Custom Ear Protection

[doubleshot]

I am looking for some recommendations on custom fitting ear protection products.

To protect my ears I wear ear plugs along with muffs. However... all the ear plugs I have used are uncomfortable and cause soreness. My ears to tend to be very sensitive to foam and the plastic ear buds,that I have tried). My thinking is to try some custom plugs,that are fitted to the exact shape of my ear) to remedy my discomfort.

Any thoughts???

 

[WhelenMan]

My wife works at a hearing aide office. Most any hearing aide dealer can fix you up with custom molded ear plugs. I use hearing aides myself which are behind the ear models. Normally the ear molds for these have a vent tube to allow air to go in and out of the ear canal but they can allow loud noises to penetrate. I had an extra set of molds made with no vents which can be used with the hearing aides. That way the aides shut down with loud noises and keep db as low as possible. I still don't think they're enough alone though and use a good set of muffs also.

 

[joghotrod]

If you have a Academy Sports store near you, go there and look in the hearing protection section. They sell a kit for about $14.00 that is like 2 part epoxy, but is not, that will make custom ear plugs for your ears. I use them with ear muffs and they work great.

Jimmy

 

[djones]

I ordered a custom earplug kit from the Earplug Superstore, http://earplugstore.stores.yahoo.net/ )and have been very satisfied with them. They send you a kit that consists of a large syringe and an epoxy that you inject into your ears to make an impression. You send the impression into them and they make earplugs out of them. I got the JB1000 Custom Noise Reduction Plug,Breaker-Vented)because I tend to get headaches if I wear tightly-fitted earplugs that have no way to vent.
Injecting the stuff into your ears is not as bad as it may sound and the instructions were very clear. I would suggest that you get someone to help you because you have to exert a lot of pressure on the syringe plunger and doing so with both hands up in the air was difficult. They will also accept impressions done by an audiologist if you don't want to do it yourself.

Instructions - http://earplugstore.com/kitinstructions.htm
Comparison chart - http://www.earplugstore.com/custom.htm#4

Doug

 

[drano38]

I've got 2 sets of custom fitted ear plugs from an audiologist. He’s a member of a gun club where I lived a few years ago. The majority of his business is hearing aids, but he also does ear plugs.
One set is your typical molded silicone. The second are electronic. He took the molds of my ears, and mailed them off to the company that made them.

Keep in mind, the mold taken of your ear is used to make a mold that is used to make the actual ear plug—did ya follow that? Through those steps, the shape can change ever so slightly, and the plug may not feel comfortable—this happened on my solid silicone plugs. No big problem—just had to have them re-done,at no cost) and the second set fit great. So make sure the audiologist guarantees they will fit.

Another option is going to a major shoot where ear plug vendors make them on site. Trap and skeet tournaments will sometimes have them and maybe even a big gun show. They use a poor/syringe in product that becomes your actual ear plug. These by design fit your ear good since your ear formed them. But they won’t last as long as the ones that are sent off to a company because the poor in plug material isn’t as durable. But my audiologist said they will still last several years, and some people I shot pistol with had them and they lasted 5 years or more.

Electronics are expensive, and have a lower dB rating,low 20s I think) because the electronic internals take up room that cannot be solid sound absorbing material. I use them for hunting and shotgun shooting, and they have a good enough dB for that. Rifle and pistol get the solid silicone plugs, or the electronics with muffs over them.

I’d recommend finding an audiologist/hearing aid buisiness who does hearing protection and do an appointment to see what they offer, then go from there.
We only get one set of ears, so we need to take care of them.