What is your “Loudest” Gun?

[Jessesky]

Hmmm.... my 20" 30-06 with muzzle brake probably takes the cake, though my ported snubby 41 Mag is plenty noisy. When shooting the 06, I've had people come up and ask what kind of monster magnum I'm shooting.

I normally shoot with 33 dB muffs, which handle that pretty well.

At one time, there was gal who did armorer work for government agencies in SLC who did her testing at our range. One day, she was checking out a 50 BMG rifle with a muzzle brake. The blast would flip rebar framed brass catchers two benches away. That was impressive.

The way the dB scale works, a change of 10 dB is 10X the power. A 155 dB sound is 10X more powerful than a 145 dB sound.

That’s part of why I was suggesting loudest without Muzzle Loudeners, *cough cough* I mean muzzle brake. They can make the smallest of cartridges deafening.

 

[George P]

Interesting choices from everyone, If possible I always like to use ear pro, even when hunting I like electronic ears.

There are a few guns I’ve thought about for Personal Defense use, and there’s simply no way I could recommend it after firing.

That would be the Kimber k6s which is a 2” 357. The performance isn’t that good anyway out of the short barrel.

I spent a day with a buddy on a quail plantation; I wore my electronic hearing protection and my shooting glasses like I would for sporting clays. The guide and my buddy wore neither. We harvested about 80 quail with about a 80% success rate on birds flushed and shot at. That's a lot of close shots that can damage hearing. I have had the misfortune of having someone sit next to me at a covered rifle range with a 338 and muzzle break. The concussive force was such, I got up and moved to the back wall until he was done.
So, there is NO way I would ever buy or shoot a ported handgun.

 

[Jessesky]

I spent a day with a buddy on a quail plantation; I wore my electronic hearing protection and my shooting glasses like I would for sporting clays. The guide and my buddy wore neither. We harvested about 80 quail with about a 80% success rate on birds flushed and shot at. That's a lot of close shots that can damage hearing. I have had the misfortune of having someone sit next to me at a covered rifle range with a 338 and muzzle break. The concussive force was such, I got up and moved to the back wall until he was done.
So, there is NO way I would ever buy or shoot a ported handgun.

Yeah, I know plenty of people who don’t recommend electronic ears for hunting. I shoot sporting clays with them all the time for hours and I can hear EVERYTHING while wearing them, and after because I get to keep my hearing. so I’m with you

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

My wife pretty much expects to hear gunfire anytime I am home. The only ones she has commented on as being unusually loud are my 45-70 Guide Gun and my recently assembled AR in 450BM which has a linear compensator.

 

[Jessesky]

My wife pretty much expects to hear gunfire anytime I am home. The only ones she has commented on as being unusually loud are my 45-70 Guide Gun and my recently assembled AR in 450BM which has a linear compensator.

I’m surprised, I have a linear comp and I think it’s very effective on my 5.56. And on my 45-70, it’s definitely one of the deepest sounding gun I have, but not as painful since the pressure is lower I suspect.

 

[Sovblocgunfan]

I had an M44 that I shot without ears. Once. The ringing never went away, and that was about 10 years ago.

 

[Bama59]

S&W M65 .357

 

[Jeb Stuart]

I know the feeling of how the body reacts to a horrific noise. I shot Howitzers in the Army. The noise makes you want to crawl out of your skin. Probably why I have no interest in a 357. Hearing is bad enough as it is.

 

[Zerodefect]

Pistol AR with a comp. 5.56.

.300blk is actually a lot quieter.

 

[Jessesky]

Pistol AR with a comp. 5.56.

.300blk is actually a lot quieter.

I suppose it’s because it’s better at burning powder in a shorter barrel length

 

[Zerodefect]

Yep. .300blk is pistol powder IIRC.

 

[redneck]

Most painful for me was the first time I shot my heritage rough rider in .22mag. I just wanted to put a cylinder through it to make sure it worked, didn't take earmuffs out with me. It made my ears ring and my eyes water so bad, I unloaded it and went back to the house. I think the combination of .22mag in a short barrel, along with it being a rather sloppily made revolver made it a very bad choice to shoot with no protection.

I've been told my 12 gauge mossberg 500 slug gun sounds like a cannon, but it hasn't ever bothered me that much shooting outdoors in a hunting situation.

