Silenced Gun?

[bill 112]

Would appreciate some opinions here from my Fellow sufferers.

Me and my brother were both left two rifles in my fathers will and we want to go target shooting with them.The gun I was left is a 0.22 calibre fully silenced rifle,I mean it's barely audible which suits me perfectly!We shot them today and of course I wore double protection making the gun literally as quiet as a mouse,the only thing I can hear is a click and that's it.But I still get slight ear pain from it?Is it a psychological thing or can this somehow damage your hearing?

I'm not a gun lover but would like to use this as it belonged to my father an it might be a fun hobby for me but I just don't want to risk anything.

 

[glynis]

Guns and the vibration can spike and worsen tinnitus so my advice would not to go shooting but it's got to be your choice and if your tinnitus got worse would you be able cope emotionally,mentally,physically and socially as well as sleep deprivation and holding down a job....lots of love glynis

 

[Sebastians]

Would appreciate some opinions here from my Fellow sufferers.

Me and my brother were both left two rifles in my fathers will and we want to go target shooting with them.The gun I was left is a 0.22 calibre fully silenced rifle,I mean it's barely audible which suits me perfectly!We shot them today and of course I wore double protection making the gun literally as quiet as a mouse,the only thing I can hear is a click and that's it.But I still get slight ear pain from it?Is it a psychological thing or can this somehow damage your hearing?

I'm not a gun lover but would like to use this as it belonged to my father an it might be a fun hobby for me but I just don't want to risk anything.

It's understandable that you hold dear something which belonged to your father, but it seems you already answered your own question at the end of your post.. I got my T from a gunshot by a colleague on my squad. It wasn't the noise per se that did me in, but the pressure wave bouncing off the wall in the cramped room we were in. Don't go anywhere near impulse sounds if you have H i'd say.

 

[bill 112]

Thanks for the responses guysBut believe me this gun isn't powerful at all and it's virtually silent!I mean there's a click and that's it,no major recoil or boom or anything like that.Honestly my fathers crossbow is louder to fire than this gun being completely honest.But a question I have is this,is there something I'm missing here?Is there like a mini sonic boom or something similar that can damage hearing?Its just so odd that even with all this hearing protection and a virtually silent gun that it could hurt my left ear?The sound of traffic is louder to me with hearing protection on but it doesn't cause me pain so how did the gun do it?

Either way I'm not going to fire it again,it's just too risky for me to do so which is a pity because I really wanted to use his old 0.22 in memory of him.He also had an air pressured steel pellet gun but I can't use that either as believe it or not it's actually way louder than the gun!

 

[bill 112]

Guns and the vibration can spike and worsen tinnitus so my advice would not to go shooting but it's got to be your choice and if your tinnitus got worse would you be able cope emotionally,mentally,physically and socially as well as sleep deprivation and holding down a job....lots of love glynis

I already can't cope with any of those thingsMy T and H just creeps up on me and gets worse even though I try and do the right things.....

 

[Aussie Lea]

@bill 112 are you sure you have H? Even thinking about shooting any kind of real gun should be impossible to you.

 

[glynis]

Hi @bill 112,
You have answered your own question with not coping with my above post.
I would keep your dad's rifle in a special place and treasure it always ......
Lots of love glynis

 

[bill 112]

@bill 112 are you sure you have H? Even thinking about shooting any kind of real gun should be impossible to you.

Ohh I'm certain believe me

Usually I would NEVER even consider it,NEVER!

But it was the fact that this gun is sooo silent that I thought"ok maybe this might be a hobby that I can enjoy"
The only reason I even contemplated it was purely down to how quiet this gun is,a dogs bark is X5 times louder.But still it just seems a risk not worth taking.I fired it 4 times without much issue but I'm hesitant to fire it again,I did get some ear pain but I can't see how something so quiet could?Can you see how this confuses me?

 

[Path Maker]

Polish the gun and display it? That would be honoring your dad, too. And taking care of YOU would honor him the BEST OF ALL. That's what he did when he held you for the first time and looked at you and raised his son and was good to him his whole life long. The gun is a nice memory and a thing he owned and passed to you. It's a symbol. He was the real thing and his love for you is still alive in you. He would want you to take care of yourself. I have a fishing rod from my father that he used when he was a boy, and which I used a bit when I was a little girl. It is now hanging where I can see it, but I don't use it anymore. It still has all its special meaning. Hugs to you!

