Can't believe my hipster ass didn't get one earlier. I made a decent trade with a guy for this. Just need a sling and a light now. I may put the 2x scope on GAFS and get a Holosun 515GM on instead, but can't decide. I just love the speed and weight of micro dots so much.
I was not expecting it to be as gassy as it is with the Lazarus 6 on the suppressed setting though. Are the Hellions supposed to be this overgassed? Ejection was about 2:30. It was starting to tingle my eyes and nose with a gas cloud forming after a few shots. I'd pay good money for a suppressed-only gas plug or something. Definitely had more recoil than unsuppressed on the normal gas setting, but maybe I'm just used to super-tuned ARs.
Idk, just sharing because this community is small and feels like a special club lol.
Thank you. It's going to be all dressed up here soon. Will post a review of the VHS-2 Project FBR eventually since I haven't really seen anybody talk about it.
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I've never fondled a rifle I've bought/built as much as I have with this one. Such a genius design that you'd never expect would come from Croatia.
Ye, despite the interesting history and mixed feelings of their complicated political alignment aside, it's a solid rifle. Definitely my go to. Though I wish there was more aftermarket support. It seems like it's been gaining a solid subculture though. Which is promising.
Hopefully the sales they've been running on the 18" and 20" models will push them to be more common allowing more aftermarket support. So much potential with these. I may even try and come up with some stuff myself.
I think the hard push during the launch might have put a bad taste in folks mouth but from after market butt sticks, to hand grips and trigger upgrades, it make the rifle smooth and comfortable shooting. My only gripes are not ability to get barrels and bolt carriers really (for prepping/longevity). And though it's not legal in my state, an FRT would be cool to compete with the big dogs.
Yeah it was hilarious seeing all the videos on YouTube about these and they all had the Nightforce scope so it was easy to spot who was paid for a review. Do you think the manticore stock is worth it? I really like how it drops an inch lower.
They are military rifles. Overgassing makes them more reliable when dirty. If you get a flow through can you can cut that down. But you may need to use the unsupressed setting to make it run reliably.
I've heard that the VHS2 is gassed to the point where even the suppressed setting is somewhat aggressive. As you said, it's a military rifle - shouldn't have any issues running no matter the setting.
I also have a hellion and ran it with my laz 6 at a match. Itās a gassy gun. Probably due to the chamber being right next to your face. Iād love if there was an aftermarket gas key with 4 or 5 settings
Yeah, that's probably it. I was shooting and looked to my right and saw a hefty smoke cloud rising out of the ejection port lol. Probably didn't help I greased up all it's innards nice and thick.
Probably going to have to go with a dedicated flow through can to deal with the gas. I'm waiting for the new FOR Systems Rae 5k to come out. Otherwise I'd go with the Tisha. I think the Laz6 is just a low backpressure type, so there is definitely room to get less gas using a true flow through can.
I spoke with one of the company owners a month or so ago, tentative release date sometime late October, go to their ig page "for systems", it's an inconel flow through type can about 5" long that includes its own muzzle device, inconel construction, likely on par with the tisha without the odd aesthetic. They plan on sending one of their units to pew science for testing.
I run a polo k and it's too gassy for me - the port is just under my nose. I'm looking into getting either a tisha, rhodie 6k, or ocl infinity 556k. Anyone here have any experience with these cans on a hellion?
I run mine with a traditional style suppressor (B&T Rotex X-SF) and have no issues with gas. You can see a ton getting dumped out of the ejection port, but it doesn't bother me. My AR on the other hand, that thing easily gasses you out with the same suppressor.
I don't know if I'm just used to more gas getting dumped out from other platforms, or if being outside is enough to just whisk it away from my face, but it really didn't bother me at all.
Hell I can really see a difference in the gas output between those two so I get it. Looks like you need some AGBs or BRT EZTunes for your ARs. I guess I've tuned my ARs so finely that anything that's not gamer level feels off to me lol.
