Ear-plugs

[rogdeb]

I use custom made ones.

My hearing loss allowed me to get them through my medical plan - $60.00 and worth every dollar.

 

[SmokeWagon]

Batten down the ear hatches! MAX, noise reduction 33 decibels- Howard Leight hearing protection. Get the big box.

 

[Geezer]

I wear the Howard Leight soft foam ones. I buy them in a big box, I think it has 500 pairs. Don't get the ones with the cord, it adds to the price and the cord whistles in the wind. The ones I have right now are red, white, and blue. I use them when I'm shooting or using power tools as well.

 

[markjenn]

I've tried six or eight different disposable brands/types (including some of the new technology ones with hard cores) and my favorites are Howard Leight MAX-1 33-db reduction ones. Orange in color. They're a nice tapered shape with a blunt end that is easy on one's ear canal and a large other end which makes them much easier to get out. A box of 200 indivdually wrapped pairs is about $25 at my local safety supply store. As someone else said, I wouldn't bother with the corded types.

Another thing I like about the HL Orange ones is that they hold up pretty well to a few wearings - I can get 10-15 good cycles out of a set if I keep them reasonably clean. (I use a pillbox velcro'ed to my top clamp as a earplug holder.) Many other brands are toast after one or two wearings. And while all earplugs deteriorate if you get them wet, the HL's deteriorate less.

I started wearing earplugs consistently about ten years ago. But the 25 years of non-use (and a few years flying light airplanes without proper hearing protection) are evidenced by the 747 that is constantly taxiing around in my head. If you don't want this everyday companion in your life, I suggest you use them from the very beginning. And they make riding all-together more enjoyable and much less fatiguing.

- Mark

 

[RonC]

I use the cylindrical foam plugs. I buy mine in bulk. They come as 200 individually wrapped pairs in a box for a bit over $20 from an industrial safety supply house.

I find them to be indispensable. Riding with a full face helmet on, at 65 mph, can damage your hearing permanently in an hour or 2.

Ron

 

[odot]

I always thought it was funny when I got off the harley and I couldn't hear anything....took a few hours for my hearing to come back. All it meant to me was that I was riding.....really riding....putting miles on. Now-a-days, if I go on a road trip, ear plugs are on my list and they stay in my coat pocket when I am not riding. Haven't really had a problem with the feejer as I ride with the windscreen full up. But, when I do make my first road trip with the feejer(which should be coming up this year), I will bring ear plugs.

Hard to order a quarter pounder with cheese when you can't hear what you are saying. What do the french call a quarter pounder with cheese?

 

[madmike2]

I have had 2 sets of custom moulded earplugs. For me, they do not block as much sound (attenuation) as the foam plugs.

As markjenn said, I get 10-15 uses out of them. It does matter how you put them in, but it's better demonstrated than explained. If you go to a gun shop/shooting range, they can show you how to put them in. Or if you are in an industry that requires them for their workers, the safety person should be able to demonstrate.

I already suffer from tinitis (ear ringing). IIRC, one of the magazines (Motorcycle Consumer News?) quoted a British sound test, using many different styles and brands of helmets @ 80 mph=105 Dbs. In other words, after 1 hour, ear damage. I always wear earplugs. I'll have granchildren someday and I'd like to be able to hear them.

 

[Dickf]

Some foam ear plugs work better than others. Drugstore bought plugs disappointed me because the cord pulled out. The best ones I found were Howard Leight. Bought a whole box of them over the internet for not too much. Box of plugs will last longer than I will.

Dick

 

[motorgod]

I've been using a set of Shure e2c's for a couple of years now, with great success.  I got a new set off the 'net for $63 a few weeks ago, and they now come with some additional soft rubber sleeves that work really well for me - great sound isolation, day-long comfort, and good sound quality.  I use them even when I'm not listening to music and/or the V-1.

Another vote for the Shure E2C....Don't even know you have them on and the sound is great. If I'm not listening to music and going for a short ride, then I use the HEAROS brand of foam ear plugs.

 

[MCRIDER007]

I've tried six or eight different disposable brands/types (including some of the new technology ones with hard cores) and my favorites are Howard Leight MAX-1 33-db reduction ones.  Orange in color. 

Same ones that I use, they cost $24 for a box of 200 and I have gone through 3 boxes of them -- but that includes a couple of hundred earplugs I have given to my riding partners. Sometimes its hard to get someone to try earplugs but once they do they want to keep wearing them.

The first thing that goes because of hearing damage is the ability to hear sounds in the 5-8,000 db range, which is the normal range of the human voice.

 

[C&C]

I'm using Soft Fit by Northern Safety Co. The are foam, red and have a NRR of 29. Like most, you roll the foam between your finger to compress the foam, insert into the ear canal and hold till the foam expands. These are very comfortable and quiet. Like others, I'm trying to eliminate any further ear nerve damage previously acquired in my earlier destructive years. Whichever type you decide, just use something.

 

[Tim05fjr]

I use Moldex bullets. They are made of a soft rubber and fit very well.

You can find the for about $1 a pair and thay last a long time.

Each pair come with their own little case. Another nice thing about then is that they are hollow all the way through so I can pop the end cap off and cut a hole in the tip, then fit them to my Koss ear buds.