 

[bill 112]

I even got my brother to decibel check it before I fired it,peaked at 75db.So if you add in my hearing protection that makes it like 45db reaching the ear making it impossible to do damage but yet it hurt a little?I don't know this whole H monster confuses the hell out of me.

 

[Path Maker]

Confusing to be sure! Hey - you'll always own the gun. So maybe lay low for a year or so till you get a better handle on the current t&h thing ...

 

[bill 112]

Confusing to be sure! Hey - you'll always own the gun. So maybe lay low for a year or so till you get a better handle on the current t&h thing ...

To be honest it's not worth the risk even though it's insanely quiet,my car is louder than this gun!But still I'm afraid there's something I'm not taking into account and in the long run I'll probably end up screwing myself up,I'll take the ear pain as a warning to back offBut thanks for all the help guys

 

[Foncky]

Even though it seems quiet, maybe the powerful acoustic waves or pressure it produces just next to your ear is the problem ? Sound is a tricky thing I guess.

You're right to back off

 

[linearb]

A silenced .22 is not something that I personally would be worried about; I've thought of buying one once I move to someplace where I can shoot in my back yard.

An unsilenced .22 is around 140db, which, as brief impulsive noise, is probably not that big a deal for many people with existing hearing problems.

On firearms forums which I read, I have communicated with a large number of shooting enthusiasts who have tinnitus, have continued to shoot large-bore weapons, and say that their tinnitus has not progressed over a period of years.

This is a very personal decision. I largely gave up shooting when my ears got worse, but if I was in a situation where it was easy to go plinking with a .22, I probably would.

 

[Telis]

Wtf!?!?! I would shoot it all you want!!! I have horrendous H and would definitely take a 75 db clicking sound that is reduced 30-40db with the use of ear protection, this is nothing!! Like you said, you can barely hear it. And you aren't using a jack hammer all day, how much vibration can you have transferred through your arm? Give me a break My light switches drive me nuts but I still turn on the lights in the house. In fact I play tennis as well, the ball hitting the racket is just as loud as your silenced gun. I posted about this a while back and everyone advised me to keep playing. I also run at times, the impact through body vibration is loud, definitely as loud as the gun vibration (plug your ears and try it).

Maybe I'm not smart playing tennis or even leaving my home, and yeah my H has gotten to retarded levels but where do you stop? What the hell are you gonna do? Never get in your car again because you don't want to shut the loud doors? Not shower? Not eat becasue food is noisy at times? Never walk outside if its a little windy? Never talk again maybe? If I avoided everything that hurt my ears, I wouldn't be able to move.

If you want to stay somewhat sane you have to do things (within reason) even if it makes the condition worse. I don't go out around groups and limit myself to a lot of things, but there is no way I can sit in dead silence all day for the rest of my life and rot away. Maybe this is wrong and I shouldn't be playing tennis, running, eating carots, walking my dog daily, but what the hell man, we arent dead yet so we gotta do something. Quality of life with H is low enough as is.

 

[linearb]

If I avoided everything that hurt my ears, I wouldn't be able to move

If I avoided everything that made my knees hurt I wouldn't be able to walk, and if I avoided everything that made my pelvic muscles hurt I couldn't have sex.

Bodies are inconvenient :-/

 

[JWS9891]

It's probably psychological. A .22lr has virtually no over pressure un-supressed. When it's suppressed the gases coming out of the muzzle are slowed to subsonic speeds so all the pressure (most of it) is trapped in the baffling in the suppressor. The supersonic crack of the bullet is the only thing you should hear if anything. They do make subsonic rounds which would make the only noise the cycling of the rifle or no sound at all if it's bolt action. I would say there is no risk in physical damage to your ears especially if you are shooting outdoors.

 

[Foncky]

An unsilenced .22 is around 140db, which, as brief impulsive noise, is probably not that big a deal for many people with existing hearing problems.

Please. A 140dB impulsive noise next to the ears is a big deal for many people with or without existing hearing problems.

 

[linearb]

Please. A 140dB impulsive noise next to the ears is a big deal for many people with or without existing hearing problems.

I didn't say the majority, and didn't suggest anyone try it. All I said was that I know a number of people with tinnitus who still shoot guns much bigger than a .22 without any worsening or problems, and therefore, there are "many" people who are able to tolerate a .22 with proper hearing protection.

If you don't want to shoot guns, then definitely don't