Shortening Brno Fox .222 to 18”?

**kaspaas** · 29-11-2021, 22:25

I am building a compact rifle for my wife and daughters. My Brno Fox mod2 in .222 currently has a 23.6” barrel. I want to fit a supressor with length of 7.5”. So thinking of shortening barrel to 18”. Then overall length with supressor fitted will only be 2” more than current. Cant see the rifle being used passed 200 m, so not too stressed about losing a few fps muzzle velocity. Thoughts?

**treeman** · 30-11-2021, 00:23

What will the rifle be used for to achieve?
I have a 18 " thats a pleasure to use, but I always reilase that 16' was likely what I was hoping for, its a eats any ammo rather well weapon.
The short barrel just adds +++++ shootability.

Lastly please do not f;kup a good ol piece of history for a experiment.

**Ds J** · 30-11-2021, 06:24

How would they use it? If it is for range use, shooting off a bakkie or voorsit, a longer barrel has its place and the extra length should not matter that much. If they want to walk and stalk, it makes sense to chop the barrel.

**treeman** · 30-11-2021, 07:43

I have 3 rifles that have had barrels reduced by a third of length right down to less than 50 % of length, they are all just so much nicer in every way.
Although the nicer is better and more pleasing in every way, there are some loss's in the ballistics and it is these loss's that cause doubts for some folk who want a rifle for ? well they do not really know - hunting I suppose, where ? Dunno, on a farm I guess.

I have a .223 - .303 - 458 Win Mag, all with 30 % to 60 % reduced barrel's lengths. They are used extensively in the coastal scrub and forest with occasional coastal valley application. For the chosen usage they are unbeatable, and the reduced weight is apparent the moment you pass a friend his uncut rifle through a thicket or over a fence.
I honestly feel that the shortened barrel credits the carrier 2 hours at least before the day becomes a bit much.

Might be bit wrong cutting a original Bruno up though ?

**kaspaas** · 30-11-2021, 08:45

Thanks for the advice! Treeman, agreed it would not be nice to cut up a classic rifle, but this rifle is not mint anymore and at this point I would rather modify it to make it more pleasant to use. I want to introduce the daughters to hunting, and plan on loading some Barnes TSX to get a bit more performance from the .222. Will be mostly walk and stalk. If I go to my friend’s farm in the Freestate, then the supressed .222 will be useful for plinking and some small game. It is not a typical open Freestate farm, and all shots should be well under 250 m. If I take it to 16”, the with the 7.5” supressor the overall length will be the same as current length with 23.6” barrel. But 16” might be a bit extreme, so I want to compromise on 18”…

**janfred** · 30-11-2021, 08:52

Do you really need such a big suppressor for that small calibre rifle?

**TStone** · 30-11-2021, 09:21

This is an article about barrel length vs velocity. Not a 222 but the results for the 55gr bullets will at least give you an idea of how much velocity you will lose.

https://rifleshooter.com/2015/12/223...s-to-6-inches/

**kaspaas** · 30-11-2021, 10:21

Originally Posted by TStone

This is an article about barrel length vs velocity. Not a 222 but the results for the 55gr bullets will at least give you an idea of how much velocity you will lose.

https://rifleshooter.com/2015/12/223...s-to-6-inches/

Very interesting!

**treeman** · 30-11-2021, 16:29

Originally Posted by TStone

This is an article about barrel length vs velocity. Not a 222 but the results for the 55gr bullets will at least give you an idea of how much velocity you will lose.

https://rifleshooter.com/2015/12/223...s-to-6-inches/

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This article was one of my most useful internet finds as well.