Customer Reviews

Radians Custom Molded Earplugs

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(38)

 

 

I'm picky about taking care of my ears. I'm a musician - they are kind of important to my livelihood. So I was looking for a way to create earplugs that were comfortable AND effective. I ordered the Radians kit to "roll my own." Worked great. Then it dawned on me...wouldn't this fix my problems with my cell phone's Bluetooth headset? And it did.

Here's the deal. I use a Jawbone Icon. It sits inside my ear - no outer ear clip. After an hour or so, it becomes noticeably uncomfortable. So I thought, maybe I can combine the Radians molded material with the headset, to make a comfortable, custom fit. Bingo!

I took the headset, and attached the smallest of the rubberized covers and adjusted it to fit my ear. I then mixed up half of each of the Radians materials, stuck it in my ear (just as if I was making an ear plug), then pressed the Jawbone gadget into the plug, gently molding the material around the business end of the headset, making sure to completely cover the rubberized cover. I let the material cure for 10 minutes, then removed the whole thing from my ear. After another hour of letting it cure, I used an electric drill/bit to drill about a 1/4" hole from the outside, down where the material went down into the ear canal. After a little judicious trimming with an Xacto knife, I was done. I poped the Jawbone icon back into the molded piece, and...Presto! I had a Bluetooth headset, custom-fitted to my ear.

How does it work? Perfectly. I mean, it's every bit as good a seal (if not better) as what you get on an expensive set of noise-blocking earbuds. Waaaaay cool.

So if you're dissatisfied with the fit of your Bluetooth headset, this is the stuff to buy to fix that problem, once and for all.

I was looking for an option to make molded ear plugs to wear with my half helmet on extended motorcycle rides to cut wind noise.

After a lot of research online I settled on these. I was a little concerned with the negative reviews but felt the positive ones outweighed the numbers and of course if it did not work as advertised I could return the remaining product.

Well I did not have to be concerned because it worked just like it says it will. I followed the instructions and the plugs came out perfect.

Actually, I changed one part of the instructions in that I used what they recommended for one plug (half the material in a package) to create a set of earplugs - there was more than enough material.

So for the cost of material for one set of ear plugs I was able to get two sets of ear plugs. Pretty good deal if you ask me.

Interesting note: As the material starts to cure it makes a type of crackling noise which you hear quite easily. I was a bit unsure of it initially but just allowed the curing to continue without any issues.

I definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a custom option for hearing protection.

Bottom line is that these earplugs work very well, but they are tricky to make, and I think that more material should be provided for the customer to experiment with.

First off, the material that one uses to make the earplugs (two different types of putty) has to be taken out of the container it is packaged in, and then each putty has to be divided evenly in half before it is mixed thoroughly with its opposite to activate the curing process. Kind of confusing. Why doesn't it come pre-separated in the correct proportions? This is a simple thing which would have made this a lot easier to use.

Then there is the amount of putty in the package. If you follow the instructions you will have exactly enough to make two earplugs. This allows no room for error, or to make another earplug if one doesn't come out very well. At this price, more putty should be supplied.

The earplugs I made were quite large in the end, and it would have been nice to try making a smaller set. And though they were kind of tricky to put in, they DID work very well in blocking sound. However, I bought these to be used while sleeping but they were much too big and hard for that-- quite uncomfortable. If I could have made a smaller pair, they might have worked (as is pointed out in other reviews which used half the amount recommended) but in my case, after following the directions there was no putty left.

This is a unique and potentially great product which needs better packaging and presentation.

As indicated on another review ensure you use just half of the indicated on the user guide so that you can make 4 plugs (divide each color into 4 pieces). I made the mistake on my first one to use as recommended and the result was not good, I used just half on my second one and it looked better and felt also firmer so I was able to make a 3rd one with the rest.

I bought this product after having custom hearing protection made by a professional and being thrilled with them (Insta-Mold). I have severe noise-induced hearing loss and use plugs whenever I am in an environment where excess noise exists (power tools, riding a motorcycle, etc.) I have been using foam plugs for 35 years and while the noise protection is good the comfort level is less than ideal. I often need to remove the foam plugs after a few hours to take a rest. The custom plugs are basically forgotten once inserted, going completely unnoticed except for the blissful quiet when worn.

