"Springfield Hellion" - a semi-automatic version of the HS Produkt VHS-2 rifle for the US market
A shooter with a Springfield Hellion rifle. Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
“Unique Selling Proposition (USP) is part of the competitive advantage on the basis of which the client chooses a company or product (based on the properties of the product or service).”
Rosser Reeves (1910-1984) is a well-known American advertiser, one of the "pillars" in the field of advertising theory and practice.
Rosser Reeves (1910-1984) is a well-known American advertiser, one of the "pillars" in the field of advertising theory and practice.
Weapon and firms. Today, the world arms market is saturated as never before, and not only quantitatively, but also qualitatively, since samples of various countries and peoples are available on it today. Moreover, the masters of weapons craftsmanship and production today are increasingly confronted (and this happens not only in the field of weapons production) with the so-called "young dragons" - countries for which the production of weapons until recently did not have any decisive significance at all, but in the new conditions who managed to create original and quite competitive samples. So the Springfield Hellion rifle is one of these designs.
Our site wrote about this rifle (or rather automatic, since this is a more familiar term for us) back in June 2014. It was reported that it was created in the company "HS Produkt", whose headquarters was in the Croatian city of Karlovac. In the late nineties, she released the HS2000 model, and then continued to experiment to improve this sample. It was also reported that the American company Springfield Armory LLC took up the distribution of the Croatian product in the United States. The rifle was designated VHS-2 and this second model entered production in 2014. Interestingly, when the French tested it, it took an honorable second place in the overall standings after the H&K 416, which they adopted along with their former FAMAS.
Everything is known in comparison: the barrel has the same length, but the length of the same AR-15 of the same company and VHS-2 is simply incomparable. In some cases, this is especially important! Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
It is noted that this choice for the Springfield Armory is not at all accidental, since the Hellion / VHS (Višenamjenska Hrvatska Strojnica in Croatian) has an extremely simple design, and perfect ergonomics, including fully ambidextrous control, adjustable stock length and the ability to install any modern optics . A two-position gas regulator makes it easy to use the silencer, and the ejection of spent cartridges can be adjusted either to the left or to the right, and the rifle can be fired from either shoulder, regardless of the ejection side. In addition, and this is also very important - since this is a bullpup rifle, it is much shorter than the traditional American "arches" with the same barrel length!
Rifle "Hellion" caliber 5,56 mm bullpup. View from the left. Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
In the world of firearms, many designs are constantly appearing and disappearing; and only some of them remain, while others disappear forever and remain only in private collections and museums. Some types of weapons experience the peak of fashion, and then fade away. But here is the bullpup scheme, which allows you to combine the characteristics of a full-size rifle with a carbine, although it has not become dominant, it densely occupies its niche, not yielding to other models. It is the size of the "Hellion" that first of all captivates. With a total length of just under 76 cm and a weight of 3200 g, it is not inferior in terms of the combination of its combat properties to rifles of the AR family. That is, she has a number of USPs, which made it possible to bring her to the American market, where there are simply a lot of all kinds of weapons.
The rifle is used by a special forces soldier. Wow, you are so cool! Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
The rifle is used in the Croatian army and in the Iraqi army, and is also supplied to African countries. They note that she has proven herself well in difficult conditions, which is why Springfield Armory LLC turned her attention to her.
View of the rifle on the right. Please note that the two-position safety is located both on the left and on the right. And instead of the usual colored dots, it is equipped with a pattern that is understandable even for the most stupid person ... Photo by "Springfield Armory LLC"
So, how is this company going to attract buyers to the Hellion, besides its small size and long barrel length?
To begin with, the rifle has a two-position gas regulator, which is convenient to use without resorting to tools.
The rifle has a 16-inch (406 mm) barrel. For an AR-15 to have the same length, its barrel must be 10 inches long, that is, 254 mm. Moreover, a rifle with a 10-inch barrel requires permission from the US federal tax service, which slows down the purchase process. And the Hellion has a long barrel and this removes all bureaucratic problems.
