Fairly unscientific questions below.

Just wondering what latest thoughts are on noise effects of the various combinations of powder capacity and caliber. Eg changing calibres on the same case size. Eg 375 H&H to 458 Lott. Or a bottleneck like the 416wby vs the straighter walled 500a2? Or an increase case capacity for the same bullet.

Does a bigger 'boom' mean the biggest damage or are faster higher pressure cases harder on different frequencies of the ear? For example where would blackpowder bore guns rank alongside big bore centrefires for effects on hearing?

nice questions.

Some people say some of the faster magnums like say a 7mm or 300 are louder but I have to say not much is louder at my range then my 460 weatherby with muzzle break every one at the range is aware when that thing fires.

The Range officers often complained about the noise of my 505 Gibbs. However when they did some noise tests the 416 Rigby registered a higher dB level. The 505 Gibbs does have a very distinctive sound though, so perception is one thing. From my own experience I fired 3 shots with the 505 Gibbs (got 3 pigs in quick succession) without ear protection a while ago and it wasn't too bad. Some time later I fired the 416 Rigby for 1 shot (got 1 pig) with no ear protection, and I found that very uncomfortable (much sharper and it actually hurt my ears). So I think it relates more to pressure than anything else. Based on Quickload the Gibbs is loaded to 42000 psi, and the rigby to 48000 psi

My range officer only complains when I shoot to early in the morning and wake her up.

Noise is a function of expansion ratio, powder burning rate, bullet weight and barrel length.

The worst case scenerio is a cartridge like a .264 Winchester Magnum. loaded with a 100 grain bullet with a hefty charge of IMR 4831 and a 22" barrel.

At the other end of the spectrum is a .458 Winchester Magnum, loaded with a 510 grain bullet and a case full of IMR 3031, shot through a 26" barrel.

As a rule of thumb, cases with no shoulder or almost no shoulder, shot with heavy bullets make the least noise.

Xausa,

I'll take oyur word on the noise for straightwalled cartridges.

However, when shooting my 500 AccR last year some people came over from the clay-shotgun area of my range to see what was going on. Someone said they thought I was shooting Tannerite. Can't say, since I've never heard Tannerite explode.

But apparently the 500 sounded different to the folk a quarter mile away.

For myself, it's hard to compare because ALL rifles seem loud to me and I wear good hearing protection. Even more important, I probably block the explosion out of my mind as a way of taming recoil and big bores. So I really can't say what's louder. I just want good hearing protection and to preserve good hearing.

Range officers and other shooters complain about anything over 6mm.
I was once sighting a 375 in before a safari at my local range and an older gentleman came up to me and asked me what I was shooting. When I told him a 375, he remarked that he did not understand why anyone would need something over 6mm. I simply remarked that some of us shoot big game. He was unimpressed.

In my experience the faster calibers like a 300 Weatherby or 300 Win Mag hurt my ears more than my 500 Jeffery or my 375 Weatherby. Anything with a muzzle brake is twice as loud. A 338 RUM with a brake is just damaging.

My homegrown theory was a big bore/fast expansion ratio= more peak noise- a bigger boom so to speak which is why the big guns have that particular sound. A poorer expansion ratio (eg an overbore medium magnum) has less of a boom but the peak lasts longer while powder burns and therefore may bombard the ear more. Maybe total bollocks of course...

quote:

Originally posted by Magnum Hunter1:
Range officers and other shooters complain about anything over 6mm.
I was once sighting a 375 in before a safari at my local range and an older gentleman came up to me and asked me what I was shooting. When I told him a 375, he remarked that he did not understand why anyone would need something over 6mm. I simply remarked that some of us shoot big game. He was unimpressed.

Thank you! I will use that...

Just came back from checking my 500 Jeffery's sight in at the Cheyenne Mounting Shooting Complex. I had to do a little convincing to get them to let me shoot it there. It's been six months since I've taken it out a few things I kind of already knew but realized again

1. It's not as loud as a braked 308 WCF (one was a couple of stations down).

2. I must be getting punch drunk because the recoil was almost non-existent

3. It was dead on at 25 yards, 2 1/2" high at 100 yards and will put a bullet where the crosshairs are every time.

4. Talley QR mounts are amazing it hasn't changed zero a bit over the last several hundred rounds.

Hopefully I, and my 500 Jeffery see an elk next weekend, going up to our place near Guffey. Though my son gets first shot. Leaving for Japan the next week so only have Sat and Sunday to hunt.

Time spent hunting with a son is precious, at any age. And getting to do it with a 500Jeffrey and chasing elk, wow. Enjoy the weekend. Hope he gets a shot and treats the 500 like the tool that it is, it's a rifle.

Straight wall or not, my 2 bores and 4 bore are as loud as anything else I shoot. I guess 500 grains of powder does that.

quote:

Originally posted by bigdoggy2bore:
Straight wall or not, my 2 bores and 4 bore are as loud as anything else I shoot. I guess 500 grains of powder does that.

2 bore and 4 bore oh my. I guess I need to move my 500 Jeffery posts to the medium bore forum lol

nope, I have 2 500 Jefferys and both definatly still classify as big bores.Loaded to full potential, they can bust up anything on the planet. My light weght one has a 16 1/2" barrel and weighs in at 6.5 lbs plus a 13 oz. scope. It does not get to the full speed of a longer barrel, but still packs a whallop!