Hunting with a suppressor

[sealgair]

I've been hunting deer and pigs with my TBAC 30P-1 starting this past season. Here are my observations:

1. Now that I'm not longer keeping my molded ear plugs at 'half @#)(#" so that I can actually get them in with minimal movement / time pre shot, my ears hurt less.

2. As with number one, I find I'm using my hearing more to actually hunt. Using all your senses at capability to hunt, what a concept!

2a. Guess what else you can hear really well when you suppress the sound of the gun shot, but still have your ears available? Your hits on the animal. I shoot only when I'm confident, but it's still very helpful to me to have the auditory feedback of my hits.

3. If you're planning to take shots offhand, get used to your gun feeling HEAVY.

4. Empirically, my groups have gotten better.

5. Practicing at the range when nobody else is there is far more pleasant. I don't get fatigued from all the blasts.

6. Still kinda loud when I screwed it onto my AR. Bolt guns see a much better effective NRR.

All summed together, I find I enjoy the hunt and the practice more, though the weight is nothing to sneeze at.

 

[RobG]

To me, it's sobering to know that even a single rifle shot can hammer your ears. Of course I wear ear protection when at the range, or even mow the lawn. I have some friends who put in ear plugs when hunting, just before they shoot. But fumbling with earplugs seems impractical when hunting dark timber, which is what I tend to do, and shooting time is often very short. Anyone have experience using ear protection in a hunting situation? What do you use?

A hearing store can set you up with some custom ones that are on a string you wear around your neck. You don't have to wait for them to expand like foam plugs. I put them loosely in my ears so I can still hear, then I just have to push them in when I see an animal.

Been using them for at least 15 years and can't say I really lost an opportunity because of them - it is just second nature to push them in when you see an animal and only takes a second. It is awesome not being dizzy with ringing ears after you shoot. Another friend walks around with a couple of small wads of napkin in his mouth and pushes them in when ready to shoot.

The one issue I found this year was hunting with my son - I'd be watching the animal through the binos, ready for him to shoot, and he'd ask me a question like "Should I shoot?" And I'd have to take out the plug to figure out what he was saying. Right after I put them back in he'd say something like "Now?" and I'd have to do it again . I bought a pair of $50 electronic muffs for when I go with him and they seem to work well. We can hear each other whisper. (He also wears a pair).

My hearing is mostly gone and it really sucks trying to understand people in social situations. I wish more people, especially TV stars , would promote hearing protection. It pains me to look into their ears as they are about to shoot. A big selling point when making suppressors legal in MT is they don't silence the sound so you can still tell if someone is poaching your land. There is still the sonic boom and I don't know how loud that is. Even the sound of a 22 is enough to damage hearing and that is probably how I lost most of mine.

 

[Curvebow]

I live in NYS, so I cannot ever find out how good a suppressor may or may not be as the Liberal Left b******* have them totally banned! I also am hearing impaired from hitting a sidewalk about 50 years or more ago that caused damage to the left ear cochlea.

Anyhow, for what its worth, I was watching the show, Pigman, last Friday. He missed a few deer using a suppressor and then they did a range session both with & without suppressor; as where he was hunting, the guy said that it made no difference in impact. Pigman bet him $100 that it did and collected! The gun was sighted in using the suppressor, then checked without it on and the impact had shifted a LOT! I don't remember the numbers, but it was a huge amount.

 

[devon deer]

I appreciate the idea is to protect your hearing, and that is for the most part why they are legal and easy to come by in the UK once the police give you the OK.
But, and i know it's of no use to you with a single deer/elk tag in your pocket, but when they are used to take out a deer in a herd, the remaining deer get a little confused, so a 2nd and even 3rd shot can be taken.
For those that have never used one, they do not perform like the ones you see in the movies!

There is a new member on here, a friend of mine, he is more qualified than i to comment on sound moderators, i am impressed with the model he uses, i just don't know what it is, i will ask him to supply some input.

Cheers

Richard

 

[hank4elk]

I still have very good hearing and I think the key is I have always used ear protection when practicable.
From TP & cotton balls in the service(which most didn't use or take up the practice) , to expanding foam & wax ,to ear muffs. I also go to the range when it is empty. I don't like distractions when I'm practicing.
I have never used them in the field hunting. My hearing is a tool I need hunting. Just like my vision and sense of smell. I would never fool with getting ear plugs in before a shot in the field. The possibility of my quarry seeing me moving around ,moving my hands, is too easy.
I never run a chain saw or any power tool in my shop without ear protection. If I'm cutting more than a couple boards with a skilsaw I wear ear protection.

