considering sound when shooting inside a house

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Good idea to put a pair of $50 Peltors on your nightstand next to your gun. Takes about 2 seconds to slip them on. Amplifies and dampens noises. Very handy.

I have fired a few guns or been around them without ear protection. It is horrible. And it distracts your focus and ability to think clearly IMO due to the pain.
 
It's not the most important thing that should be on your mind in a situation like that, but I will say this: Gunshots indoors are very loud. I know this from first-hand experience when I was present when a .38 was fired indoors and nobody was wearing any hearing protection (This guy had a ND at his desk). Combine this with narrow hallways or small rooms and the sound can be magnified by bouncing everywhere. Even worse, some of us have long guns dedicated to HD, which are considerably loud indoors.

Silencers are nice...But they are really not an option unless you are willing to invest in the cost of the tax stamp, the can itself and not to mention the time you're gonna have to wait to actually get it back...And then you gotta find the right ammo for it, because faster bullets will not really make that much of a difference indoors.
 
Do you think you'd risk extra liability if you used a suppressed weapon for defense?
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Who can say for certain? I can't see it being an asset to your self-defense claim, but it probably wouldn't be an issue in a clearcut case. Of course, not all cases are clear cut and you don't get to pick the circumstances of your situation.

The primary reasons I wouldn't choose to used a suppressed weapon for self-defense have to do with practical issues, not legal ones. They can affect function negatively, rifle suppressors get hot enough when fired to sear flesh after dumping a mag, and they generally increase the size of the firearm significantly which can negatively affect handling characteristics.
 
I keep an M1 carbine at the ready, I'm sure it would bark with great gusto indoors. Not like my AR though.
 
I worry that an overzealous lawyer could convince the jury that I was intent on doing some shootin' if I put my plugs in beforehand. I worry about this more for an outside the home shooting, but still, anything is possible in a jury situation I think.
 
If you explain that they allowed you to hear better while checking out a suspicious noise, that should answer the question nicely. For them to argue otherwise would be like saying you shouldn't have taken a flashlight with you because it was to help you aim better to shoot someone.

Outside the home, I can hardly imagine a situation where it would be possible or reasonable for someone to have hearing protection on hand or to use it. I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but it would be pretty improbable. Maybe if a person were to be caught up in a situation like the Charles Whitman shooting and happened to have hearing protection in the car... Kind of a stretch though.
 
You're probably right. but I wear mine (triple flange, on a string) around my neck a good bit throughout the day, I like to pop them in whenever a "loud" situation presents itself. Just kind of carry them over from work, so I could see myself popping them in if I had to shoot. You could be right though about not having time....
 
True. Also, When people are always talking about not using your reloads for legal reasons, how would they know? As long as all of your brass was the same brand...or am I missing something and about to feel really stupid when someone answers the question?
 
Its all about being the "gray man". The less that stands out or can be questioned, the better.
 
I think certain recent legal cases have shown that irregardless of how legal you are, everything can go sideways when it comes to the justice system.
I think I will stick with my pistol and a light and worry about the hearing loss after the fact.

I've often wondered if it would be possible to have a master light panel in the bedroom to activate all lights in the house with one flick of the switch. Illuminating the situation with a burglar in the house would probobly stop all but the most insane crimminals bent on violence.
 
I've often wondered if it would be possible to have a master light panel in the bedroom to activate all lights in the house with one flick of the switch. Illuminating the situation with a burglar in the house would probobly stop all but the most insane crimminals bent on violence.
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I don't know about illuminating the entire house, but it certainly would be advantageous to set things up so that the area you retreat to is dark while the rest of the house is lit. If they weren't discouraged by being lit up, it would backlight anyone coming at you while keeping you concealed in darkness.
 
I firmly believe that noise will end up being the younger generation's RJ Reynolds. We will look at hearing protection in 20 years in much the same way that we look at sunglasses and sunscreen now; we just have to armor up against our environment. Given all that, I have no problem keeping howard leight impact muffs by the bed, for reasons already mentioned by others. I'm pretty sure I could articulate a defense for them.

