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Thread: Shotguns and acoustic traumas

  1. #1
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    Shotguns and acoustic traumas

    How does a shotgun compare to a 9mm or a 5.56 14.5" gun, indoors? According to the data I have, it is louder on the dB scale, but it also has a lower pressure. Does this matter? How damaging is it in comparison?
    Last edited by Unobtanium; 04-17-2018 at 09:47 PM.

  2. #2
    I have been in multiple shootings with both .45 pistols and 12ga. All sounded like dull pops due to audible exclusion.

    That is on the self defense side. My wife was a professional bird hunting guide and spent a ton of time in the field with her herd of pointers and clients with a lot of shooting and no ear pro. She is basically deaf now without hearing aids and still has a hard time with hearing aids.
    Last edited by Dagga Boy; 04-17-2018 at 09:54 PM.
    Just a Hairy Special Snowflake supply clerk with no field experience, shooting an Asymetric carbine as a Try Hard. Snarky and easily butt hurt. Favorite animal is the Cape Buffalo....likely indicative of a personality disorder.
    "If I had a grandpa, he would look like Delbert Belton".

  3. #3
    I find 14 inch shotguns, especially ported ones, to be very unpleasant to fire without ear pro. Unported 14 inch better, and 18 inch unported, better yet. Of course, if you are shooting a shotgun indoors without ear pro, the alternative must be worse.
    Likes pretty much everything in every caliber.

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    1 unprotected indoor .38 special discharge caused a cone of silence in the near side ear that lasted weeks. Whether it recovered at all or I adapted, I can't say. But the measurable hearing loss and tinnitus are permanent.

    I do not hunt without ear pro. No animal is worth more damage than my life has already given. I keep electronic ear pro by my bed, too.

  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by Duelist View Post
    1 unprotected indoor .38 special discharge caused a cone of silence in the near side ear that lasted weeks. Whether it recovered at all or I adapted, I can't say. But the measurable hearing loss and tinnitus are permanent.

    I do not hunt without ear pro. No animal is worth more damage than my life has already given. I keep electronic ear pro by my bed, too.
    This, I was on the receiving end of .45 ACP pistol going off inside a vehicle within about 12-18" of my head pointed in my direction (gunpowder on face). My ear will never be the same, tinnitus sucks a fat one for sure... immediately following I had balance issues for at least a couple weeks. Immediately following I could barely hear a thing, it was scary to say the least. Too bad HPA is a goner now...

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Unobtanium View Post
    How does a shotgun compare to a 9mm or a 5.56 14.5" gun, indoors? According to the data I have, it is louder on the dB scale, but it also has a lower pressure. Does this matter? How damaging is it in comparison?
    I have wondered about this too, but don’t know enough about how 5.56mm/9mm/12-GA might qualitatively differ from each other beyond the decibel level.

    However, I do know that hearing loss is hastened by repeated exposure to damaging levels of sound. So due to the superior terminal effects of 12-GA buckshot, theoretically one would fire fewer times with the shotgun to neutralize a threat than with a pistol or even a rifle.

    In this overall sense, even if the gauge were slightly louder than the pistol or rifle, firing it significantly less often would likely be less damaging to one’s hearing than firing more rounds out of a pistol or rifle to achieve the same outcome.


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  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by nalesq View Post
    I have wondered about this too, but don’t know enough about how 5.56mm/9mm/12-GA might qualitatively differ from each other beyond the decibel level.

    However, I do know that hearing loss is hastened by repeated exposure to damaging levels of sound. So due to the superior terminal effects of 12-GA buckshot, theoretically one would fire fewer times with the shotgun to neutralize a threat than with a pistol or even a rifle.

    In this overall sense, even if the gauge were slightly louder than the pistol or rifle, firing it significantly less often would likely be less damaging to one’s hearing than firing more rounds out of a pistol or rifle to achieve the same outcome.


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    Acoustic trauma is interesting. Firing at a rate of more rapid than 1rd/second in tests saw less damage over the course of say, nearly a magazine, than firing 4-5 shots, spaced over >1 second each. I read up quite a bit on acoustic traumas, and found that very interesting.
    Further, if you suffer acoustic trauma, the least invasive treatment is aggressive oral steroid use ASAP, the most invasive, is a nitroglycerin drip. The goal is to prevent circulation cut-off to the cilia in the inner ear, which is what causes the hearing loss. Inflammation at the base of the cilia is what does this.
    Last edited by Unobtanium; 04-19-2018 at 09:05 AM.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Unobtanium View Post
    Acoustic trauma is interesting. Firing at a rate of more rapid than 1rd/second in tests saw less damage over the course of say, nearly a magazine, than firing 4-5 shots, spaced over >1 second each. I read up quite a bit on acoustic traumas, and found that very interesting.
    Further, if you suffer acoustic trauma, the least invasive treatment is aggressive oral steroid use ASAP, the most invasive, is a nitroglycerin drip. The goal is to prevent circulation cut-off to the cilia in the inner ear, which is what causes the hearing loss. Inflammation at the base of the cilia is what does this.
    Fascinating!

    So for treatment, it has to be steroids, like prednisone? Will NSAIDs not work well enough (as a similar least invasive treatment).


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  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by nalesq View Post
    Fascinating!

    So for treatment, it has to be steroids, like prednisone? Will NSAIDs not work well enough (as a similar least invasive treatment).


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    I don't know what NSAIDs will do for this. I suspect they are better than nothing. I don't want to give advice outside of my field, though, and so I will simply say that if you suffer an acoustic trauma GO SEE THE AUDIOLOGIST! Most family MD's and internal medicine doctors are not going to be up to speed on best preserving your hearing and preventing permanent threshold shift.

  10. #10
    I have hearing loss, so this is interesting to me.

    What difference does ammo breaking the sound barrier make. I like 147 9mm over 115 because it doesn't have that sharp crack. Also, I can hear the difference in .22 ammo, shooting sub sonic over high velocity.

    I can shoot off my roofed back porch. Even with muffs, an AR 15 is pretty unpleasant. I don't shoot at indoor ranges.

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