 

[maxx]

The bill just made it through both the house and senate here in Iowa. The gov. should sign in April 1.

I am going to pick a 30 cal can and a 22 cal can up just for the fun of it. I am not sure if I will used it for hunting but it is another toy to play with and I would like to have one before I cant.

From what I have read for hunting it helps to keep it hearing safe but it isn't like the animals still cant hear it. Some guns suppress better than others.

You can youtube a few 300 blackouts shooting subsonic. The thing is really quite it then but not really effective gun for hunting.

 

[RobG]

I still have very good hearing and I think the key is I have always used ear protection when practicable.
From TP & cotton balls in the service(which most didn't use or take up the practice) , to expanding foam & wax ,to ear muffs. I also go to the range when it is empty. I don't like distractions when I'm practicing.
I have never used them in the field hunting. My hearing is a tool I need hunting. Just like my vision and sense of smell. I would never fool with getting ear plugs in before a shot in the field. The possibility of my quarry seeing me moving around ,moving my hands, is too easy.
I never run a chain saw or any power tool in my shop without ear protection. If I'm cutting more than a couple boards with a skilsaw I wear ear protection.

I'll be overly dickish for effect and say you are being bleepity bleep'n stupid. If you can't push them in without the animal seeing you then you are incompetent and shouldn't be allowed to disgrace the animal until your stalking skills are improved to at least adequate. I've been doing it for 15 years and also my son can put on his muffs 50 yards from an antelope in crested wheatgrass so it can be done, you just need a little less excuse making if not a bit more skill. [/being intentionally jerkish here ]

Also, your hearing is being damaged. You will never know it until it is too late so if hearing is important to your hunting then protect it.

 

[hank4elk]

I'll be overly dickish for effect and say you are being bleepity bleep'n stupid. If you can't push them in without the animal seeing you then you are incompetent and shouldn't be allowed to disgrace the animal until your stalking skills are improved to at least adequate. I've been doing it for 15 years and also my son can put on his muffs 50 yards from an antelope in crested wheatgrass so it can be done, you just need a little less excuse making if not a bit more skill. [/being intentionally jerkish here ]

Also, your hearing is being damaged. You will never know it until it is too late so if hearing is important to your hunting then protect it.

Thanks.
You are probably right.
I hear you.

 

[Big Ears]

Hi always shot with moderator and there are new ones around now which are so light you would not know they were on the barrel. I use a DPT mod. It attenuates my 6.5 by about 25-28dB so will save your ears. As Richard says often any other deer about don't know where the sound has come from so a second shot is on the cards.
Shooting these mods is not like the movies. There is a bang, and a high frequency crack as the bullet breaks the sound barrier. The bang is less though than without a mod. On top of this it reduces felt recoil and muzzle flip which allows you to stay on target better and see the bullet strike more often than not. I found that my grouping improved but this is not a given.
I would always now use my DPT mod if I could I just find it more pleasurable.

 

[Hunting Wife]

To me, it's sobering to know that even a single rifle shot can hammer your ears. Of course I wear ear protection when at the range, or even mow the lawn. I have some friends who put in ear plugs when hunting, just before they shoot. But fumbling with earplugs seems impractical when hunting dark timber, which is what I tend to do, and shooting time is often very short. Anyone have experience using ear protection in a hunting situation? What do you use?

I wear regular rubber earplugs all the time hunting upland and waterfowl. Not so much rifle hunting because there just isn't the same quantity of shooting and hearing is an important sense to have unencumbered during the hunt. Hunting Husband wears Etymotics and really likes them, so I've been contemplating getting a pair of those for all around hunting use. I have good hearing, and need to be able to hear relatively high pitched sounds (birds and such) for my job. Even so, suppressors just don't seem very practical. I just don't see the appeal. Maybe its a guy thing

 

[Kiwi]

Here in New Zealand they are used a lot. No paper work or permission required. I always use a suppressor primarily for ear protection but they improve accuracy too. The only down side is that my rifle is now a couple of inches longer but not really a problem unless hunting thick forest.

