Atlas Pod Lock (won't)

[DocRDS]

I have the Atlas cal (at least I think its the CAL) with the built in pod lock /ARCA rail attach

No matter how much a crank down the tension its still way too loose and easy bumped off center. Is there any kind of tension adjustment. I'm not superman by any stretch, but its waay to loose for my liking.

 

[tnc]

After you tighten all the way, pull it out (toward the trigger) twist it back (to the right) push it back in (toward the muzzle) and then tighten some more.

 

[Old Man with Gun]

There is a friction washer between these two surfaces. Make sure it is clean, but not oily. You can rough up the surface a little for more grip, but you should not need to.

 

[rangerlong]

I have two CALs and a Super CAL. They lock up ok but sometimes I can accidentally tilt the gun on the bipod.
None of them lock up so tight than I can’t tilt them.
I’ll see if @Old Man with Gun’s advice works.

 

[carbonbased]

If you spin the handle off, you can make gross adjustments to the tension by cranking the nut in or out. I think you need a socket? I can’t remember, been a while since I did that.

But you can’t really get it to totally lock off. The tension goes from on to off in too short of arc. But you can get it pretty close to locking off.

That’s my main criticism of Atlas, the short arc from on to off. Hard to fine-tune. And I’d prefer a total lock off like my LRA and Elite Iron (but I’m not sure one absolutely needs complete lock off).

 

[DocRDS]

I have two CALs and a Super CAL. They lock up ok but sometimes I can accidentally tilt the gun on the bipod.
None of them lock up so tight than I can’t tilt them.
I’ll see if @Old Man with Gun’s advice works.

I hear ya and I know that its impossible to get "no tilt" mine is just way too loose for easy bumping. Its a lot easier than my pod-lock harris.

 

[hafejd30]

After you tighten all the way, pull it out (toward the trigger) twist it back (to the right) push it back in (toward the muzzle) and then tighten some more.

Assuming you do this I’m interested in the results.

My cal I can still rotate when tight but I have to “want to rotate” it to do so

 

[TmisterE]

On my cal I put a 1/8" thick nylon washer in place of the brass washer and it helps quite a bit but still will not completely lock out cant, the pod lock goes from loose to dead stop, seems like this is by design nylon washer does help though.

 

[rangerlong]

My harris pod loc also locks up tighter than the atlases.
I’d like to get the atlases to that point.

Nylon washer is a good idea to try.

 

[Old Man with Gun]

The washer in these seems fairly slick, more anti-friction than high friction. I haven't played with it, but I think a carbon drag washer with a little grease like they use in fishing reals might be both smooth and have solid lock up. A carbonex drag washer if you can find or make one the right size perhaps?

 

[spife7980]

I hear ya and I know that its impossible to get "no tilt" mine is just way too loose for easy bumping. Its a lot easier than my pod-lock harris.

That not locking entirely is an atlas thing and probably the what I hate about them second most, first being that you have to pull down on the leg to slide it up.
You’ll never lock it out entirely in the atlas like you can in a harris, everything is designed “looser”, just something that has to be accepted.

 

[waveslayer]

I had to send mine back to Atlas for the same issue once. They fixed it for free

 

[Old Man with Gun]

The washer they use is super slick, like teflon slick. Even with it I can get it to lock up very solid. If I wanted more I would rough both sides with fine sandpaper, but I don't think I need to.

If you used a washer intended for friction, it would be even more solid, it might not be as silky loose if you wanting quick changes in the field. But, if you only want to set and forget on a concrete bench, swap it for carbon fiber like the drag washers I mentioned.

 

[HousePlant]

I have the same issue. One of a few reasons I prefer the Accu-Tac I also have.

 

[Pvt.Donut]

If you spin the handle off, you can make gross adjustments to the tension by cranking the nut in or out. I think you need a socket? I can’t remember, been a while since I did that.

But you can’t really get it to totally lock off. The tension goes from on to off in too short of arc. But you can get it pretty close to locking off.

That’s my main criticism of Atlas, the short arc from on to off. Hard to fine-tune. And I’d prefer a total lock off like my LRA and Elite Iron (but I’m not sure one absolutely needs complete lock off).

Just did this to mine over the weekend. Rotate off the Pod Loc and there is a nut under that. This nut controls the loose tension, I tightened it until my gun isn't floppy when help at the lowest tension. This way I have a default lowest tension that I use for general shooting and if I need to I can lock the bipod down. Usually when locked down its only short term as even a little bit of movement will loosen the PodLoc. Which is fine because I only really need full lock down in certain circumstances and 95% of the time run my default tension.

 

[Ravenworks]

I tried one of these and ended up putting them on all of mine for simplicity.

BUILT FOR COMPETITION

victorcompanyusa.com

 

[Steel head]

Yea
I wish the adjustment and lock was a bit better on the CAL and SCAL.
As mentioned above if you tighten the nut underneath the podlock it helps a lot.

 

[CShooter92]

I had to send mine back to Atlas for the same issue once. They fixed it for free

Same! After I got it back, you could tell they changed some parts in it. I must have had an older model and they updated it. Works perfect now

 

[rijndael]

I had a CAL, which was upgraded to the CAL v2. I was never happy with the unlocked vs locked tension. When one was right the other was wrong. I'm back on a Harris.

If I didn't come from a Harris, which has a much better tension range, I may not have cared as much. I'd like a CAL with the tension of a Harris.

