Not sure exactly where this would go...so, here it is!

Over the course of the last couple thousand loads I've just started discovering that while I am not particularly recoil sensitive, I am becoming "report" sensitive! I always use double hearing protection at the range (plus + muffs) and have discovered that certain things really get to me fast.

The guy shooting the 16" socom with a muzzle brake for instance. That sharp crack really got me jumpy in a hurry. In my rifles, I find that my .257 roberts (20" bbl) with 47.0 grains of H4350 and a 100gr. bullet is loud enough to make me openly prefer a 117gr. bullet with 44gr. of H4350. It's just a slightly deeper bang.

Compare this to my 7mm SAUM and I prefer driving a bullet at 2900 fps than 3000 fps only because of the noise.

In a more extreme case, I've found in my .300 H&H that the 220gr. loads at 2700 have a much deeper report than a 165 gr. at 3100. There's no question the 220 recoils more - greater speed, free energy, etc. It's the Report that gets to me first.

Anyone else encounter this?

Yup,

I much prefer the deep roar of a magnum.

Majority of the .473 based cases like the 257 Roberts, 25-06, 270 Win., 308 Win, 30-06 etc. produce an annoying "pop"

I have also found double hearing protection to be worse. I recommend just the best quality muffs you can find.
I have noticed that plugs doesn't allow my ear canal to breathe off these higher pitched shock waves that seem to travel through the skull.

As some folks already know, there are two main sources of "sound" heard by humans. One is the wave impulses pounding on the ear drum. An almost equally large source is the sound waves striking the bone structure around the ears.

Neither normal size ear muffs nor ear plugs do a top-flight job of protecting both, even when used together. They slow down the onset of deafening, but do not prevent it.


I don't know for sure, but I suspect that the higher frequency pitches are most annoying, most painful, and the quickest to destroy human hearing in that portion of the hearing range.

Why? Simple physics. The higher pitches are higher frequency...that is they hit more frequently over the same time frame. So it may be that the ear drum and/or bone which has deformed slightly with an initial wave impact has not had time to recover its original shape and at-rest location before it is struck again by the next wave.

And many more times thereafter than happens with a low frequency sound.

Anyway, I too much prefer a low frequency hollow boom to an almost shrill high frequency sound...even though I have now lost almost all of the higher frequencies hearing in my left ear (the one not protected by the stock during my right-handed firing of a rifle).

I used to shoot IHMSA. Nothing like 44mags going off 3 feet on either side of you to make you impervious to anything- shock waves, noise, whatever. Of course I can't hear very well anymore...
I will say that firing my muzzle braked 300RUM without hearing protection while hunting broke me of muzzle brakes. Can you say tinnitus?

All I can say is I react more to a "pop" then I do a "boom". I didn't know that until I first shot my 338-378 Wby with the muzzle brake. It certainly subdues the recoil but the "boom" from the pressure wave is more exciting then it is annoying. The "pop" from my 22 inch barrelled '06 is more bothersome to me. That said, the report from the shorter barrel might be the issue as compared to the long barrelled Wby.

Ken....

I HATE! muzzle breaks, especially in enclosed places.

My ears are hooched. Been running equipment since I was a couple feet shorter, too much loud music, too many explosions a bit too close. Got some high frequency hearing loss. Anymore real loud kabooms just hurt.
Couple years ago, started to notice I,m far more sensitive to noise than recoil. Can be out at the range with a .22, if somebody next to me goes rapid fire with a 9mm, I flinch. Double up,earplugs and muffs. If I,m the guy making noise, seem to be alright.
Don,t have any screamers, mostly stuff that runs around or under 2500 fps..

Huh! What'd you say?

I'm very glad to hear I'm not alone here. On the other hand I do have excellent hearing (*ummmm, just don't ask my wife that question!) with very minimal hearing loss. I'm a huge fan of earplugs and use them religiously out shooting, motorcycle racing and riding, concerts and more.

I still have hearing above 14k hertz at 43 years old. I'm certainly hoping to keep as much of my hearing deep into more advanced ages,

Peace!