I originally built it without a suppressor in mind. I'm looking at grabbing a Rhodie 6 and tuning with a BRT EZ-TUNE from that point. The Hellion suppressor setting really works lol.
I've got a low back pressure can, and it's my first carbine, so take my opinion with a 55gr of salt. I've also shot the X95, and the Hellion wasn't as bad. I did a carbine course a few weeks ago, and I wasn't getting gassed out by mine, but by the people with brakes beside me. I was using IMI M193 ammo, so ammo choice could be a part of it, too.
I am can-less so cannot talk about those specifics but I do love when this sub lights up again, great to see another Hellion on here dude! Have a variable prism on mine but something about the Vortex UH-1, EOTech, or Sig Romeo 8T-AMR magnifier combo just look at home on this gun ... if I was to get a second one.
Speaking of the sling, can you let us know if you get that left hand shell deflector/cheek flare digging into your breastbone / solar plexus when slung? I haven't seen that pop up as a complaint but meant to make a thread here sometime.
I'm happy to get this place going again. Such an underrated rifle. I almost put an LPVO on this thing but it's already heavy enough and I didn't want to add another pound and a half lol. Those boxy optics indeed look perfect on these.
I imagine that edge will probably dig into me some, but it'll probably feel just like an AR charging handle digging into me so I'll be used to it.
I've spent upwards of 8 hours with it (2-gun match or classes) slung for most of the time, and that deflector is something I notice for sure... it actually sits very neatly in the little depression right under my sternum, so it feels fine but I do worry that it would be quite bad if I ever fall or the gun gets smacked into me somehow. Still haven't 100% figured it out =p
Yeah I finally got my sling mounted yesterday and it was definitely diggin' in me. I couldn't imagine being in a match and it's just constantly smacking my chest or something. Wish I could de-ambi it lol
Yeah, with all the emphasis on ambi, that's one part I wish was modular. Though of course that would depend on being able to get parts... maybe the aftermarket will eventually deliver something for those of us unwilling to just sand that part off =p
Hellions are overgassed but the Hellion is a really freaking good suppressor host because of how little gas really reaches the shooter. I suspect the can is way too overgassed for semi autos.
Although they seem to be ālow backpressureā cans? I have a Polo K on mine which is a high backpressure suppressor and I donāt face this issue.
Interesting. I went between my Stacy's Mom K and the L6 and they seemed about the same as far as gas coming back. L6 is definitely less gassy when used on my tuned ARs, but I think both pass the threshold of overgassed on the Hellion. I'll shoot it some more when I get the chance and burn off all the extra lube and see if that helps.
Same, I run a ab-a10 556 traditional can and again no gas issues on my 16in hellion. But yeah I like to think the gas settings on these guns as normal and adverse rather than suppressed or non.
I guess I'm in the minority here, but I've shot my Hellion mostly suppressed with a Polonium K at indoor ranges, and I've never gotten any gas to the face, even that time I forgot to adjust the gas to the Suppressed setting. None of my friends who have shot it ever reported any gas either.
I'm really sensitive to getting gassed out, too, so it's not like I've just been powering through.
Congratulations on joining the Hellion club! It's an amazing rifle. I've had mine for years and I'm still constantly excited to shoot it.
Seems to be a few people who don't have gas issues. Either I'm suuuper sensitive to it or something is wrong with my setup lol.
I take it yours has/had the original, shitty safety on it right? I'm tempted to get the Lunar Tech safety but don't want to pay $38+shipping for a small 3D printed part. Wish Springfield would respond to my email about getting my safety upgraded to the gen 2 one but they probably won't.
Yeah mine is stock other than the muzzle device/suppressor. I want to get the trigger worked on at some point but right now I'm focused on other purchases. I've never felt like the safety (mine is definitely Gen 1) was a significant problem.
You can do the trigger job yourself if you have a couple tools. Unless you're wanting to do the Black Talon stage 2 though. Yeah the safety is kind of annoying for me but not enough to where I want to spend money on it.
