CROATIAN SENSATION

Springfield Armory's Hellion

- lain Harrison

The U.S. market has never been particularly receptive to the concept of the bullpup, but in certain applications they offer significant advantages over conventional layouts. If you've ever tried manipulating a 16-inch barreled AR-15 in and around vehicles, or inside a building, you quickly come to appreciate the merits of an SBR, despite giving up a significant amount of muzzle velocity and downrange ballistic performance. With its 16-inch pipe, the Hellion is the same length as a 10.3-inch Mk18. Let that sink in. No tax stamp, no mother may l” note to transport to another state, and about five times the fragmentation range for M193 ball. If (God forbid) the AFT gets its way and outlaws pistol braces, then the criterion of short overall length can be met in other ways ...

The HS Produkt VHS2, on which the Hellion is based, is the result of two decades of development in Croatia, where it's their issued service rifle, carried by all branches of the military, including SF, as well as police SWAT teams. While we at RECOIL can dissect it, shoot it on the range, and offer an informed opinion, there's a limit to how deep we can dig due to deadlines, and there are problems that just don't come to light unless it's been put through the wringer by hundreds of different people. In the name of thorough investigative reporting, we conducted in-person interviews with some of these operators, fueled by copious amounts of Slivovitz, in order to find out their honest opinions following years of service. Bottom line: They like it and haven't seen any major problems. So much for background; let's look at the gun.

HANDS ON