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Electronic Hearing Protection

FPrice

FPrice

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Midway has Caldwell Electronic Ear Muffs on sale this month for $29.99. Select USPS Priority Shipping and the NRA round-up and they are just $37. I ordered a pair and may get another before they are gone or off sale. Haven't been able to get to the range yet, but they seem to work around the house. Will be great for a spare pair or to take new people to the range for training.

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=142725
 
I pick up the LTC on Monday, then things really get interesting....
Click to expand...

Congratulations on getting the LTC. Lots of good toys out there to choose from. I strongly recommend a good pait of electronic ear muffs as some basic equipment. They allow you to have much more situational awareness on the range.
 
Shooting glasses?
Non-perscription plastic wrap-around glasses will be $10 available in store, just pick them up when you buy the trigger lock ($5-$10), and cleaning kit ($10). Oh, and gun ;-).

Congrats on the LTC. I remember from another thread that you're expecting an ALP LTC. Enjoy!
 
I just canceled the order and re-submitted with a pair of glasses for about $8.00. I could use my mountain bike glasses or ski goggles, but I'd probably scare people at the range my first time out....
 
Finally got out to the range (it was actually pretty good today other than the layer of ice on the ground) to try out my new electronic ear muffs. They work great and are very comfortable, even over my baseball cap. The openings in the ear pieces are large enough to not cramp my ears and the headband is comfortably padded.

They reduce the sound of my 4 1/4" S&W 1911 SC to a very manageable level but allow me to carry on a good conversation with other shooters. It takes about 2 seconds for the ambient sounds to "re-appear" after blocking out a shot. Hopefully later this week I'll try them with one of my rifles to see how they work on the rifle range.

I am going to get at least one more pair in order to have a spare for my use or as a loaner. For the price you can't beat them.
 
Peltor Tactical 6S and 7S

Does anybody have any experience with Peltor Tactical 6S and/or 7S?
I'm trying to choose a good pair of Electronic Earmuffs for use at the indoor range (shooting S&W Mod.41 22LR and SIG 220 45ACP) a couple times a week.

The mentioned above Caldwell Sound-Right ES-85 are very reasonably priced earmuffs, obviously, with some limitations. Peltor Tactical 6S and 7S, altho priced much higher, seem to be higher end products with better noise supression and faster responce time.

I'm a novice shooter with no experience using electronic earmuffs. Any input and advice will be greatly appreciated.

Peltor Tactical 6S:
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=103666

Peltor Tactical 7S:
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=541841

Jack
 
I tried a pair of Peltor Tac-6 ear muffs at my local store and they seemed pretty good although there was a little bit of a buzz inside the store. I think that they maybe a good buy; unfortunately my dealer sold out of them before I could get a pair.

Funny story time:

When my dealer was in his last location, about two years ago, he had a customer, a dentist, who used to come in with his receptionist. She must have had a crush on him because she bought him two or three high quality guns. He did the paperwork in his name but she paid.

What does this have to do with electronic ear muffs?

My dealer had recently suffered a break in in which he lost five guns. Since he was alone a lot of the time he kept a pair of electronic ear muffs close by for times when he was in the back room (to listen for furtive visitors). The last time these two were in, my dealer had to go in the back and he had his ear muffs on. This allowed him to hear her tell the dentist how much she wanted to leave right then, go park in back, and perform oral sex on him (in much more descriptive terms).

The ear muffs he was using?

Peltor Tac-6s.
 
Re: Peltor Tactical 6S and 7S

JackO said:
Does anybody have any experience with Peltor Tactical 6S and/or 7S?
I'm trying to choose a good pair of Electronic Earmuffs for use at the indoor range (shooting S&W Mod.41 22LR and SIG 220 45ACP) a couple times a week.

The mentioned above Caldwell Sound-Right ES-85 are very reasonably priced earmuffs, obviously, with some limitations. Peltor Tactical 6S and 7S, altho priced much higher, seem to be higher end products with better noise supression and faster responce time.

I'm a novice shooter with no experience using electronic earmuffs. Any input and advice will be greatly appreciated.

Peltor Tactical 6S:
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=103666

Peltor Tactical 7S:
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=541841

Jack
Click to expand...
I have the Peltor Tactical 6S muffs. When they worked, they worked real well. After a few months, one side quit working. I left them in the back seat of the car in the sun and the panel to access the battey compartment on each side won't snap in anymore. I have to send them back in for warranty repair.
I bought them from MidwayUsa for a good price with my C&R but if I were going to replace them, I'd look for something with a bit more quality.
When I get this set fixed, I'll pass them to my 13 yr old daughter and buy something else.
 