 

[lash]

Same! After I got it back, you could tell they changed some parts in it. I must have had an older model and they updated it. Works perfect now

Back in the thread where the CAL was introduced, this was discovered and discussed. Atlas does offer a free fix for this. Just send them an email telling them your issue. They will likely either send you the new part(s) or you can send it in, I believe.

 

[carbonbased]

I tried one of these and ended up putting them on all of mine for simplicity.

BUILT FOR COMPETITION

victorcompanyusa.com

But this thing doesn't apply to a non-panning Atlas. I think?

 

[b6graham]

But this thing doesn't apply to a non-panning Atlas. I think?

correct. those are for the V8/PSR not the CAL/SCAL

 

[carbonbased]

The washer they use is super slick, like teflon slick. Even with it I can get it to lock up very solid. If I wanted more I would rough both sides with fine sandpaper, but I don't think I need to.

If you used a washer intended for friction, it would be even more solid, it might not be as silky loose if you wanting quick changes in the field. But, if you only want to set and forget on a concrete bench, swap it for carbon fiber like the drag washers I mentioned.

View attachment 7832211

Can one cut or sand a carbon fiber washer’s OD down to size? Or will it simply shatter?

I might have found a washer of acceptable thickness and ID, but the OD is too large.

 

[vh20]

Can one cut or sand a carbon fiber washer’s OD down to size? Or will it simply shatter?

I might have found a washer of acceptable thickness and ID, but the OD is too large.

I would think (haven't tried it, but since it is a matrix it shouldn't shatter) you could chuck it in a drill with the correct sized i.d. bolt as a mandrel, and spin it against a grinder, and turn it down to the desired o.d. Direction of rotation of the drill should be so that it isn't opposing the direction of the grinder. It's just one washer - give it a try.
Ironic question, given your username.

 

[lash]

Can one cut or sand a carbon fiber washer’s OD down to size? Or will it simply shatter?

I might have found a washer of acceptable thickness and ID, but the OD is too large.

I would think (haven't tried it, but since it is a matrix it shouldn't shatter) you could chuck it in a drill with the correct sized i.d. bolt as a mandrel, and spin it against a grinder, and turn it down to the desired o.d. Direction of rotation of the drill should be so that it isn't opposing the direction of the grinder. It's just one washer - give it a try.
Ironic question, given your username.

But do wear a dust mask for this.

 

[carbonbased]

But do wear a dust mask for this.

Yeah, totally! I’ll probably first stick it in there just to first see if it’s worth the effort.

 

[carbonbased]

By Jove I think I did it! See here for my carbon fiber drag washer writeup. WIth help from @Old Man with Gun and emotional support from @lash lol

My solution to stiffen up Atlas bipod cant

Ok, sparked by this post by @Old Man with Gun: https://www.snipershide.com/shooting/threads/atlas-pod-lock-wont.7115939/post-10103830 I began a quest to find a carbon fiber drag washer for my CAL v2 bipod. Drag, as for fishing reels, not for drag shows. Anyway, I found one, which amazingly...

www.snipershide.com

 

[Terry Cross]

Points to consider:

1) RE: The CAL bipods will not lock the tilt feature solidly.
The very first production of the CAL was with the tilt feature of ALL of them locking up solid and tight. Tons of internet customers complained that they preferred a slight amount of softness or give to the locking tilt feature so that the user could force a little english/tweak into the sight picture without having to reach up and unlock, re-level and lock again.

B&T responded by giving the market a change that allowed just that. This disenchanted the slice of the market that wanted a solid lock.
The disenchanted portion of the market is verbalizing in this thread and others.

B&T was responsive to (some of) the market.
It is impossible to make everybody happy and it is probably not a smart move to have two completely different SKUs in inventory.

Anyone can go back to the old threads that surrounded the first 6 months of the CAL product rollout and see the uproar of unpleased users because the cant feature locked too solidly.

I do not envy B&T or any other company in that lane. Even with stellar products, you cannot please the entire market.

**I am not trying to speak for B&T. This is solely my own opinion and take on the background leading up to the current CAL threads. I'm sure they can address this on their own far better than I can.

2) RE: The Pod-Loc kit was produced for the LEO market.
Indeed the LEO niche is where 90% of KMW rifles go and ton of Pod-Locs are in use there but it was LE was not the catalyst for the origin of it.

The KMW Pod-Loc kit was initially built and produced in response to seeing SS Marines tearing up their new Harris S-model bipods with Leathermans, SOG pliers and other tools in an attempt to lock and un-lock the tilt feature during the week long NASC championship in 1999.
The USMC was in the process of finalizing the kit specs for the M40-A3. The Pod-Loc kits were tested, added to the kit specs and issued an NSN by 2000.

The complete history of the Pod-Loc kit can be read here: https://www.kmwlrs.com/pod-loc

3) RE: The Pod-Loc does not produce a solid lock for the tilt feature of the CAL.
The Pod-Loc does only one job. It allows a reasonable amount of torque to be imparted to the center pivot rod component of the CAL and Harris S bipods. The actual result of whether the bipod achieves a solid lock of the tilt feature is not dependent on the Pod-Loc. It is dependent on the design and materials used in the mechanical clutch/lock feature of the bipod itself.

This is proven by the fact that the very first CALs produced a solid tilt/lock which a ton of people complained about. B&T responded by modifying the tilt/lock components to allow a soft lock which is what you see today. No changes were made to the Pod-Loc during the product evolution and transition.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I am going to copy and paste this post to the other thread as well in an attempt to explain things better and perhaps allow a better resolution to both camps (I want my lockup tight vs I want my lockup soft).

Hope this helps.
T

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