Sunday, January 6, 2008

Safety: Eyes and Ears

I guess this is probably long overdue. I see a lot of new shooters, and even some experienced shooters struggle with poor or uncomfortable safety gear.

Smith and Wesson Magnum safety glasses
These are probably the most comfortable pair of glasses that I've ever worn. I wear these pretty much all day at work, and they don't slip down my nose much or otherwise bother me. They are about as scratch resistant as anything, and the price is quite reasonable. If you are going to be out in the sun a lot though, I would suggest getting a higher end pair of sunglasses for UV protection.

E.A.R. Classic foam earplugs
I stopped wearing ear muffs. The muffs don't work well with some rifle stocks. They push the temples of most shooting glasses into the side of your head, which gets to be uncomfortable, and then downright painful. Besides being uncomfortable, for some people, the temples of shooting glasses can prevent a good seal against the head, greatly reducing the noise reduction. I can't tolerate silicone or rubber earplugs for more than about a half hour. These foam earplugs I wear pretty much all day at work, and they really don't bother me. These yellow E.A.R. brand plugs are pretty much the standard, and you can pick them up at many gun shops, shooting ranges, and just about anywhere that sells hardware.

The one problem with ear plugs is that until you get used to them, you may get impacted earwax a time or two. The impacted earwax can sometimes be flushed out with a bulb syringe, but I've had to use a waterpick a couple times.

EDIT: I've been buying the glasses from Omark Safety. They also have the ear plugs; they are Aearo brand.

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