[Pazz]

So I am assuming that everyone knows about those radians diy custom earplugs. Those cost around $11 dollars, which is pretty cheap.
 
...but we need to go cheaper (Why? Because of the possibilities, science, fun, experience, and why not?).
 
So far, I have not thought up of a way to do this with things you can find at home, which would be the best option. I have, through google, found one person who tried to use silicone sealant, but failed.
 
The basic process was putting the material into surgical gloves, then inserting them into the ear, however, the silicone sticks to the glove, which was the reason it failed.
 
One suggestion was to put olive oil, or vaseline into the glove so that the silicone doesn't stick to it.
 
Assuming that works, the question is if the resulting earplug would create a good seal, which might be compromised by the extra layer of glove and lubricant. Also, would it even be safe to put into the ear? I'm guessing the silicone would have to be labelled as non-toxic, but I'm not sure of it's other properties.
 
If the process with the glove doesn't give a good seal, I don't think I would be up to coating my ear with oil and inserting the silicone in directly, that's just asking for (some sticky) trouble.
 
So now, what are the other options? $5 for the silicone sealant is pretty cheap, but what of other materials that could mold to the shape of the ear, and that could isolate noise, keeping cost and safety in mind?

 

[425267211]

Can injectors help in the gloves problems?

 

[deadsea]

Silicone caulk in one's ear is not a good idea. Most are acid curing and will release some amounts of acid and will burn, or at the very least irritate the hell out of the skin in the ears. Pure silicone caulk only would take too much time to set anyway.
 
Now, oogoo could be a possibility though.
 
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-To-Make-Your-Own-Sugru-Substitute/
 
And the thickness issue with gloves can be minimised by using another kind of "protection" 

 those are typically made to be as thin as possible (0.2mm comes to mind) and are hypoallergenic for most.
 
Although, it would get a touch awkward should someone walk in while your new earplugs are curing. 

 

[Tanjent]

Im not putting a dinga in my ear....

 

[Brendo09]

It's for science. That makes it ok.

 

[Pazz]

I'm thinking more along the lines of making something from household supplies. Something like what is usually done with elmers glue to make silly putty. It's a pretty fun experiment, but I wonder if there's a way to somehow modify it so that the putty hardens. I don't have nearly enough knowledge of chemistry to find out though.
 
Also, "that" idea gave me a laugh, and I would try it out too, but I don't have any spares lying around.

 

[wz2000]

I've used this to make custom earplugs:
 
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hiflex-Silicone-Putty-Rubber-Moulding/dp/B007DKSH9Q
 
Works well enough and you can make about a hundred pairs from the kit, so the price for one pair will be quite low.