When I arrived in Scottsdale, AZ, for the Westside Motorcycle Expo, I noticed that I was having trouble hearing the hotel clerk when attempting to check into my room. It was due to the excessive wind piercing my eardrums from the six-hour duration of the ride, and I wished I had brought a set of earplugs to block the wind from butchering my hearing.
The next day we were making the rounds at the Nitro Syndicate show, meeting different vendors and talking shop, when I stumbled upon (not because I was hungover or anything) a fine group of people at the Big Ear booth. Their Solid Earplugs intrigued me because of the lingering ringing in my ears that was hindering my hearing. I mentioned my problem to Ted Greene of Big Ear, and he provided me with a solution.
I sat down for the molding process, which only took about five to 10 minutes. He first started by checking my ears for any wax build-up. I was clean, so he inserted a tampon in my ear canal to protect my eardrum from any excess molding seeping in. Then he loaded the syringe with the goo and shot it in my ear. (I know what you're thinking: Tampons and shooting goo into his ear? What kind of article is this? It's legit! I promise!) Once the impressions were made, Ted told me to come back in about 15 to 20 minutes so that my impressions (which he coated with Silicoat) could dry. When I returned, I sat down for a fitting and sure enough...like a glove.
When we were gearing up for the ride home, I popped the new earplugs in, and when I arrived back in Huntington Beach, CA, I wasn't bothered by a repetitive, high-pitched ringing in my ears.
Check out the step-by-step molding process and then get out there and buy yourselves a set of earplugs from Big Ear.
 Ted Greene from Big Ear checked...  Ted Greene from Big Ear checked my ears for any excess wax build-up so that the molds formed properly. |  These two stoppers fit inside...  These two stoppers fit inside the ear canal to prevent any of the silicon-based material from seeping in too far. |  After the syringe gun was...  After the syringe gun was locked and loaded, Ted injected the Sani-Cast earplug material to form the molds. |
 The molds formed in less than...  The molds formed in less than two minutes! After they had formed, Ted extracted them from my ears so that he could file down any unnecessary product. |  |  Ted uses a Dremel with a low-grade...  Ted uses a Dremel with a low-grade sandpaper attachment to file down any excess silicon from the molds. |
 Ted uses a Dremel with a low-grade...  Ted uses a Dremel with a low-grade sandpaper attachment to file down any excess silicon from the molds. |  |  Here is the finished product....  Here is the finished product. The dot is an indication for use in the right ear. |