on the top of my head and I pull them down before any shooting. Bird hunting I keep them on when we expect shooting.

 

[SD_Prairie_Goat]

I know there have been a couple of threads regarding hearing protection, but I wanted to get some feedback from anyone that has used any of the custom molded in-ear hearing enhancing and suppressing ear buds. I've been trying to be dilegent about wearing my Walker Razor Slim ear muffs, but they always find there way off of my ears and on the side of my head or left in my gear bag. But I had one shot ring my bell to the max last year. Definitely did permanent damage, and now have tinitus in both ears.

So with that said. I'm in the market for some custom molded ear plugs. I have been looking at the ones from Wildear and Tetra Hearing. They are certainly not cheap, but I have been saving since that day last fall that rang my bell. So I am going to spend the money on something that I think I will actually wear all day with out taking them out. These will be used mostly for waterfowl hunting, but would also be used during rifle hunts and any days spent at the range.

So let me have it...the good the bad and the ugly with spending this kind of money on hearing protection.

Anyone ever used one of these products.

Waterfowl CustomShield

In case there is any confusion, let’s set the record straight: duck hunting with unprotected ears causes hearing loss. As hearing doctors at TETRA, we see what years of waterfowl hunting does to our patients. Recent studies show that people with hearing loss are more likely to develop dementia...

tetrahearing.com

Product Page | wildear

www.wildear.com

Haven't tried either, but one thing to really think or be mindful of is windy days with them. I hope they have it figured out that you don't have to listen to the wind howling in your ear all day long.

 

[D4570]

On our Walkers, we made a "Dead Cat".
Just fake fur Slip-on covers like they use on Microphones outside.
Doesn't stop 100% but makes it tolerable, and you can still hear.

 

[Jmnhunter]

I'm religious now of wearing something, at least foam plugs. Got my first pair of hearing aids at 34, and spent 5K on them - but they allowed me to hear my first kid talking to me (and crying if in a different room). My kids can't shoot or hunt without plugs or ear muffs - and that rule goes for me now too.

I haven't looked into the other options - just trying to protect what I have left.

I need to pony up on some; ever since i've been around 21-22 I've had tinnitus in my left ear, i'm 34 now and had another hearing test done a week ago and have severe damage in my left ear for high pitched sounds. I always use SureFires but need to go bigger.
Anyone have luck with insurance helping to pay or their HSA?

 

[jlmatthew]

My hearing aids I got from the VA cancel out noise really good. Was really surprised how good they worked while dove hunting

 

[HSi-ESi]

I need to pony up on some; ever since i've been around 21-22 I've had tinnitus in my left ear, i'm 34 now and had another hearing test done a week ago and have severe damage in my left ear for high pitched sounds. I always use SureFires but need to go bigger.
Anyone have luck with insurance helping to pay or their HSA?

I know we looked into it - but 10 years ago we couldn't get insurance to help, as the hearing aide's were deemed elective. I've heard things have come around with some HSA's - but haven't needed a new pair yet.

 

[RG_Adult_Onset_Hunter]

I fired two shots without hearing protection on this year (one at the range when I had a bad cheek weld that moved my muff off my ear, and one at a bear). My rifle is particularly loud so it was not enjoyable at all. I already have enough hearing loss just from childhood illnesses, so I really need to be careful with what I have left. Currently I use MSA Sordins when I hunt. They are solid hearing protection if you are going to go the over-the-ear route. The walkers (both the in-ear and over-ear) do a terrible job of distorting sound to the point of not being able to locate it very well. They also use clipping as opposed to compression for noise attenuation. That difference really changes your situational awareness with shots going off. Compression is better, you can still hear what is going on even if there are gunshots happening around you.

As to the Sordins, they are good for 360 situational awareness, but if something is above or below you, it can be hard to pinpoint it's exact location. I'd love to know if anyone who has tried hearing protection that does not have this issue. I'd be all in. In the mean time, I started the process for getting suppressors on all my longarms (the Sordins work great for shotgunning).

 

[Frenchy]

Haven't tried either, but one thing to really think or be mindful of is windy days with them. I hope they have it figured out that you don't have to listen to the wind howling in your ear all day long.

That is my biggest concern. Picking one over the other and then being bothered by the constant wind noise and wondering if the other ones would have faired better. But then again, I have been putting up with the wind noise with the walker razors already.

I'm just not one that can consistently remember to out ear protection on right before the shot. I need to find a solution that I can wear all day, especially while waterfowl hunting.

 

[Frenchy]

On our Walkers, we made a "Dead Cat".
Just fake fur Slip-on covers like they use on Microphones outside.
Doesn't stop 100% but makes it tolerable, and you can still hear.

I'm hoping that with the in ear ones, the will sit far enough inside the ear that when I put a beanie on it will block some of the wind without the rustling against the microphone.

 

[Frenchy]

I need to pony up on some; ever since i've been around 21-22 I've had tinnitus in my left ear, i'm 34 now and had another hearing test done a week ago and have severe damage in my left ear for high pitched sounds. I always use SureFires but need to go bigger.
Anyone have luck with insurance helping to pay or their HSA?

I believe an HSA would cover the cost of the hearing protection, but I think it requires a note from a doctor (Letter of Medical Necessity). Don't think that would be hard to get, but not sure where one would present such letter either.

hearing Aids I believe would be a qualified HSA Expense.

 

[Wally Dog]

I bought a pair of customized earpieces made by Sportear/Axil in Utah.
Spendy but work exceptionally well. 4 settings, custom fit, all the bells and whistles.

 

[wjackson]

I've been using walker's 'Elite' 'Pro' with custom molded inserts since 2014. Absolutely would not go duck hunting without them. They are $260 for a pair, plus I think I paid ~$300 for an audiologist to do the inserts (after a few failed attempts with DIY kits).
They've been good, but I'm thinking of upgrading.
I basically don't ever get wind noise with them. The issue I have is walking in water or on dry leaves. You can't hear anything else. On the upside, they are waaaay better than the razors. Sound quality in general is better, and you can actually hear where a sound is coming from.

But I've been researching Tetra, WildEar, and Sound Gear as potential replacements. My walkers are still kicking, but it would be worth $$$ to me if they didn't have the issue with undesirable background noise. I'd also like to use them chukar hunting, but my walkers are (ironically) just too annoying to walk with.

The model I have: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005GRG470/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Bc1992]

That is my biggest concern. Picking one over the other and then being bothered by the constant wind noise and wondering if the other ones would have faired better. But then again, I have been putting up with the wind noise with the walker razors already.

I'm just not one that can consistently remember to out ear protection on right before the shot. I need to find a solution that I can wear all day, especially while waterfowl hunting.

Same here. I got my ears rung bad Saturday morning on the teal opener. I had ear plugs around my neck but didn’t have them in because I was trying to hear what my buddies were saying.

 

[RG_Adult_Onset_Hunter]

Honestly, if there was a petition for silencers and magazine-fed semi-automatic center fire rifles to swap places I'd sign it in a heartbeat. There are shotgun suppressors, and I can't imagine the price would not go down if you could buy them off the shelf.

In my experience the Sordins don't get hit too hard unless the wind is bad, the sound is also pretty managable if you keep the volume dialed down.

 

[edbentle]

I'm trying Decibullz Percussive Filters this year for waterfowl and upland birds. $80 and you can mold the plastic to fit the bowl of your ear. They don't make it easier to hear other people in your blind but you can hear pretty well and they cancel out the shot pretty good.