Ear Plugs

[Otis]

This will likely sound daft to most on here but I can honestly say that between the ages of 16 and 30 I never wore ear plugs and don't even think it was discussed or suggested in those earlier years.
Forty years on and having returned to motorcycling I still haven't worn ear plugs although I am now well aware of the benefits and products available and have been meaning to get a pair. Today I had an MRI scan on my lower back and was given ear plugs and ear defenders to wear during the scan. On completion I handed back the defenders but omitted to remove the ear plugs and rode home. I was absolutely amazed at the difference and after only 12 miles I am a convert. What I find interesting though is that the ear plugs were nothing more than tuppence halfpenny pieces of foam and yet they transformed my riding experience. When I look at the specific biker earplugs I am seeing prices ranging from sub £20 to over £80 and for the life of me I cannot comprehend what the hell an £80 pair of earplugs could do for you other than lighten you wallet.

Any thoughts or feedback would be appreciated.

Cheers

[Johnwebley]

I use the soft plastic

Used to be by 3M

Yellow with blue cord

Each end having 3 soft rings and a centre core,soft, easily fitted,

Also use fleabay copies

Work out just over £1 a set,

Can still hear the phone, sat nav, etc,

First time I used them I had to watch the rev counter for gear change and tickover

Well worth wearing

Sent from my SM-A546E using Tapatalk

[Johnwebley]

I use the soft plastic

Used to be by 3M

Yellow with blue cord

Each end having 3 soft rings and a centre core,soft, easily fitted,

Also use fleabay copies

Work out just over £1 a set,

Can still hear the phone, sat nav, etc,

First time I used them I had to watch the rev counter for gear change and tickover

Well worth wearing

Sent from my SM-A546E using Tapatalk

Try these

Sent from my SM-A546E using Tapatalk

[Otis]

I use the soft plastic

Used to be by 3M

Yellow with blue cord

Each end having 3 soft rings and a centre core,soft, easily fitted,

Also use fleabay copies

Work out just over £1 a set,

Can still hear the phone, sat nav, etc,

First time I used them I had to watch the rev counter for gear change and tickover

Well worth wearing

Sent from my SM-A546E using Tapatalk

Try these

Sent from my SM-A546E using Tapatalk

That's really helpful and useful information John, thank you. What is your opinion of the mega expensive pairs that so many rave about?

[Orcade-Ian]

Many years ago - probably over 20, a mate was extolling the benefits of using ear plugs and I bought a set that you moulded yourself and put them in your ears to set to the canal shape.  They were quite expensive at the time but riding a 1500 'Wing, which is a quiet bike anyway and sitting behind the 'barn door' fairing with little or no wind noise, I didn't think the improvement was worth the effort of fitting and removing them.
Now, riding un-faired, noisier bikes, and the Scoot with a much smaller screen, I think I will give it another go.  I know it makes sense to try and protect all of our remaining senses for as long as we can.  I still have those custom made plugs in a little bag which they were supplied with.  If all else fails we regularly get cheap foam ear plugs provided on our overnight ferry crossings - there's a bag of those someplace!

Ian

[Oddjob]

Never worn them, doubt I will ever will tbh. I like to hear the engine noises. They are like music to me.

[McCabe-Thiele (Ted)]

Ah the sweet whine from a screaming engine, a combination of a good fitting helmet and not wearing my hearing aids, bliss

Eventually I work out it's not the gearbox making a noise but my visor not being fully closed.

[Johnwebley]

I use the soft plastic

Used to be by 3M

Yellow with blue cord

Each end having 3 soft rings and a centre core,soft, easily fitted,

Also use fleabay copies

Work out just over £1 a set,

Can still hear the phone, sat nav, etc,

First time I used them I had to watch the rev counter for gear change and tickover

Well worth wearing

Sent from my SM-A546E using Tapatalk

Try these

Sent from my SM-A546E using Tapatalk

That's really helpful and useful information John, thank you. What is your opinion of the mega expensive pairs that so many rave about?

Never used them, these seem to work, are comfortable for 6 hours plus ride out

Easy to clean,

I am well over 70,and don't need hearing aids

But it is my personal opinion

At those prices, nothing to lose

Sent from my SM-A546E using Tapatalk

[honda-san]

I've ridden close to 750,000 miles now over the last 50 years and mostly on un-faired bikes. For the last 30 years I have always worn earplugs. In spite of this I now have Tinnitus (ringing in the ears). All day, every day - no treatment or cure for it. I'm not saying that wearing earplugs was pointless rather that the risk of hearing damage should never be under-estimated.
I use both the disposable foam type plugs and the yellow with blue cord silicon re-useable type mentioned previously, and find these days that the increased noise if I forget to fit the earplugs is such that I have to immediately stop and fit them.

[Athame57]

If I'm ever going to wear ear plugs it is to reduce noise from the neighbours I have here. 

[Laverda Dave]

I was at a bike show 20+ years ago and a stall there was doing a special offer on custom made ear plugs. I bought a set and this involved having a wax poured into my ears and when it had set they pulled it out. This was the mould they used to make the silicon ear plugs. They asked me if I wanted solid plugs or ones with a tiny hole down the middle. The solid type were recommended for clay pigeon shooting whilst those with the tiny hole were for bikers. I opted for the tiny hole type. They told me to come back in 2 hours to collect them.
I wore them home on the bike, massive difference. Although a lot, lot quieter the addition of the tiny hole allowed me to still hear the engine and enough background noise to determine what was around me (as in emergency vehicles). I wear these some earplugs to this day, never leave home without them.
The trouble with hearing loss is it's so gradual you don't realise it. The job I used to be in on the railway required me to have a hearing test every two years and one of these tests involved hearing a distant train whistle from 25 seconds away (enough time to allow you to get off the track and into a place of safety). Countless people failed the test because they didn't hear the whistle.
A simple way of testing your hearing is to sit in a pub or restaurant with a group of friends and if you have to lean in to hear someone properly it's an indication you have hearing loss in the mid bandwidth, the most common form of hearing loss.
Wind noise in a crash helmet without ear plugs does serious long term damage to your hearing.

[taysidedragon]

I used to use foam earplugs but a few years ago I bought Ride magazine recommended Auritech reusable earplugs. They are really good and come in a metal canister. 👍