2023 HUNTING GUIDE
HEAR ING From Page 1 0
and adds some weight there, too — the suppressor may be farther than most people are willing to go to protect their hearing. But Amman said anything that will help stop the ringing, or keep it from getting worse, is worth it to him. He’s only shot it a few times so far but has managed to hit a few birds. It’s not a perfect solution, “but maybe someone will see there’s a need and come up with a better option for shotguns,” he said. “They are pretty common for rifles but not shotguns.” Amman has even sought out subsonic shotgun shells, nontoxic steel-shot loads that travel at less than 1,200 feet per second and make less noise than faster loads. “I figure anything I can do to help, I should,’’ Amman said. “I have friends my age or even older who shoot more than me and haven’t had any major problems yet. But I do, so let’s see what works.” Amman said he hopes more manufacturers will work to produce more hunting-friendly suppressors that can be used for shotguns in the field as well as more subsonic shotgun loads. And he’s hoping more people use hearing protection to avoid the problems he’s had. “If only I had known, and I should have, I would have done something sooner,’’ he noted.
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RARE MODERN MULTI-USE ACREAGE FOR SALE
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
a loud burst of sound, causing a concussive energy that rattles the eardrum, the little bones in the inner ear and the cochlea, a fluid-filled, snailshaped organ with thousands of tiny hairlike structures that convert sounds from the outside world into electrical impulses the brain can understand. All it takes is a single blast to cause permanent damage, experts say, and years of prolonged, unprotected shooting in the field are almost certain to cause hearing loss. Even brief exposure to noise greater than 140 decibels can permanently damage hearing, and almost all firearms are louder than that. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders says hearing damage occurs with noises of 85 decibels or louder. Higher-caliber guns produce a louder sound than their smallcaliber cousins, but any shot fired next to an unprotected ear can be damaging. Even the crack from a small .22-caliber rifle can produce noise around 140 decibels while big-bore rifles and shotguns can produce sounds over 175 decibels. A little
.410 bore shotgun can hit 150 decibels while a 12-gauge can top 156 decibels. The combination of steps Amman is taking could reduce his exposure from roughly 160 decibels or more down below 100 decibels, a considerable reduction although still far from perfect. Statistics show that people who use firearms are more likely to develop hearing loss than those who do not. Firearm users tend to have high-frequency permanent hearing loss, which means that they may have trouble hearing speech sounds like “s,” “th” or “v” and other high-pitched sounds. Another common malady for shooters is tinnitus, or ringing of the ear, and some shooters get it so bad they have to quit hunting or target shooting. As in Amman’s case, the left ear (in righthanded shooters) often suffers more damage than the right ear because it is closer to, and more directly in line with, the muzzle of the firearm. The right ear is partially facing away from the shot and protected by the head’s “sound shadow.”
31.17 acres currently zoned as Ag / Residential / Kennel. Located 3.25 miles west of Mitchell, SD on a paved highway. Presently used for AKC Labrador retriever breeding facility, with brome and alfalfa hay ground.
CONTACT DOUG ALTMAN AT 40468 254TH ST., MITCHELL, SD 57301 PHONE: (605) 999-7149 EMAIL: labguy14@gmail.com WEBSITE: www.southdakotayellowlabs.com
