I bought my first Atlas and I can see why everyone loves them. I painted it multicam so all the other bipods at the range can point and laugh, but it shall stand sturdy.
Don't buy an Atlas unless you plan on tossing out all your Harris pods!
I bought my first Atlas bipod last year just to "check it out"... I still had harris pods on my secondary sticks. Yeah well after shooting on it for a year, I change rifles to an AICS setup with my old harris bipod, thinking "no prob" I can shoot with either... damn I was wrong and it cost me another $300 bucks!
So I ordered the new V8 with the AI spigot, can't wait to use it. Can't shoot with the old harris anymore.
pic of my first Atlas that caused me all this woe
It's not just Atlas bipods... once you put a top-tier scope and rings on a rifle... game over. No more Bushnell or Burris. Once you put a TAB sling on a rifle... you are done. No more Uncle Mike's. For that matter, once you shoot an AI or a TRG or similar... All over. There is a reason there is serious gear that performs like serious gear out there... along with stuff that merely 'looks like' serious gear.
BTW, I am merely a casual addict when it comes to Atlas bipods... just two. But those are probably gateway bipods. Don't get me started on my USO scope habit, however. Was getting the deer rifle out and checking sights last weekend and the Leupold hunting scope on it... just doesn't cut it. Trying to justify a 1.5-6 USO... on a deer rifle, however, seems like the shooting equivalent of finding myself alone in a motel room on a Tuesday morning drinking Aqua Velva.
Cheers,
Sirhr