Motorcycle Ear Plugs

[Stubby]

Ayup, Folks.
 

Do any of you bikers wear motorcycle ear plugs? I've been using the cheap foam pieces for a while, but they get a bit uncomfortable after a while. But the biggest problem is that they're a tad too quiet and cut out all sound, not only the ear-damaging wind noise. 
 

Please let me know if you wear ear protection specifically for motorcycling. And if you endorse the plugs, where did you find them. 
 

Thanks in advance,
 

Stubby

[canthai55]

Used these for 20 years - work and riding

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/3m-1100-foam-ear-plugs-29-1-200-i8976868.html

Less than 5 THB a pair

Edited August 6, 2021 by canthai55

[scubascuba3]

I wore plugs for a while on Sukhumvit between Pattaya and Sattahip but stopped due to being progressively more uncomfortable. Not required either now, my new Shark helmet is quieter than my Norton

[Kwasaki]

Never used ear plugs in 70 years I feel they block my senses I find my helmet is good enough.

[Stubby]

14 minutes ago, canthai55 said:

Used these for 20 years - work and riding

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/3m-1100-foam-ear-plugs-29-1-200-i8976868.html

Less than 5 THB a pair

Hi, canthai55; thanks for your response.

 

The ear plugs you suggest are the one's I've been using. I buy them at the local drug store. They do a great job at cutting out all noise, too. But I'm more interested in those that reduce the damaging wind noise but allow other frequencies to pass. 

Stubby

[Stubby]

1 minute ago, Kwasaki said:

Never used ear plugs in 70 years I feel they block my senses I find my helmet is good enough.

I think that's why motorcycle-specific ear plugs only filter out harmful decibels like rushing wind.

[Kwasaki]

12 minutes ago, Stubby said:

I think that's why motorcycle-specific ear plugs only filter out harmful decibels like rushing wind.

As I said my H2C helmet does that. 

[canthai55]

57 minutes ago, Stubby said:

Hi, canthai55; thanks for your response.

 

The ear plugs you suggest are the one's I've been using. I buy them at the local drug store. They do a great job at cutting out all noise, too. But I'm more interested in those that reduce the damaging wind noise but allow other frequencies to pass. 

Stubby

Are the 3M brand - or some generic brand ?

[Stubby]

1 hour ago, Kwasaki said:

As I said my H2C helmet does that. 

Then it does a great job. Many motorcyclists with expensive helmets invest in custom ear plugs, so your H2C obviously has an edge over the competition. 

[Stubby]

29 minutes ago, canthai55 said:

Are the 3M brand - or some generic brand ?

Says 3M on the packet. They cost 20 Baht a pair, or thereabouts.
 

[toofarnorth]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

I wore plugs for a while on Sukhumvit between Pattaya and Sattahip but stopped due to being progressively more uncomfortable. Not required either now, my new Shark helmet is quieter than my Norton

My Norton was very noisy due to the Gold Star silencer.

[Kwasaki]

44 minutes ago, Stubby said:

Then it does a great job. Many motorcyclists with expensive helmets invest in custom ear plugs, so your H2C obviously has an edge over the competition. 

Frankly the H2C helmets only edge is price,  I don't know about many motorcyclist or racers wearing earplugs in my time.

 

Working with a race team not all riders worn earplugs only what were called nancies.????

I wore the headphones type at the start up. ????

As I have said for 70 years I haven't worn earplugs a helmet has always sufficed and my hearing is fine thanks.

[canthai55]

57 minutes ago, Stubby said:

Says 3M on the packet. They cost 20 Baht a pair, or thereabouts.
 

Them's the ones.

I find that if you roll them up, and use the opposite side hand to grab the top of your ear and pull up and out, it allows the ear canal to elongate and increase in size. This ensures an easy insertion, and good comfort.

Wear them 12 hours a day when working - no pain issues.

[OneMoreFarang]

Do you really need or want ear plugs?

I ask because in my experience the helmet is important.

1. with a helmet you hear less than without

2. you hear noise which comes from the helmet

 

Recently I bought a new helmet. If my visor is open I don't have to ride fast and I hear annoying wind noise - or to be precise noise which only exists with that helmet with that visor position.

When I close the visor then that noise is not there anymore. I am pretty sure the noise is not filtered out. I think the noise is not produced because the wind does not hit the visor in a certain angle and produces that noise.

 

And with other helmets the noise is different and also depends on the visor position.

 

My advice is: Try a different helmet and maybe a different visor position. And then maybe you don't want or need any ear plugs anymore. I never used any.

[bbko]

Full face helmet is all I need, if I added ear plugs I think it starts getting into the unsafe zone.  

[Stubby]

2 hours ago, canthai55 said:

Them's the ones.

