Ear Plugs

[dt]

Anyone use ear plugs?

I just read a couple articles about ear plugs; thought that they were mostly for the engine noise. Apparently, though, they’re just as important for wind noise, and it’s the wind noise that causes the hearing damage over the long hauls. Interesting!

Further, the article suggests that cutting wind noise reduces overall fatigue on long trips. Also, interesting!

http://motorcycle-intelligence.com/ear-plugs-motorcycle/30/

I have a full-face helmet with the flip up front. It seems to create a lot of wind noise. Think I’ll pick some ear plugs up at Cycle Gear and see how they work.

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[mrbones]

I've never used them. My Sportster is louder than the wind so I really should on that bike. I think wind noise has a lot to do with the type of helmet and if a wind screen is used and where it's located. Too much wind buffeting drives me nuts so I tend to use shorter shields for more clean air on the helmet with less noise.

[flapug]

Never gave much thought to wearing ear plugs. Reconsidering that now. Just signed up to get these, will use shooting plugs till they get here.
 http://www.aearoweb.com/sites/pistonz/request_sample.aspx

[dt]

I’ve never even thought of ear plugs before (you should hear some of my dirt bikes), but someone brought it up on another forum that got me researching. Here’s another article on the topic:

http://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/streetsurvival/0710_crup_motorcycle_hearing_protection/index.html

In terms of decibels, here are some comparisons by source:

Conversation – 65 dB
Riding mc at 35mph – 85-95 dB
Riding mc at 65mph – 110-116 dB
Jet engine – 130 dB

If OSHA noise regulations applied, we'd be limited to 15 minutes of riding time daily.

Of further interest are the comments that cutting the noise reduces fatigue and thus makes for a more enjoyable ride. I haven't gotten any yet, but am going to give it a try.

Okay, I’m done.

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[flapug]

 I wonder if the use of ear plugs with one of my half helmets where my ear is exposed will attract the attention of Law Enforcement?
No special events here now so they are bored.

[bagobones]

i ride with custom earplugs molded for my ears. i'm a professional musician so i cant fool around with potential hearing loss. mine are from sensaphonics.

http://www.sensaphonics.com/

i have seen similar plugs at bike shows.

[dt]

I just ordered my second supply of Hearos Xtreme ear plugs…the blue ones. Some time back I got some of the flesh colored Hearos over at Cycle Gear, but they were much smaller than the blue Xtremes and would fall out. The Xtremes work really good imo.

I wonder if the use of ear plugs with one of my half helmets where my ear is exposed will attract the attention of Law Enforcement?

Interesting side bar…

When I got stopped in Georgia last week I got a bunch of questions about my pipes. Turns out the cop saw the big blue ear plugs and thought they were for loud pipes, which I guess you really can get a ticket for. Mine are stock and not loud at all. I actually don't like "real" loud pipes or "real" loud anything...uh...maybe classic rock, but nothing else.

California just passed legislation a week or so ago that’s going to pretty much make it illegal in that state to even put aftermarket or modified pipes (at least non-EPA approved) on bikes manufacturered after 2013. Article. Undoubtedly, other states like ours are watching. I think that would suck, because better pipes available in the aftermarket are usually the first mod to increase performance out of our motorcycles after the manufacturers screw them down so tight for emissions compliance...and the aftermarket pipes not all necessarily loud.

[danh600]

Never gave much thought to wearing ear plugs. Reconsidering that now. Just signed up to get these, will use shooting plugs till they get here.
 http://www.aearoweb.com/sites/pistonz/request_sample.aspx

Good shooting plugs are nice cause they have a diaphram in them. You can still hear sounds around you but the diaphram closes on the loud pop of the gun. I never minded wearing those. However I don't think those would work on a cycle cause I don't think they would filter wind noise. At least the ones I had wouldn't have. They actually made the wind around you even louder.

I never liked the foam ear plugs that closed off the ear canal cause they blocked all sound, but I guess that's kind of what you are stuck with for riding.

[bagobones]

The Sensaphonics plugs I mentioned above have interchangeable filters so the amount of reduction can be customized. When I got my most recent set, I got them with two sets of filters- one was a solid insert.  I didn't like using the solid inserts for riding as I felt it reduced the noise too much and I wasn't hearing enough traffic sounds.

The 15 db filters are what I use all the time-even on loud rock gigs. My ears would ring for hours after those gigs. The real testimony to that was getting in my car the next day and getting blasted by the radio. My hearing was getting zapped and I would have to crank the radio on the ride home just to hear it. Not good. Those days are over thanks to these plugs.

I have been thinking about wind noise a bit lately, having switched helmets due to weather and also putting my windshield back on. I will write something soon about this, and offer a review of some of my helmets and their noise properties.

Peace\\B.O.B.

[bagobones]

I noticed the google ads to the left are displaying some very interesting entries relating to earplugs. If anybody sees something that might benefit us all, please post!

[dt]

The earplugs don’t block out sound entirely, they just soften all sounds. I can hear everything going on around me.

One other thing I have on my full face HJC is a chin curtain. That also helps with wind noise.