Custom ear plugs question

Just got a set of those custom earplugs. I remember a discussion on them here not long ago.

They seem to work OK for other applications (not nearly as well as I'd hoped, but I was told that the plugs are a compromise since I have small ear canals), but have been completely useless for riding.

My helmet pushes my ears back and keeps the plugs from sealing. Has anyone had this problem? Seems the only solution would be to have the mold made while wearing a helmet, but I'd be afraid they'd be useless for anything else then.

Mark

Mark, I have one small ear canal and I've experienced a few of the problems you describe. Couple of solutions that work for me:

1)Lube the in-ears up before you put them in. Not only does it make it easier to get them in right, but it helps provide a seal. Lots of different options, the musicians I work with like Neosporin because of it's anti-bacterial quality. After you've used them for a while, you'll understand why! Me, I use spit, because I always have it with me! (A word of caution, you want to apply it to the earpiece DOWNSTREAM of the aperature, otherwise you'll clog it. Don't put the whatever in your ear, then put the plug in, put a little bit about half way up the piece and spread it around).

2)Experiment with putting your helmet on in different ways. One my Arai, rather than pulling the helmet straight down over the top of my head like I normally do, I put the helmet opening on the back of my head and ROTATE it over my head, keeping my ears in the widest portion of the helmet. It helps a lot.

3)Lastly, if I'm going on a long ride, I cut a couple of pieces of "Elastoplast" tape (about 3" long piece of 2" tape) and slap them over the in-ears like the racers do. My plugs are comfortable enough to wear all day, and with the tape in place, I can remove and replace my helmet at will with no worries. The tape also adds another layer of sound insulation as well. Elastoplast used to be available at any pharmacy. I use it at work (so I shop for it a lot) and I'm finding it harder and harder to find. I get it from Elite Medical Supply

Good luck, I hope you get the molds to work OK, they're great.

Actually getting them done with the helmet on will not keep them from being used for other stuff. It all depends on your ears. I had my second set of plugs wearing the helmet. I use them when mowing the lawn no problem.

With the new Autocomm speakers in the helmet the plugs are being pushed in too much so I have gone for cheapies.

alternative fitting method

I just had a set of custom plugs made at the Spokane rally. I have worn an older set for the last few years with great success. the new plugs have speakers built in. When the new set was being fitted; I had trouble inserting them, and after the lady checked my ears, she said that I needed to "hold" my ears back against my head while the silicone setup.....I can only presume it's because of a similar condition to yours. After a second set was made this way; they fit very well and are as comfortable as my first set.

The person who made yours should stand behind the fit and should make a new set for you ....

Hope this helps,

Jim Bud

custom ear plugs question

I had a choice when I ordered my custom ear plugs. I could get them where they stuckout past the ear canal almost to the
outer most part of my ear or I could get them where they were
out of my ear canal mabe 1/4". The later is the choice I made
and I wear a Slik head cover so I rarely ever have a problem
putting my helmet on and displacing the ear plugs.

Since I wear prescription lenses I did choose the Schuberth Con-
cept so I have never tried putting on a full face helmet. I don't think it would be a problem, but can't say for sure.

I use the Slik not only to keep the inside of my helmet more san-
itary, but also because without it I have trouble trying to keep
my prescription lenses in place.

If you are not using a Slik or similar product you might try it, it
just might solve your problem.

Gerald

Mark,
What you need to do is modify your helmet so it does not put any pressure on your ears. There is a cavity in most helmets that is supposed to create a noise blockand allow some relief for your ears. Most do not match exactly. This cavity is formed from foam rubber under the liner. You need to pull the liner free and remove some of the foam rubber so that there is no pressure on your ears. NOTE: DO NOT MODIFY THE STYROFOAM PROTECTIVE SHELL.
It is rare that the helmet fits so snug that you need to wear it while having the molds made. If you do, be sure to use a helmet liner (headskin) or you will have a mess inside of your helmet.
Hope this helps.

custom ear plugs- why?

Being a blue collar, industrial type, I have access to throw away foam ear plugs. The type that you roll into pointy cones between your thumb and fingers and then stick 'em in your ears. They expand out and seal up very nicely and have blue plastic cords for pulling out. I get them free, but a box of 500 costs about $15.

Less to lose

My other reason for using disposable plugs, when I lose one it is not a huge financial hit.

I just got my first pair of cutom plugs this week and they are certainly more comfortable than the drug store foam plugs I've been using. On the Spokane trip the foam plugs could sometimes hurt or not seat right allowing noise on one side or the other.
I came accross one of these hearing stores with an audiologest that sells hearing aids and the custom plugs I bought. They sell an ear lubricant for hearing devices which I would think has to be better than spit. You can get a small bottle of the stuff for about 5 bucks. I haven't had my new plugs long enough to know if I need that, but if you think you do, my guess is any place that sells hearing aids will have a product like that. Kind of like finding lens cleaner in an eye glass shop.
Also the size and style of your helmet may be part of the problem.

custom ear plug questions

I tried 5 or 6 different foam ear plugs before I got my custom ear plugs about 5 months ago. The customs for me are much, much
better both at the bag pipe band practices and while riding my
bikes.

So far I have not lost them, but they are so much better I'll
probably replace them if I do lose them.

Gerald

R T Randy wrote:
"I came accross one of these hearing stores with an audiologest that sells hearing aids and the custom plugs I bought. They sell an ear lubricant for hearing devices which I would think has to be better than spit. You can get a small bottle of the stuff for about 5 bucks."