Like others I also wanted to give this home product a shot (at a sixth or less of the cost of customs) and wanted to make custom molds for my in-ear headphones (Etymotics). Being able to block outside noise so I can turn the headphone volume as low as possible is critical with my hearing problem.

I gave the product 3 stars because while I think there is potential, the buyer is going to have difficulty reproducing the results they would get by going to a professional. There are several reasons for this. First a professional will use a small foam piece on a tether to block the mold material from reaching the eardrum. This, combined with using a large syringe to push the material into the ear gives a much better fit to the inner contours of the ear canal. Comparing the professional version side-by-side to this product it is obvious that the inner ear part of the mold is much different - the professional version being much "thicker", better matching my inner ear and providing a better seal. Since the fit is what it's all about, that makes a huge difference in how much noise will be blocked. If you are making custom headphones the seal also dictates how good the bass response etc. will be.

I have now made two pair with this product and while the second attempt is better than the first they cannot even come close to the fit, comfort, and noise attenuation of the professional product. I am still working on it though, I hope to buy some syringes and make some foam inserts in an attempt to duplicate as closely as possible the professional effort. In the end it will be worth it if I know I can make custom headphones whenever necessary.

I will keep using professionally made plugs for noise attenuation and hopefully use these for custom in-ear headphones. The extra hearing protection of the professional versions is worth every penny when the best hearing protection is the most important consideration.

I purchased a set of these, followed the instructions exactly, and they never set up, even after an hour in my ears. It was difficult to remove the gooey putty from my ear afterward, and had to have a someone with tweezers help me.

I thought that I would be different from the other reviewers that had problems, as I figured that they didn't do something right, but the pulgs still didn't work for me.

Customer service was a nightmare. I repeatedly called and was told that I had to talk to a certain guy, who seemed to always be at lunch. After I finally got a hold of him, He hastily took my address and said he would send me a new pair. He couldn't give me a reason why the new ones he were sending me would work, while the old ones didn't.

It has now been almost six weeks, and I still have not received the replacement pair.

Don't throw away your money on these.

The first package I sent was defective. I followed the instructions exactly as indicated. Took half of each and mixed careful and very thoroughly and placed in ear. Then repeated again for the other ear. After 10 minutes, the goo was not hardening. After 30 minutes, nothing. So I left that stuff in my ears for 1 hour and 20 minutes. NOTHING. I had to dig the gooey stuff out of my ears and clean them repeatedly with q-tips. Two *DAYS* later, the product finally hardened. Other reviewers reported a similar experience.

I contacted the seller, "OutdoorBunker" via Amazon and they quickly shipped another package, no questions asked. I tried this batch, performing the EXACT same procedure as before, and they started hardening in 10 min like the instructions said. I now have a custom set of earphones! Time will tell if they are comfortable and if the Radians holds up.

I don't know why the second time around worked. The packaging looks identical. The product felt the same. I suspect there is either a shelf life or a bad batch of product was out there.

I had high hopes for these, especially with how much more they cost compared to regular foam ear plugs. I followed the mixing and fitting directions to a 't', and the results were terrible. Once cured, the material is stiff enough that there is no "give". (They're also very uncomfortable, but I'd put up with that if they worked). The slightest movement makes them shift and lose the seal, letting in all sound. I bought these for the gun range, to double up under muffs when shooting rifles. These aren't even good enough to wear in bed when my wife wants to watch the late show!!! Unless I'm constantly pressing them into my ears, there's no seal and the sound goes right past them. If I do manage to get them to work somewhat, the slightest movement makes them dislodge enough to become totally ineffective. I'd imagine they must have tested these before putting them on the market, but I'd sure like to know what their process was. My money is wasted, as these went in the trash. But I'm sure telling everyone I know (and a whole lot of people on gun forums) that these don't work. You will be better off with 10 cent yellow foam ear plugs from the hardware store.

Tried both pair of Radians ordered. Followed the directions carefully. Neither would harden - even after 40 mins. Called the company and was promised replacements that would work. Never received them. Called again. Still no replacements. Do not purchase this item.

I was dissapointed in the product overall. It took almost 20-30 minutes for the product to set up to the point that I could remove it from my ear. After finally setting up the product did not seal as well as the standard foam ear plugs. Unfortunately I would not recommend this product..