New Atlas Bipod--Play in Legs Usual?

[Ace of Ben]

Hey guys, quick question:

I just received my first Atlas Bipod (V8), and was curious about the expected amount of play in the legs.

At full extension (9"), a gentle shaking of the bipod reveals quite a bit of movement around the extendable leg joints. Having never used an Atlas, I was expecting a relatively tight fight (even at full extension). My previous Harris S-BRMs are a tighter fit around the legs when extended, which is my only real basis for comparison.

Is this regular for Atlas bipods, or do I have a particularly loose unit?

I've read and heard nothing but stellar reviews of the Atlas, but was expecting a particularly solid locking mechanism at the legs for a rock-solid shooting position.

Any insight/experience from users/owners would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[thrusty]

What you're seeing is normal. It's actually welcomed as you have the ability to load the bipod and take the slack out while the Harris bipods are more rigid and you really can't tell if you load them enough or too much.

 

[65guys_steve]

What you're seeing is normal. It's actually welcomed as you have the ability to load the bipod and take the slack out.

+1

That play is there for you to load the bipod (load until the slack is gone).

 

[Ace of Ben]

Thanks for the quick replies, gents.

To clarify, the play is in the leg extensions. My understanding is the Atlas allows you to load it from the internals at the top of the bipod, not at the leg joints.

Posting a quick video below to show what I mean.



Normal or no?

 

[Rabbitz]

I plugged on of these babies into my aics less than a year ago and fell in love, as stated above, loading is so much easier. "Play in the legs" is to be expected. I shot Harris for years and they make a fine product but Atlas blows them away imho.

 

[Sportin Wood]

I like it when the legs are looser, they open easier. Wait, am I talking bout my Atlas or Shank's women???

 

[jdr724]

Is the play mainly coming from the leg and it's length extension piece OR the leg adjustment button?

I ask because I recently picked up my 6th new 8.1 version from a known g2g vendor and there is about triple the play vs.the 5 I had leading up to this new one. It appears that the leg angle adjustment button is showing a lot of movement on this one. I tried tightening up the button but it's as tight as it gets.

Thanks for reminding me about this, I'm going to give them a call tomorrow.

 

[Swift]

Kasey from Accu Shot is a member here, he'll probably chime in and confirm exactly where the play is built in. Either way, when it's loaded, the feet are behind the mount on a forward cant so any forward pressure pushes the feet into the ground. On a Harris, the feet remain perpendicular so any forward pressure moves the whole thing. You can dig em in for a bit of traction but the Atlas stays put under most conditions. You can also swap out the feet to fit any surface.

Lastly, spend some time tinkering with the pan/tilt tension knob. There's no right way to set it; some guys run it loose like an AI or Sako type and some guys run it tight. I run mine tight enough that the rifle supports its own weight if canted but loose enough that there's no resistance when panning. You'll have to find what suits you.

 

[Ace of Ben]

Thanks for everyone's responses thus far.

I put together a quick, one handed video (I suggest watching with sound, you can hear some of the play) to show what I'm talking about. It's not a massive amount of movement, but enough that it feels...loose.

JDR--to your question, it's the leg extension piece. I did the same thing you did, and tried to tighten it up to no avail. I watched several video reviews of the Atlas prior to purchasing, and saw none of what I've experienced. Not to make mountains out of molehills by any means (the Atlas otherwise feels excellent), but I'm curious as to whether I should send this back for a replacement.

You'll see right around the :10 mark what I'm talking about.

Atlas bipod play 2 - YouTube

Thanks again for everyone's time!

 

[Swift]

Search for a fella on here by the name of Kasey. He's the owner of AccuShot. Or for a more prompt response, call him directly. As busy as he is, he's great about answering calls and responding to voicemails. He'll give you a better answer than anyone else here.

 

[jdr724]

I'm not worried one bit because I know how they do business.

 

[wvlapua]

Mine is also loose. Surprised the hell outta me when I extended the legs. Just figured it"s a function of design and threw it in the safe. It is new from a reputable dealer.

 

[Kasey]

Thank you for your patronage.

This play was recognized in our prototype and what was discovered in T&E is that it "loads" away with what I believed was a positive result.

The option to eliminate it was to increase the bearing surface length of the inner and out legs thus reducing the over all height range by the same length (about an inch).

IN USE I could not define a fault in the current design. When not supporting a rifle the play bugged me too, but I asked myself; what is the intended purpose of this bipod? To support a rifle while contacting a surface. I went with more adjustment.

To my specwar buddy, Thank you for the heads up, keep up the good work! Your laundry list of qualities continues to grow!