For that matter, if I may segue for a moment; God forbid that I should ever be in a theater shooting situation on opening night of a blockbuster. But if I ever was, I'd be GTG there as well, since I always wear foam shooting plugs to the theater. No, seriously: I once measured an army commercial at 101 DB before one of the iron man flicks, just to confirm what I've often suspected. Look it up; that's up into damage in 15 minutes territory.

Keep the muffs and the flashlight by the nightstand, along with the cell phone, piece and reload kit.
 
I mean to use the sound...

I keep a 357 as a "downstairs" gun for a couple reasons; my wife is more comfortable with a wheelgun, and if I do have to use it, I don't want my neighbors to (barely) hear "pop, pop, pop..." over the sound of their TV. I want them to hear "BLAM!!! BLAM!!! BLAM!!!" and get on the phone to 911, or in the case of the 2 LEOs on the street, to get the butts over here.... I know it's going to damage my hearing, but I'm willing to accept that.
 
The muzzle blast of a 357 is the main reason I wont carry one for any reason. I'd rather shoot a 44 with full power loads than a 357, but a 44 or 45 with medium level loads is much better yet. I prefer milder muzzle blast whenever I have a choice.

I dont seem to be blessed with that auditory exclusion that so many have. Whenever I've been in a situation that I shot without protection, I was instantly aware of intense pain and respond with a lot of bad words, which is very out of character for me. I use ear plugs for hunting, I won't take a shot without them again, done it too many ntimes, and have suffered serious hearing damage from it. If it's life or death on the instant, I would, but not if I have a choice. I carry foam ear plugs in my pocket at all times, for work, and whatever else may require them.
 
I want them to hear "BLAM!!! BLAM!!! BLAM!!!" and get on the phone to 911, or in the case of the 2 LEOs on the street, to get the butts over here...
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I wouldn't count on it. Houses are a lot more sound proof than you think. And people are a lot more oblivious than you think.

The Kaufman County DA shooting happened in a suburban neighborhood and authorities recovered "several shell casings from a .223-caliber rifle". One official was quoted as saying that "There are shell casings everywhere...", another one says that McClelland was shot "numerous times". That had to be at least as loud as a .357Mag. No one reported it although one neighbor thinks he might have heard some of the shots.

If you don't summon help, odds are you won't get any. Don't count on anyone reporting it for you.
 
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I appreciate all that, but in my case, I live in a condo complex on a riverbank, so my neighbors are a bit closer than in a large semi-rural suburb. Also, it gives me a larger than average "range fan" so I don't endanger my neighbors as much if I do have to fire. Almost directly across the street from me, 2 members of the local PD live side by side, next door neighbors, and the majority of the people in my neighborhood are either active duty, or retired military. If they hear what can be clearly identified as gunfire, I am confident they won't just turn the TV up and ignore it....
 
If you're that confident they can hear you, you might consider putting in an alarm system with a panic button. Then you could pick your self-defense gun based on how well you shoot it and for terminal effect as opposed to how much noise it makes.
 
I have layers of other security measures in place besides just a firearm, but the fact is, that the 357 is what my wife shoots best out of the handguns I have. And I use it for IDPA matches at my local club, so I am very comfortable with it too. Trust me, the person on the business end is going to have a lot more of an issue with the muzzle blast than I am....:D
 
The Kaufman County DA shooting happened in a suburban neighborhood and authorities recovered "several shell casings from a .223-caliber rifle". One official was quoted as saying that "There are shell casings everywhere...", another one says that McClelland was shot "numerous times". That had to be at least as loud as a .357Mag. No one reported it although one neighbor thinks he might have heard some of the shots.
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My neighbor 2 doors down shot herself with a .30-06. There's absolutely no question about how loud those are. It was in the summer, all windows open, and I never heard the shot. The sound of the radio through an open door of a squad car woke me up to the flashing lights.
 
Posted by freyasman: Trust me, the person on the business end is going to have a lot more of an issue with the muzzle blast than I am...
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Do you have a factual basis for that assertion, or are you referring to the effects of bullet wounds on that person?
 
9mmepiphany said:
Extra cartridges left in the gun, bullets, powder, primer, markings on the case...
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All my markings on the case would be the same. Duh, I did forget, you'll still most likely have ammo left in your gun..but still, they would check bullet and powder..? I didn't figure they would.
 
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