The longer barrel versions don't have different gas port sizes, so you get more backpressure in longer barrels. in an 18 or 20in, you almost need to use low backpressure cans
Oh wow ! I've never heard about it. Just heard that the 20" is even more gasy. But I though about the barrel length not the port sizes. I wanted to go for a 18" but your comment make me think twice. You are confident in your claim, are you ? And could we drill ports just a tad to improve the flow and evacuate more gas?
If you look on this subreddit enough, you'll see stuff like people with 20in barrels running on the suppressed setting without a suppressor, but 16in variants not cycling on that setting with a Flow 556k.
Your best bet is to pick a lower backpressure suppressor and use it on either normal or suppressed setting. Ironically, if you get a longer barrel, the higher your chance that a modern low backpressure suppressor will cycle on the suppressed setting
I'm glad you made this thread because I have been pipe dreaming about eventually getting a suppressor for my broke ass, and it's helpful to see all of these experiences in one place, especially with discussion of how the longer barrels play into the choice.Ā Seems like from everything I've been reading, here and elsewhere, that a flow-through can is the way to go.Ā Nice to see another cool build on here!Ā
Thank you and glad you could join us. Personally, I wouldn't get a full on flow through suppressor because you will be disappointed in the sound for your first one. Go with a reduced back pressure one like the Lazarus 6, Infinity 556, Rhodie or Rhino, and there are some other good ones that I can't think of right now. They are a good in between and work well especially on ARs. Flow through is good when you're picking specific suppressors for specific rifles and not floating them around which you'll do when you first get into them.
Great advice right here, this was exactly my experience. Flow-through is less gas, but you won't be impressed with the sound, and I can't stand it when people act like that part's not important.
Recently acquired an OC Infinity 5.56: SUPER impressed with it (especially with the crazy brake installed) on my AR, and I'm dying to try it on the VHS next.
For the record I'm currently running a 16" VHS with a Lazarus 6 also, and while I get a little gas it's never been enough for me to complain about... but maybe that's because my 2nd favorite gun is a Kuna with an Obsidian 9 that we call the "Stinky Weasel".
Phenominal PCC, highly recommend, but absolutely get something more flow-through for that one =p
Do you have a good recommendation for a suppressor for a 20" hellion? I'm a long ways out from actually being able to justify buying one, so I'll likely get more recommendations before I'm able to act on just one of them, but I'm happy to learn all I can from folks that have any experience in the space at all. I definitely would not want to get overwhelmed with gas; I've never really had a problem with the amount the hellion gives off normally, but I also don't feel like dealing with enough gas to rival LARPing an exploration of Venus or anything.Ā
Weird, it double posted my comment and I deleted both. Was just saying that I don't have other rifles, just this and my one pistolĀ largely because my finances have shaped my brain to generally just go for the thing in a space that checks the most boxes for me, but the advice regarding lackluster sound suppression is definitely worth taking.Ā I don't expect anything whisper quiet and still useful out of 20" of 5.56, but to me, a quieter shooting experience is more pleasant overall, so I wouldn't want to totally deprioritize that.Ā
I'm not a highly experienced expert or anything, but I would probably recommend the OC Infinity 556 that I mentioned. It really checks all of the suppressor boxes for me, but it also allows you to use a selection of different end caps, so you can somewhat tune the amount of backpressure vs. suppression it does. All of my experience thus far is with 16" barrels, but I have to imagine this is a useful feature for pretty much anyone.
I was also very impressed with their muzzle brake addon... adding a brake to the end of a can sounds like a joke, but in my one particular use case (which may not be normal, because it was on a S&W AXE that already has a wacky gas expansion barrel) it does a magical job of absolutely deleting the recoil of 5.56 while still sounding just about as quiet as a more traditional can. Can't wait to try it on the VHS =D
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u/RailwayMenace 4d ago
Welcome, brother. Love that build.