FPrice and JonJ, Thank you very much for a prompt response.
As I understand, Peltor 6S has very good mikes and allows to hear low level sound very well. If I may ask, how good is the muffing function of 6S? According to the technical data, model 6S has protection level NRR=19dB, and model 7S has NRR=24dB. Is 19dB enough if somebody next to you is shooting, let's say, magnum 357 or, even worst, magnum 44?

I'm looking right now at the Peltor 7S. They are still reasonable buy ($109 on sale), look a little sturdier than 6S (6S are foldable, 7S - not) and have higher protection level. I also looked at the Midway site for feedback from buyers, there are no negative responses for 7S, and some complaints for the reliability of 6S.

Again, I would really appreciate any advice.

Jack
 
The 6S with 19db was fine on the outdoor range with rifle and pistol but when at the indoor pistol range, the 24db would be better. I suggest foam plugs with the 6S for extra protection indoors.
 
I have the 7S and we bought a pair of the cheap mono headphones from Harbor Freight (just like the Caldwell mentioned here).

The 7S does a great job, no problems with it and I've used it in all the defensive handgun courses I've taken over the past 2 years with ~20 shooters on the line (almost all of us were shooting .45ACP).

Most indoor ranges, I'd be tempted to "double up" with plugs and muffs as the "reverb" off the walls/ceilings tends to really amplify the noise.
 
Just be aware that the 7S is almost impossible to wear while shooting rifle/shotgun. I think that the 6S may work with long arms, but I've never tried them.
 
LenS said:
Just be aware that the 7S is almost impossible to wear while shooting rifle/shotgun. I think that the 6S may work with long arms, but I've never tried them.
Click to expand...

I have the 6S and when I'm going to long guns, I just put in plugs. Any muffs are hard to get a good cheek weld with..but as the 6S are lower profile, it is somewhat easier.
 
Guys, now I'm completely confused :)
Did I get it right?
1. The 6S is more compact, foldable, cheaper, possibly may be used with long guns, but has only 19dB NRR, i.e. is good mostly for the outside shooting.
2. 7S is bulkier, more expensive, but higher end earmuffs with 24dB NRR with might be more appropriate for the indoor range use.

On the other hand, 6S can be used indoors in combination with earplugs. How convenient is this method? The only experience I have with the earplugs is I used a cheapo cylindrical (not conical) earplugs whyle shooting trap with shotgun. My recollection is those plugs didn't feel very comfortable in my ears.

My main use will be (at least this winter and spring) shooting .22LR and .45ACP indoors.

Any comments please?
 
Jack, sorry I didn't mean to confuse you. Just want to point out that no "one tool fits all" applies here.

I recommend the 7S unequivocally for pistol shooting! For rifle I'd probably go with just plugs (conical, 33dB rating) or custom plugs (see my comments on that about 2 weeks ago on the forum).

Plugs and electronic muffs are a good combo when you need it. Remember the noise isn't only what You are shooting. Put a few others with AR15s near you or S&W 500, Ruger 460, etc. and you might want more noise protection.

If the 6S had the same rating as the 7S, it would be the muffs of choice. BUT, to get that low profile they had to give up some hearing protection . . . there is no free lunch.
 
Len, thank you so much for all your help and advice.
Since I don't own any long guns and in the nearest future plan on buying a couple of pistols only, I would go for more noise protection of 7S.

Thanks again to you and all great people on this board. It's a wonderful place to get help, especially for novice folks like me. I really appreciate it.

Jack
 
Also Len, IIRC the 7S has one control while the 6S has a control on each ear. So, there's less of a chance of wearing out one ear or the either with the 7S. I didn't have a problem indoors at Braintree with my 6S, but then I don't think that somewhere like AFS they would work alone. I would need the ear plugs as well.

As for plugs, I like the conical ones, the ones that have little flaps that stick out so they almost look like a chirstmas tree. They seem to be more comfy and have better sound pretectino than the ones that you have to smuch and roll to get into your ears.
 
C-pher said:
I didn't have a problem indoors at Braintree with my 6S, but then I don't think that somewhere like AFS they would work alone. I would need the ear plugs as well.
Click to expand...

C-pher, you were reading my mind!

Well the guys from AFS and their engineer are paying a visit to BR&P today to see how our range is setup. I hope they get an appreciation for what sound-deadening foam can do for the indoor range! [wink]
 
LenS mentioned these: http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=46798

$20.00. [!]

I've use a pair for several years in bulls eye competition, as have a number of the folks on the team. They work well. I will sometimes also wear ear plugs under them for that extra bit of quiet, if I think I am going to have any trouble concentrating that night.

Well worth spending twenty bucks on!
 

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