 

[Kneetopia]

To me, it's sobering to know that even a single rifle shot can hammer your ears. Of course I wear ear protection when at the range, or even mow the lawn. I have some friends who put in ear plugs when hunting, just before they shoot. But fumbling with earplugs seems impractical when hunting dark timber, which is what I tend to do, and shooting time is often very short. Anyone have experience using ear protection in a hunting situation? What do you use?

I've had best success with the band type ear protection. I found that having ear plugs that I had to dig out of my pocket, meant low probability of deployment. Ear muffs are impractical for elk hunting (especially dark timber ie. quick shots).

http://tinyurl.com/gnz4nsd

The bands go in my rifle case, so when I gear up in the morning, out comes the band and around my neck. Then all I need it one hand (see less movement if there are prying eyes) to get them in my ear holes.

It's not 100% but it's better than nothing. My hearing has already taken a beating from sirens and chainsaws.

 

[devon deer]

So you can now use a suppressor in Montana, when i apply for a temporary import permit as a visitor i have to apply to the ATF on a form 6.
No problems on my previous visits, i just put down the details of the rifle and ammo.
I took another look at the form today, there is no mention of suppressor, i have emailed them and await their reply.
I am thinking of bringing mine over in October.
What is the procedure for you guys to obtain one?
Cheers
Richard

 

[greentimber]

I've been using a couple Thunder Beast suppressors for the last couple years and just recently got my Ultra 7 out of ATF jail (paperwork wait). That Ultra 7 has to be the most awesome suppressor on the market right now. Just amazing. only 9.6 ounces and quieter than the previous-generation 9" Thunder Beast (30BA) I've been running. They are dangerous, though... When you finally get yours and feel how light it is (and you pick your jaw up off the floor) you'll immediately want another. I'm primarily running mine on a 22" 260 Rem right now. Filled my cow tag with it (the 30BA) last year. She never knew what happened. It basically turns a centerfire hunting rifle into a .22 rimfire as far as noise goes.

 

[COEngineer]

I noticed my tinnitus last year after taking a single shot to harvest a whitetail. The thousands of shots (22, 12 ga, 30-30, 30-06) I took before that caused most of the damage, but that shot was the one that 'broke the camel's back' and my ears have been ringing ever since. PLEASE, wear hearing protection or use a suppressor or both AND make your kids and hunting partners do likewise. My ears will ring 24/7 for the rest of my life - there is no cure - and I'm only in my 30's. Don't be like me.

 

[Ben Lamb]

You guys are doing it wrong. If you hunt like I do, you never have to worry about pulling the trigger.

Amateurs.

 

[dk17hmr]

I've been using a couple Thunder Beast suppressors for the last couple years and just recently got my Ultra 7 out of ATF jail (paperwork wait). That Ultra 7 has to be the most awesome suppressor on the market right now. Just amazing. only 9.6 ounces and quieter than the previous-generation 9" Thunder Beast (30BA) I've been running. They are dangerous, though... When you finally get yours and feel how light it is (and you pick your jaw up off the floor) you'll immediately want another. I'm primarily running mine on a 22" 260 Rem right now. Filled my cow tag with it (the 30BA) last year. She never knew what happened. It basically turns a centerfire hunting rifle into a .22 rimfire as far as noise goes.

Love my Ultra 7. I'll be using it this year on which ever rifle I decide to use on my antelope hunts, maybe my elk hunts also.

 

[mtmander]

I would have used a suppressor , if legal , a lot easier on the ears

 

[Caseknife]

There was an article recently about which states had the most firearm owners. They were basing this on BATF data from those owners with tax stamps ie: suppressor owners and automatic firearm owners. The feds have no record of other firearm purchases. That being said, I don't know if I really want the feds to be able to come into my house whenever they feel so inclined because I have a tax stamp. I may be wrong, but that is what is holding me back from getting a suppressor.

 

[sbhooper]

There was an article recently about which states had the most firearm owners. They were basing this on BATF data from those owners with tax stamps ie: suppressor owners and automatic firearm owners. The feds have no record of other firearm purchases. That being said, I don't know if I really want the feds to be able to come into my house whenever they feel so inclined because I have a tax stamp. I may be wrong, but that is what is holding me back from getting a suppressor.

This concern is not unfounded. That being said, I would sure like to have one to do my deer depredation work!