IHMSA deteriorated when it went from magnum revolvers to the bolt action "handguns " that used high velocity things like a 223. Nothing like squeezing of just when a 223 was fired -I missed every time .
The first experience hearing a revolver in 30 carbine was interesting .It seemed to go right through the muffs and brain. Same for hot 32-20 and 32 mag revolvers.

I found out some interesting things over the past few years, about the last 5 in fact.

If I am at a private range that does not have all the baffles and such, i do not notice the report that much and I do not use any hearing protection at all. Public ranges had me to a point where I had a severe flinch. That has corrected its self simply because I am not "Boxed" in with all that noise. I do have some minor hearing loss, but at almost 62 that is to be expected.

The other thing I have noticed and this applies to a lot of folks, is that recoil and report are almost non-existant when the shot is being made at hair, not paper.

quote:

The other thing I have noticed and this applies to a lot of folks, is that recoil and report are almost non-existant when the shot is being made at hair, not paper.

I've noticed that same thing myself. What I think happens is one is concentrating so haed on making the shot that all the sensed are geared to and the report and recoil just don't register.

On another note, back around 1973 I was living in Nevada and hiking up in some of those 8 to 9,000 foot high mountains with a heavy 9.5 pound bubba's 1903 Springfield was such fun I almost gave up hunting. Rather than do that I looked for a lighter weight rifle and found a Remington 660 in .308 Win. It was much light than the 03 and although at the time I considered the .308 to be a 30-06 wannabe, it looked like it would more than serve the purpose. Back then, the small town I lived in had no formal range, you just went out into the desert and shot over the hood of your vehicle.
Well with a couple of boxes 150 gr. loads I went out to sight in my new toy. I had a target set up at 25 yards to do the preliminary stuff and squeezed off that fist shot DAYUM! The mutha hicked like a pissed off mule. That damn gun actually hurt. I figured it was that butt ugly stock with no recoil pad so I went to my friendly gunsmith and had him put the barreled action into Bishop Mannlicher style stock. It did incease the weight some but I could now look at the rifle with some pride rather than gagging. Bak out to the desert to resight the gun in and dammit, it still kicked like one very pissed off mule. My birthday came up and the kids got me a set of those shooting muffs. They didn't feel all that comfortable but to humor them I said I'd try them.
I hit the desert again with "Angry Mule" as I was gonna whip that rifle one way of the other.
I settled down over the hood of the car and flinched like hell when the shot went off. Wait a minute. Where did that kick go? I setled down to try another shot and damned if the rifle wasn't actually pleasant to shoot. No heavy recoil. Well, that sight in session was a winner and over the years that rifle accounted for quite a few deer. I learned three things from that rifle. One, it was the muzzle blast that made it seem to kick so hard. Two, the .308 is a damn fine cartridge and three, the muzzle blast can be tamed a bit by a better choice of powder. By the time I got the muffs, I had been reloading for the round and I was using H335. Damned if I remember the load but it was very accurate in that gun. A friend and I were out giving the jack rabbits hell one day and it was right around nood so we were taking a break, having a sandwich and soda when my buddy said he wanted to try my rifle. Now this was in the middle of summer and I was off to the side when he shot. naturally it was louder than hell but what surprised me was the massive and extremely bright flash that came out the muzzle. This was as I said right around in August on a very bright Nevada day and that flash was way brighter than the sun. That's when I started looking for a different powder to use un the .308. I use H4895 these days with the 150 gr. bullet and accuracy is just as good and the report is lower pitched.
My thoughts on all this is maybe some guns don't kick as hard as we think, but the muzzle blast makes us think they do.
Paul B.

quote:

Originally posted by Heat:
All I can say is I react more to a "pop" then I do a "boom". I didn't know that until I first shot my 338-378 Wby with the muzzle brake. It certainly subdues the recoil but the "boom" from the pressure wave is more exciting then it is annoying.

I agree.

Hearing a magnum roar makes me smile. A "pew" popping blast from a 30-06 is irritating and seems to get to the nerves.