One brand name of that lube is Oto-Ease. It has an ati-bacterial agent in it. You only need a small drop, but be sure to clean both your plugs and your ears after using it, as it can add to build up in your ears. You can usually find it or a similar product in larger drug stores near the ear plugs and the hearing aid batteries. Any hearing aid center will have it too.
Regarding spit, I *usually* know where both my mouth and my ears have been in the last 24 hours! ;-))

Re: custom ear plugs- why?

woodnsteel said:

Being a blue collar, industrial type, I have access to throw away foam ear plugs. The type that you roll into pointy cones between your thumb and fingers and then stick 'em in your ears. They expand out and seal up very nicely and have blue plastic cords for pulling out. I get them free, but a box of 500 costs about $15.

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Try this: put some foam ear plugs in and wear them around the house for 8 straight hours. If they're still comfortable, great. For me, they are excrutiating after about 1 1/2 hours. My custom molds aren't.
For me, personally they don't "expand out and seal up nicely", due to my narrow left ear canal. It usually takes 3-4 attempts to get them to seal properly, and I can't really tell for SURE, until I'm riding, which means on occasion I'll have to start and stop 3-4 times , which is REAL frustrating given that it means removing gloves, shades, and helmet. My helmet will also knock them out once in a while.
Add to that they are actually speakers, and for me it's a no brainer.

And for me, the fact they are more expensive is actually a plus. Because of their cost, I keep much better track and care of them. Like sunglasses. Cheap ones I lose or break in a week, expensive ones I don't.

I had a set of custom earplugs made. It is probably the best investment I have made in months for the bike. I love them. When I had the molds made, I took my helmet, and put it on with the audiologist there to make sure everything was correct. They fit great and block a tremendous amount of noise,

My wife & I had custom ear plugs made at the Finger Lakes Rally last weekend and neither of us is impressed with the way they work. We are both used to foam earplugs & find that the custom pieces don't block out nearly as much noise unless you keep pressure on them. They also lose their seal everytime we turn our heads one way or the other. I made it about an hour before replacing them with the foam plugs & my wife gave up soon after. Best use I can see for them is to block out snoring at a rally as they are more comfortable if you leave them in all night.

My wife & I had custom ear plugs made at the Finger Lakes Rally last weekend and neither of us is impressed with the way they work. We are both used to foam earplugs & find that the custom pieces don't block out nearly as much noise unless you keep pressure on them. They also lose their seal everytime we turn our heads one way or the other. I made it about an hour before replacing them with the foam plugs & my wife gave up soon after. Best use I can see for them is to block out snoring at a rally as they are more comfortable if you leave them in all night.

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John,
It sounds like your plugs were not properly made, possibly not deep enough in the canal.

I suppose thats possible but I don't see myself trying a variety of these at $40+ a pop. I buy the foam plugs by the gross so I don't mind throwing those away but this could get expensive. He put a couple small cotton balls w/strings down in the canal & then filled it up.

Hmm seems to me like your fitting wasn't the best. What I was very happy with was the work that Bob Weis did for me at a rally a while back.

He foamed both ears, but after he took them out he gave them to me to try before leaving. The right one did not seal properly, so he made another one on the spot. No worries. I then used the molds for a few weeks before I decided to order some to make sure that they would work.

I ultimately decided not to order any, not because I did not like them, they worked great. But because I kept misplacing them. So I went back to the disposables.

Re: custom ear plugs- why?

woodnsteel said:

Being a blue collar, industrial type, I have access to throw away foam ear plugs. The type that you roll into pointy cones between your thumb and fingers and then stick 'em in your ears. They expand out and seal up very nicely and have blue plastic cords for pulling out. I get them free, but a box of 500 costs about $15.

Click to expand...

The foam plugs have their uses. I've bought them in bulk and I keep them stored all over the place (in the car, on the bike, in my music cases). Mostly, I give them to other people who didn't think to bring plugs and I use the reusable kind that have three semispheres (and don't require waiting to see if they expand and seal properly).

The custom fit plugs I bought are supposed to have a flat db cut across the sound spectrum, thereby making music sound better and making it easier to carry on a conversation with the plugs in. I'd like for them to work on the bike so I can talk to folks while wearing a hemet!

I've worn them for gigs, rehearsals, mowing the lawn, and on the bike now and they just don't seal well. Lubricating them didn't help. They totally unseat when the helmet pushes my ears back or when I smile. I smile all the time on gigs!

I'm going to make an appointment with the audiologist that made the molds and get another set made (they are under warranty). I compared them to a set that my friend has and his simply go deeper in the ear canal. I'm afraid that my small ear canals may just mean the company cannot make them to seat well.

Thanks for the input,
Mark

custom ear plugs

John,

Why not go back to the guy you bought them from and have him
redo them?

I went to a local hearing aid shop to have mine made which
cost me about twice what you paid, but they are here in town
if something does go wrong.

I can't even start to tell you how much better these custom plugs
are compared to the foam ones. At pipe band practice I was
able to hear people talking very easily with the foam plugs.

With the custom plugs in I have to listen very closely to hear
people talking. The bass drummer is always moving his mouth
but not talking just to hassle me.

The sad part is that even though I have used the foam plugs
during band practice all these years I still have tinnitus. I
wish I had used the custom plugs before, because they cut
the noise level of the bagpipes by nearly half.

Wouldn't be without them and mine fit well and stay in place
when putting on and taking off my helmet.

Gerald

Why not go back to the guy you bought them from and have him

Click to expand...

We had them made at the Finger Lakes Rally & now we are back in CT & he is in PA. I've got his card & may call about a refund.

I can't even start to tell you how much better these custom plugs

Click to expand...

I've found the foam plugs we use to be very effective as long as you don't reuse the same pair immediately as it takes them awhile to fully recover. Whenever we stop & I remove the plugs they go in my left jacket pocket & I use a different pair that hasn't been used that day when we take off again. I normally have 4-6 pair open in the right pocket.