What are the absolutely maximum strength shooting muff ear protectors - I mean industrial strength ground zero ear protectors.

You have to pay through the nose to get 'em, but they're called Gemtechs. [:)]

Where do you get them?

I'm looking for shooting ear muff protection, not silencers.

I use the EAR TaperFit2 ear plugs - large size (for my big ears).  They've got about the best NRR I've found at 32.  I buy 'em by the case at an industrial safety supply house, but I probably go through 1-2 pairs daily.  They're better than any muffs I've seen.

ARben is right.  

My advice if you don't want to use a silencer is to try a pair of $1 generic foam earplugs - -29 NRR or so.  If you need more sound protection (308 full auto shorty with hot loads and a muzzle brake??) you can always clamp a pair of muffs on top.  

For hunting, try the valve type earplugs that allow normal hearing but close to protect your eardrums when necessary.  About $10.  

?? Valve type ear plugs?? WTF, never heard of them; tell me more.

There is a pair of muffs rated at 31NRR.They are in the northern hydr. catalog.Plugs are not a total replacement for muffs.The bone in your upper jaw transmits sound to your ear.

The custom molded jobs.  Frequently at gun shows some one will be making them.  Kind of pricey at $40 or $50, but bar none the most comfortable.  You can wear them all day with zero discomfort, and can double muff with "headphone" type.

For lots of dough you can order them made with "Hunter's ears" or some such.  Basically noise clipping hearing aids.

[URL]http://www.silencio.com/plugs.html[/URL] - Silencio's name for this type of plug is 'Super Sound Baffler'  Due to the way that NRR is calculated, these plugs score artificially low on the NRR scales - typically about 6 or 7.  But when a gun or other loud noise goes off, the sound impulse forces the valves inside the plugs closed and you get very effective hearing protection.  During the rest of the time when you're wearing plugs, there are no loud noises and therefore there's little or no reduction in your ability to hear sounds.

Thanks.

I have an old set of Lee Sonic earplugs that I think are pretty much the same as the Silencio valve type earplugs.  I haven’t used them in 20 years, but my recollection is that they weren’t especially effective.  They might be a good way to go in a hunting or tactical situation where being able to hear is important and you’re probably not going to be firing a lot of rounds.

Keep in mind that really effective earmuff type protectors tend to be quite bulbous.  This is fine for someone in an industrial situation or when shooting a handgun, but when mounting a long gun the protectors can get in the way of the stock.

I typically just double up with earmuffs and foam earplugs.  The foam earplugs really help if you inadvertently break the earmuff seal with the rifle stock.

ALL AROUND COOL STUFF:  try SWATears from Lightfighter.  $500+

Much less expensive but still very cool:  Peltor ComTac.  $350

My favorite ear protectors are a womans thighs...[:D]

I also agree with 199. If you are really concerned about your hearing you should be wearing double hearing protection (both earplugs and earmuffs). I always wear both.

Take a look at Peltor Tac-7s.  Electronic muff-style hearing protector amplifies quiet sounds (like footsteps behind you) but cuts off when there is a noise that will harm your ears.  Sometimes I put in a pair of cheap foam plugs also if I'm going to be doing a lot of loud shooting.  The Pro Ears series does the same type of thing, but instead of cutting off loud noises, it "compresses" them, so if there is a lot of shooting they aren't "off" a lot, and you can still hear the footsteps durin the fire fight.  Also cost more than the Peltor.      

I used to have a set of cheap Silencio electronic earmuffs.  Each time a round is fired they shut down completely, then slowly come back on.  I found them very disorienting – they actually made me dizzy.

I now have a set of Pro-Ears like GLOCKshooter mentions, which are infinitely better.  However, they still have a couple of problems.  

They have a microphone built into each muff – put the muffs on one way and the microphones face forward, reverse them and they face to the rear.  Sounds are much louder with the microphones facing toward them than away from them.

With electronic muffs, you lose your natural ability to select and ignore certain sounds.  

For example, the sound of an exhaust fan at a range may drown out spoken words that you normally could hear with no muffs on.  

Also the electronics actually change the nature of the sounds, making it harder to identify the sound (essentially the sound has been processed, making it somewhat unnatural sounding).  It’s also harder to pinpoint the exact direction the sound is coming from.

Electronic earmuffs are great, but they’re a long way from giving you sounds like you hear with no muffs at all.

Confederate:  Question – what noise reduction rating would you give to Rosy’s thighs?

I used to use these as 'back-up' for when I forgot to put my muffs on or when a buddy couldn't wait more'n 2 secs. after hollering 'Got yer eras on?' before dropping the hammer on 'is .454 or whatever other 'cannon' he was shooting...

ONE TIME while shooting a dead stock 20" AR I forgot the muffs and the Sonics apparently failed as I got nailed really bad... learned quite a lot from that experience after getting the sheeet scared outta me thinking I'd lost 50% of the hearing in one ear... most came back with the right kind of follow-up... got lucky...

REAL plugs and muffs... the best way to go...

OCTJMO, ICBW...

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