Back view. Unlike other bullpup rifles, the Hellion has a five-position adjustable buttstock (which is very rare on weapons of this system!), an AR-type pistol grip familiar to US shooters, and in addition it is also completely symmetrical. Thanks to this stock, shooters of any size will be able to properly fit it to ensure accurate shooting. He moved the top cover of the butt - he got access to the pins that control the covers of the hole for ejecting spent cartridges. Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
Well, the ejection of spent cartridges on the Hellion can be carried out both to the left and to the right, while the rifle does not need to be rearranged except for the bolt, and changing the working ejection hole cover is very easy. For right-hand ejection, the bolt is inserted into the bolt carrier so that the extractor is on the right side at the 10 o'clock position. For left-hand ejection, the extractor is moved to the left side at the 2 o'clock position. Well, the ejection hole cover itself is controlled by the corresponding pin. It is pushed back on the side that will not be used and fixed in place. The covers themselves are spring-loaded and open only under the influence of ejected cartridges, that is, the internal parts of the rifle are quite well protected from dust and dirt.
Diagram: rifle gas engine. It has a gas piston with a short stroke and a spring put on it. In general, the solution is not very good, because during prolonged shooting, and this happens, it can heat up very much, and the spring will also heat up from it and it will not get any better. Here is the barrel and plastic forearm. Scheme from the "Manual ..." "Springfield Armory LLC"
Scheme: device shutter, receiver and butt. The piston of the gas engine (previous scheme) rests on the long rod of the bolt carrier, inside which the rotary bolt moves, locking the barrel with eight lugs. The rotary bolt is very similar to the bolt of the M1 carbine and the bolt of the Kalashnikov assault rifle, but it has an interesting difference: its protrusion, sliding along the figured groove in the bolt carrier, is put on the striker passing through the bolt, and the striker serves as its axis, so this pin is movable. Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
When disassembling, every small detail is a source of increased attention, and this one is even more so. So such a solution cannot be considered good, but, apparently, it is due to the fact that the shutter of this sample is on-off and allows you to eject spent cartridges in both directions. And as you know, you always have to pay an increased price for comfort!
Front view of the rifle. You can also see the double-sided bolt handle in this photo. The sights and the gas regulator are also clearly visible. Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
By the way, that is why the cocking handle is also located not quite usually, but in the same way as on our two-medium ADS machine, that is, from above under the Picattini frame and can, respectively, turn both to the left and to the right. That is, both left-handed and right-handed people can act automatically, and the handle does not need to be rearranged. At the same time, when shooting, it does not move, which is also one of the conveniences. By the way, FAMAS also has a handle on top, but it doesn’t recline…
Two-medium Russian ADS assault rifle. Photo by Vitaly Kuzmin
Scheme from the "Instructions ..." Picatinny rail and sights. Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
Another great feature of this rifle is the presence of built-in folding mechanical sights integrated with the Picatinny rail. When lowered, they are completely out of the way, while being durable and very easy to use. They open with the push of a button and immediately snap into position and then snap into place. The ring sight has a rotating disk with holes of different diameters, set depending on the distance at which the fire is fired.
A shooter with a rifle mounted with a Nightforce NX8 1-8×24 F1 LPVO scope. Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
All other characteristics are not original. Shop standard for 30 rounds of Magpul. Buttstock and forearm made of high-strength black plastic.
Here it is, this store. Photo by Springfield Armory LLC
Disassembling a rifle is both simple and complex at the same time. It is simple because it does not require special devices. You press the bullet head on the well-marked pins, after which they are easily removed, and the rifle is disassembled into parts. However, there are quite a lot of these pins, so God forbid at least one such pin is lost or accidentally dropped into the sand.
Will this machine be bought in the USA? Undoubtedly, there is a niche, and demand, and lovers - and USP is for them. Will it find application not only in the civilian sphere? Who knows…
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