Gunfire and Brain Injury

K

kmudgn

Life of the Party
I figure that some here are shooters/hunters and may have an interest in this article from NY Times which describes how gun blast pressure can cause Traumatic Brian Injury (TBI). This is a share, but I cannot guarantee it will work

www.nytimes.com

How Gun Blasts From Indoor Shooting May Cause Brain Injuries

The Times tested the blast waves of several popular civilian guns at an indoor range and found that repeated firing could add up to potentially harmful exposure.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
 
This is absolutely a thing, as is lead/heavy metal contamination (usually from the vapors coming into contact with your eyes which can be mitigated with eyewear).

A friend of mine was a sniper for a number of years but got out of it because he saw this brain damage issue playing out with some of the guys doing it for a long time. It's a very well-documented issue.

I still shoot but tend to not use the indoor ranges if I can avoid it.
 
Having installed some after market sights and wanting to properly dial them in I made a rare visit to the range just east of Bend, as I usually handgun practice at the base of a hilltop in the woods. At some point several dudes showed up and started shooting obvious magnums over on the rifle range, and felt myself flinching after every blast even with my hearing protectors on.
My uncle was among the millions of GI's who returned home after WW2 with severe hearing loss from enduring years of gunfire and artillery explosions, to spend the rest of their lives with hearing aids. And likely with a grin, cause they made it home.
 
This is one of the (many) reasons I avoid indoor ranges, and would frankly never go to an indoor range that allowed rifles.
Its also why you should be publicly shamed for putting a muzzle brake on things like AR-15s in 5.56 if all you're doing is sitting on a bench and plinking, all you're doing is making everyone else miserable.
Also why suppressor use should be normalized, legalized, and encouraged.

Thanks for coming to my TED Talk.
 
Pescaphile said:
The older I get the more I appreciate light-recoiling rounds.
Click to expand...
One of my main motivations for going with 6.5 Creedmoor for my hunting rifle. In all honesty it was such a light rifle the recoil was quite sharp when i got it, but I added 2lb of weight to the stock and it's like shooting a .22 now. If I could put a suppressor on it, it'd be 🤌
 
Always shot the .44 special snub-nosed outdoors. Crazy thing would really bark and leave a bruise on my hand. Good thing the revolver
now has hollow points for bullets.
 
I’ve shot at a local indoor range for decades. I wear double protection for my ears, plugs and muffs. I also reload a lot and cast bullets. Every year during my exam and blood draw I have them check for lead. Nothing. As far as any effect from gun blasts, I haven’t experienced any. I am either lucky or I have a very thick skull… that’s most likely the fact.
 
Interesting. I'm new to the sport, but, never have been to an indoor range. That article just discouraged me from going to an indoor range. Thanks
 
I used to live in a big city. The indoor ranges were very, very sketchy. You could see bullet holes where they shouldn't have been. I "doubled up" (ear plugs and muffs) but anything above 9mm would still seem "loud", and I can understand why that might be harmful over time. My lead reload bullets put out a lot of smoke. These damn indoor ranges were convenient. The paper targets zip back and forth, and the nearest outdoor (BLM) land to target practice was a three hour drive away. Up here in the PNW, I can drive out into the mountains and shoot outdoors. I like that a lot.
 
Indoor ranges are great for shooting paper. Learning the basics, scrutinizing your group, diagnosing weaknesses etc...But, for me, the fun is outdoors, shooting "reactionary" targets. Spinners, balloons, tin cans, eggs, soda bottles, etc... anything that lets you know instantly that you hit (or missed) the target. Once the basics are learned, shooting reactionary targets can accelerate proficiency in marksmanship much faster than punching holes in paper, IMHO.
 
Evan B said:
One of my main motivations for going with 6.5 Creedmoor for my hunting rifle. In all honesty it was such a light rifle the recoil was quite sharp when i got it, but I added 2lb of weight to the stock and it's like shooting a .22 now. If I could put a suppressor on it, it'd be 🤌
Click to expand...
We have a 6.5 Creedmoor and it's a great light-recoiling round. I also have a .243 Win and it recoils even less but is nowhere as versatile as the 6.5 CM. You must've had a pretty light rifle for recoil to be a factor from that round.
 
Pescaphile said:
We have a 6.5 Creedmoor and it's a great light-recoiling round. I also have a .243 Win and it recoils even less but is nowhere as versatile as the 6.5 CM. You must've had a pretty light rifle for recoil to be a factor from that round.
Click to expand...
It wasn't a hard hitting recoil so much as just really sharp. I shot a 7mm rem mag the same day I had it out the first time and it was actually more comfortable to shoot, likely because it weighed like 4-5 more pounds.
 
Gotta just DEAL WITH IT. Gotta just TAKE the reprocussions that come witb shootin BIG. Gotta just DEAL witb the noise!!! Ahh who cares ahh there's guys shootin big down at the range. Ahh get in there DEAL WITHTHE NOISE
 
SurfnFish said:
Having installed some after market sights and wanting to properly dial them in I made a rare visit to the range just east of Bend, as I usually handgun practice at the base of a hilltop in the woods. At some point several dudes showed up and started shooting obvious magnums over on the rifle range, and felt myself flinching after every blast even with my hearing protectors on.
My uncle was among the millions of GI's who returned home after WW2 with severe hearing loss from enduring years of gunfire and artillery explosions, to spend the rest of their lives with hearing aids. And likely with a grin, cause they made it home.
Click to expand...
Or, if like my elder uncles, that grin was them being happy after turning them off so they didn't hear their wives 😁
 
Worked at an indoor range back in the 90's between contracts. Mandated by city and county lead free ammo only. nothing bigger than .45 acp or 10mm for handguns, no rifles, no exceptions. Shotguns, bird shot only, non lead.
All staff had to follow double up protocol on hearing protection. Everyone got tested for heavy metal toxicity every 60 days. (we averaged 300 people a day on a good day)
I won't take a rifle to an indoor range.
 
wanderingrichard said:
Worked at an indoor range back in the 90's between contracts. Mandated by city and county lead free ammo only. nothing bigger than .45 acp or 10mm for handguns, no rifles, no exceptions. Shotguns, bird shot only, non lead.
All staff had to follow double up protocol on hearing protection. Everyone got tested for heavy metal toxicity every 60 days. (we averaged 300 people a day on a good day)
I won't take a rifle to an indoor range.
Click to expand...
The main exposure source of lead is the lead styphnate used in the centerfire primer*, which is one of the several reasons for the insane ventilation required at indoor ranges, which is why they're so cold.

*Obviously not true if you're being shot . . .then it would be the bullet.
 
offensivename said:
The main exposure source of lead is the lead styphnate used in the centerfire primer*, which is one of the several reasons for the insane ventilation required at indoor ranges, which is why they're so cold.

*Obviously not true if you're being shot . . .then it would be the bullet.
Click to expand...
The owners told me that when I signed on. Still to this day I shower and wash the clothes I was wearing while shooting immediately after I get home. I don't want to add any more to the exposures I had in the army .
 
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