This set up has worked well for me.

Tim

 

[JimLor]

I "usually" use my Er6i's and iPod. I use the silicone flanged plugs on the Er6i's - hear the music great and can still hear "some" outside noises. The Er6i's also come with foam type plugs you can use. Those are too quiet - almost like a sensory depravation exercise! To be honest, if I'm not using my iPod I normally don't wear any earplugs - although sometimes I do use the yellow foam plugs. I still have good hearing after 26 years in the artillery (slight loss in left ear) and I'm not sure that the wind noise generated on the bike is that much cause for concern. Guess I'm more used to louder shorter duration noise situations and not that educated on sustained lower level noise effects. One thing is for sure, I've been wrong before and I'll be wrong again!

 

[Yambone]

+33 on Howard Leight Max. 200 pair for $23

Working in and around aircraft, I've used the foam cylinder type a lot--the Howard Leights are a magnitude better. The HL material is smoother, less coarse than the cylinder type. They are more comfortable for all day use and easier to properly install. You get more cycles out of them, as MarkJenn mentioned. HL also makes a softer version for shooting, but they are much tougher to get a good seal, a little too squishy for quick insertion.

Looking at the ER-6i for when I want tunes/detector alert. The Sony Funtopias are not cutting it.

 

[FJRocket]

Etymotic ER-6is... work great at reducing road/wind noise, and are awesome for listening to audio (XM radio, V1 radar alerts, GPS navigation directions).

+1

I always have the Etymotics and a couple spare pair of foamy plugs for "quiet time". I already have tinnitus and hearing loss. No need to make it worse.

Those ER-6i's are still going strong. Have to turn the volumn way down. Specially since I finally started wearing a helmet. The wind noise is horrible in those things, but the Etymotics cut it WAY down, even without the music turned on.

 

[TWILKIN650]

I purchased custom fitted ear molds from an audiologist, and I get a lot of air seeping past the joint between them and my ear canal. I've heard some suggestions about using a water soluble lubricant on the molds while fitting them, but haven't tried that yet in an effort to reduce wind noise.

I've only tried 6-7 brands of disposables; the usual ones found in the drug stores, and a few my company buys for safety purposes. They are now (and therefor I am!) using one that I really like in comparison to any of the previous brands. This one is manufactured by Bacou-Dalloz for Petragon, Inc, Edwardsville, KS 66111 and is called "the Safety Director, Comfort Fit NRR32, and indicates that it has a noise reduction ratio of 32DB. This model is not tied together with a plastic cord, and is relatively small and tapered in shape, bright orange in color. We buy them by the box of 200, so price is probably pretty good. Very comfortable for me, but I guess this might vary from person to person. VERY quiet for me, too, no wind noise at all, and when fit in my ear, don't back out as some other brands do.

Any feedback if lubricants are necessary or desirable from those of you who use custom molded rubber or vinyl ear plugs?

 

[RonC]

With the disposables, you really have to test for yourself how well they work. For me, the tapered ones don't fill my ear canal. The cylindrical plugs do. So it is a good idea to buy a few of each type and try them.

I don't recommend the plugs that are tied together with a band. I found that they pulled out when I put on my helmet.

The trick is to use your hand opposite the ear you are putting the plug in; pull your ear lobe down and back while inserting the plug; hold the ear open as the plug expands, then release your ear. It only takes a few moments, but it works.

Ron

 

[bikemonster]

I purchased custom fitted ear molds from an audiologist, and I get a lot of air seeping past the joint between them and my ear canal. I've heard some suggestions about using a water soluble lubricant on the molds while fitting them, but haven't tried that yet in an effort to reduce wind noise.
I've only tried 6-7 brands of disposables; the usual ones found in the drug stores, and a few my company buys for safety purposes. They are now (and therefor I am!) using one that I really like in comparison to any of the previous brands. This one is manufactured by Bacou-Dalloz for Petragon, Inc, Edwardsville, KS 66111 and is called "the Safety Director, Comfort Fit NRR32, and indicates that it has a noise reduction ratio of 32DB. This model is not tied together with a plastic cord, and is relatively small and tapered in shape, bright orange in color. We buy them by the box of 200, so price is probably pretty good. Very comfortable for me, but I guess this might vary from person to person. VERY quiet for me, too, no wind noise at all, and when fit in my ear, don't back out as some other brands do.

Any feedback if lubricants are necessary or desirable from those of you who use custom molded rubber or vinyl ear plugs?

Used liquid KY lubricant on some custom molded ear plugs. Comfort was way up (hard to resist placing a pun here). Talked to the rep from the ear plug place and they reccommended using hand lotion. Seemed to work as well with less mess.

 

[MCRIDER007]

The trick is to use your hand opposite the ear you are putting the plug in; pull your ear lobe down and back while inserting the plug; hold the ear open as the plug expands, then release your ear. It only takes a few moments, but it works.

If that doesn't work, try using the other hand over the head to lift the top of the ear and open the ear canal. That's the way I was taught to do it in flight school and the only way I can get a good fit.

 

[JimLor]

+1 - sometimes helps to lube the earplug with a little bit of spit - your own if you have it!