I find that if you roll them up, and use the opposite side hand to grab the top of your ear and pull up and out, it allows the ear canal to elongate and increase in size. This ensures an easy insertion, and good comfort.

Wear them 12 hours a day when working - no pain issues.

No painful, just a tad itchy after a while, that's all. But the surroundings are very quiet. There are special earplugs that filter our wind noise and other high dB sounds while letting in other surround sounds, hence the post ????

[Stubby]

 

[Kwasaki]

8 minutes ago, Stubby said:

 

Nothing like a pussy salesman on Utube. ????

[Stubby]

3 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

Nothing like a pussy salesman on Utube. ????

A mate of mine smoked for over 60 years. Said over a meal one day,

"See, it's never done me any harm... Ner ner ner ner ner. Blooming snowflakes"

Then... a couple of years later... he started to get fatigued. He popped over to the doc's office... with a roll up stuck to his top lip... to see what was going on. He was diagnosed with emphysema. Go figure! The ol' git was made of the same old hair, nails, bone and flesh as everybody else after all. But it certainly put a stop to his galivanting, and took the led right out of his pencil. 
 

But um... I guess they don't make blokes like they used to.... ????

I heard that... PARDON?

[Agusts]

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/ear-putty-silicone-earplugs-i979164071.html

[OneMoreFarang]

1 hour ago, Kwasaki said:

Nothing like a pussy salesman on Utube. ????

Now I watched his video just because of your comment and I must have missed the part where he sells those p.. 

[Stubby]

26 minutes ago, Agusts said:

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/ear-putty-silicone-earplugs-i979164071.html

Thanks, Agusts. The putty might be more comfortable than expanding foam, but it's going to block out all ambient sound, too. The motorcycle-specific plugs tend to have some kind of filter that lets in some sound, while blocking harmful noise. Even so, the putty might be worth a try considering the price ???? 

[Stubby]

16 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

Now I watched his video just because of your comment and I must have missed the part where he sells those p.. 

That's because he's not a seller OMF. He does add the occasional affiliative link to equipment he reviews and recommends, but he's always up front about that. Andy (the bloke in the vid) is a pilot and middle-aged motorcycling enthusiast. It's a great channel with loads of updated vids with bike reviews, bike news, and motorcycling equipment.  You might be interested in his Thailand Road Trip. 

[OneMoreFarang]

16 minutes ago, Stubby said:

That's because he's not a seller OMF. He does add the occasional affiliative link to equipment he reviews and recommends, but he's always up front about that. Andy (the bloke in the vid) is a pilot and middle-aged motorcycling enthusiast. It's a great channel with loads of updated vids with bike reviews, bike news, and motorcycling equipment.  You might be interested in his Thailand Road Trip. 

I think you didn't read the post I replied to. 

I didn't really expect a detailed answer. ???? 

[beachbuggy]

I wear HJC full face with internal speakers and use these alpine ear plugs. Comfortable and do what they should by cutting out unnecessary noise but allowing normal bike noise. Got from ebay but forget how much

[Stubby]

1 minute ago, beachbuggy said:

I wear HJC full face with internal speakers and use these alpine ear plugs. Comfortable and do what they should by cutting out unnecessary noise but allowing normal bike noise. Got from ebay but forget how much

Thanks, BeachBuggy, I found them. That's the kind of thing I was talking about. Navigation and engines remain easily audible. But there's no sense of closure as there is with foam, yet the filter removes - of vastly reduces - wind noise. It's the wind that damages hearing, apparently.

Stubby
 

 

[Kwasaki]

13 hours ago, Stubby said:

But um... I guess they don't make blokes like they used to.... ????

I heard that... PARDON?

????  Yeah ya right loads of pusses about these days, it's a new age for sure. 

[Kwasaki]

12 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

Now I watched his video just because of your comment and I must have missed the part where he sells those p.. 

Well he was recommending you put em in your ears, not...

[EVENKEEL]

28 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

????  Yeah ya right loads of pusses about these days, it's a new age for sure. 

I wear a half helmet and the wind noise at 120 is loud. My hearing has suffered enough so I wear those gummies on longer rides. The wind noise without gummies gets old quick. When I wear a 3/4 helmet the wind noise is no problem.

[Kwasaki]

24 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

I wear a half helmet and the wind noise at 120 is loud. My hearing has suffered enough so I wear those gummies on longer rides. The wind noise without gummies gets old quick. When I wear a 3/4 helmet the wind noise is no problem.

Yeah understand only having some biker banter fun.

I always put a fullface helmet at long rides and I'm tucked down enough below the windscreen to get only a little wind noise.

 

Edited August 7, 2021 by Kwasaki