Replacing Dillon Ear Pads

I love my Dillon Precision HP1 Electronic Hearing Protectors but, after a couple of years at the outdoor range, the black vinyl covers had become cracked and the foam pads had lost their spring.

It was time for a refresh.

Dillon makes the HP1 ear cushion (Hygiene) kit available for just such a need. Ten bucks, even if you have to add shipping, is a great price. But even better for me, Dillon Precision is in nearby (to me) Scottsdale – no shipping! So last Saturday as my wife and I drove out for a birthday party at our daughter’s in-laws, we stopped by Dillon and I bought one of their HP-1 kits.

So far, so good.

But installing those new ear cushions was a whole different matter.

I struggled unsuccessfully for half an hour Sunday before putting it down for the night. Then I blew another half hour Monday morning trying to get the darn things to go together. For someone not overly mechanical like myself, it was a mystery.

So I called Dillon to get help but was put on hold – I guess Mondays are busy at Dillon.

While sitting on hold, I said to myself, “Okay, Ed, Dillon didn’t include any directions so this must be easy. What would the easy way be like? How can I press this together all-at-once?”

An idea suddenly came to mind. I tried it and it worked.

Bingo!

When the Dillon helper answered I quickly said, “Uh, I think I just figured it out. Thank you but never mind.”

I repeated the process on the second ear piece and, yep, that’s it!

In a nutshell, everything must be held perfectly flat and pressed together all at once. You won’t get there by seating one side and then working your way around. That won’t work.

It’s gotta be “all at once.”

Do this.

Orient the over-the-head wire as shown in the following photographs – you must get this correct  or risk permanent damage to the hearing protectors!

• Stack up the parts in the correct orientation and sequence.
• Hold everything in place, turn the assembly over and place it on a solid surface. (The blue plastic side should be “up”. See photo below.)
• Carefully check the alignment and, with the palm of your hand, firmly mash it all together.

• Click!

You may need to mush things around slightly to get it all lined up, and I was surprised at how much pressure I needed to apply, but when everything is right, it will snap together.

Good as new!