It has a brake on it,but my Ruger ranch rifle in .450 bushmaster is what prompted me to buy electronic muffs.One shot from it without earmuffs left my ears ringing for 10 minutes and had me scared it wasn't going to go away. I haven't been hunting without them since and in addition to being able to hear, they keep my ears warm. Wish I'd done it years ago.

 

[Legionnaire]

I don't still own it, but the loudest gun I ever shot without ear protection was a 15-inch Contender in .35 Remington with a muzzle break. It was at least 20 years ago. I took a shot at a deer on Saturday morning; it hurt and my ears were still ringing late in the day on Sunday. The next day (Monday), I ordered my first set of electronic ear muffs to wear while hunting.

My doc (and my wife) say(s) I still have excellent hearing. I am surprised and grateful that that one shot does not seem to have done permanent damage. But I was worried when 30 hours later my ears were still ringing.

 

[Englishmn]

Loudest is kinda subjective. The worst on noise is a tossup of the 4” .357s with nuclear loads, and the 7.5” AR in 223 that I built. The .357s produced instant ringing and muffled sounds. The AR came after I started wearing ear-pro but I forgot to put it on a time or two before the first shot. Ear-pro does no good hanging loosely around the neck.

Anybody ever touched off a magnum revolver inside of a vehicle? There is no description.

Magnum revolver in the closet is fairly loud.

 

[Steel Hayes]

Is that a WW2 Lahti?

Yes, 1939 #3398

 

[Legionnaire]

Yes, close second would be a four-inch .44 magnum with a ported barrel. My brother and I shot it on the indoor NRA range in Fairfax, VA, and the range officers came over to see what was making all the noise. We were, of course, wearing hearing protection.

 

[Mn Fats]

30 carbine Ruger Blackhawk. Shot one with no plugs and my ears have been ringing for about 12 years.

 

[foxmeadow]

Handguns, 2.5" S&W model 66 with full house loads, indoor range. Got a lecture....
Rifles, Mini14 with homemade brake that was too effective; it actually pulled the muzzle forward and down. Shot it once without hearing protection, at a jackrabbit. Gave self a lecture...

 

[375supermag]

Hi...
Loudest rifle seems to be my Savage 7mm Magnum... I always wear electronic muffs when I shoot it at the range. I have noticed other shooters stop and look when I fire it.
My loudest handgun to be is my single action .22LR... I would never shoot it at rht range without muffs.
My various .357Mag handguns must be fairly loud. When the range is crowded, I usually shoot some of my near book maximum 125gr Hornady XTP reloads. That usually reminds some of the shooters that they forgot an important appointment

 

[Alte Schule]

A tie between my .22 WMR PMR 30 and my 3" SP 101 in .327 Federal Magnum.

 

[Riomouse911]

The .300 Weatherby, ported guide gun .45/70 and 14.5” BCM with a pinned Vortex flash hider seem to battle for noise supremacy around my house...

My handguns, even the SRH in .454 seem downright pleasant compared to these thunder sticks...

Stay safe!

 

[Jeff Burgess]

My Bushmaster with a mini Y comp on it. Don’t bother me but others at the range usually ask if they can move to another spot. Guns are LOUD get over it

 

[ilgac]

Probably my .30 Carbine Blackhawk.

 

[Oldschool shooter]

I used to have a Savage Styker bolt action pistol in .300WSM. Foam earplugs and shooting muffs, still hurt my ears every time I pulled the trigger. One of the few guns I've sold and do not miss.

 

[Demi-human]

.. to battle for noise supremacy around my house...

Whew! It is not just me that does that!

We have a neighbor that used to like to dump a magazine from his communist model when ever he hears us out shooting, usually with a Twenty Two as they are the most fun.
On one occasion there were about eight or ten of us men out for a shoot. We started just plinking with pistols, when the neighbor needed to show us how cool he is. (why he can't just come over and visit I don't know...)

After that was the longest volley of machine gun-esque shooting I've yet witnessed. There wasn't a break of more than ten seconds for at least twenty minutes! Ending with Desert Eagles and Thirty Aught Sixes! There was twenty three ARs...

The brass bucket overflowing, we still left with ammunition!

Ahh, what a fun memory! Thanks for that, Rio!