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  • Dawico

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    Since I have an Atlas, GG&G, and Harris bipod handy I figured I would give a little review and comparison of each. I will show their strengths and weaknesses and give my preferences for each one.

    I also have a few knock offs to compare and maybe help you identify since there seems to be scammers selling some of them as authentic.

    I will break it down in separate posts so please bear with me.

    All three are made in the USA. The knock offs not so much.

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    Lynx Defense
     
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    Dawico

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    First off the Atlas. These are available as no mount, a standard screw type Picatinny mount, and two different quick release mounts. The standard mount like mine runs about $220 and the quick release mounts run about $280. All three mount to a Picatinny rail.

    As stated, mine is just a standard screw mount similiar to scope rings. I used red Loctite on the screws and snapped one off. Atlas would have fixed it for free (plus shipping) but I went ahead and drilled the screws out and put stainless bolts in it since I was in a hurry at the time.

    The Atlas uses spring pins to open the legs at either 0°, 45°, or 90° and forward or backwards. It also has built in cant adjustment (tilting the rifle left to right) as well as pan adjustment (moving the rifle left to right at the buttstock). This can be locked down securely or left loose for freedom of movement.

    The bipod legs at 90° give a height of 6" to 9" with notches at various heights in between. At 45° the height goes as low as 4 3/4" from the bottom of the Picatinny rail.

    The bipods are solid and generally considered the standard that all others are measured by.

    The legs are absolutely locked in in any position. There are many options available for them. Leg extensions, different feet including spikes and a wider spiked pad (they come with rubber feet), as well as the afore mentioned mounting options.

    I have the spiked feet and the wider spiked pads. The spiked feet give amazing traction for loading the bipod on almost any surface.

    The rubber feet allow the legs to spin and make loading the bipod hard to do. Many shooters put the feet out at 45° forward to fight this. There is a new version of the Atlas out that keeps the legs from spinning but I don't have any experience with it.
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    Dawico

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    The GG&G bipod is also a very nice unit. This unit runs about $180 and there are a few different options to choose from.

    This one mounts to a Picatinny rail using a thumb screw.

    The legs lock forward or down with no provision for any angles or folding backward with an easy to push spring loaded lever. They lock in solid in either position. There is also cant adjustment that can also be tightened down or left loose with a thumb screw. There is no panning feature.

    The foot pads are rubber with great texture on them. The legs adjust from 7"- 9" with infinite adjustments in between. There are no notches on the leg settings but a thumb screw locks them in place.



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    Dawico

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    The Harris model I have is a BRM model, which signifies notched legs. This is a 6-9 model but Harris has an almost limitless array of models and features.

    This one has no canting or panning feature and runs about $70. Upgrade to canting and they run about $100. Again though, there are many different models and prices to choose from. This one is one of the cheapest models.

    Most of them mount on a standard sling swivel stud on the fore end of your rifle. It is a very clever design but they have an adapter available to mount it on a Picatinny rail.

    The legs use a spring to hold them either up or down at 90°. They do not lock in place in either position. The springs are very tough and hold the legs well. This could be an issue if you have to drag your rifle backwards but this set up also makes them the fastest to deploy.

    This model holds the rifle up from 5 1/2" to 8" with notches in the legs for in between heights. Again, this is just one of the models available. Pushing the release button for the leg adjustments sends the legs out into the full height position and they lock there automatically. The spring no longer puts pressure on the legs so adjustments in height from there are easy. The spring only pushes on the legs at the shortest adjustment.

    These pictures are a rough mock up as I don't have a rifle handy to mount it on at the moment.

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    Dawico

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    These are all very nice bipods and any one of them will serve most shooters well. Of course there are many other bipods available at many different price points but these three seem to be the most popular.

    The Atlas is built like a tank and fits perfectly on my heavy 338 Lapua rifle. If you want to use one for a jack stand under your car this is the one. It loads up well with the spiked feet and makes for a very solid shooting platform.

    I don't like that the legs spin (which has been addressed with newer models) and no matter how tight I get the adjustment my 338 Lapua will still cant the rifle. I ended up taking the mount apart and removing a washer in the pivot to prevent this from happening.

    I was also disappointed that a mounting screw broke by using red Loctite on it but that isn't the first time that has happened to me. I use blue on all gun related parts now and haven't had any issues.

    The GG&G bipod is going on my Stealth as the look fits the rifle very well. It is a sleek looking bipod in my opinion and looks great on the rifle.

    I really like most of the features of this bipod. It is limited on height adjustment but I don't consider that a major drawback. It is also the slowest to deploy if you have to adjust the leg height. Notches make that much faster but also limit the heights available.

    The Harris is going to be mounted on my AR10. The rifle has a sling stud so it will mount right up with ease. As that rifle is the fastest for being ready to shoot and for follow up shots it makes sense to put the fastest deploying bipod on it. Not that I think it will ever be an issue but it works well.

    A Harris will fit most hunting rifles right out of the box and is a good choice for them. The Atlas and GG&G are big steps in the price department but IMO are worth the extra expense for the quality and features they bring to the table.

    Any one of them will be a great addition to your bipod needs.
     

    Dawico

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    Lets talk about the knock offs.

    The most popular one is a Harris knock off sold at most sporting good stores. These actually used to have the Harris name on them (atleast at Walmart) but have since been marketed as Blackhawk, Winchester, Caldwell, and others for almost the same exact bipod.

    Honestly these are pretty decent bipods and mount the same as the Harris. One sling stud is all you need.

    They are not near the same quality as a Harris though. The screws come loose, the springs aren't as tight, and they flex allowing the rifle to cant while shooting.

    Some had notched legs and adjustable cant but the current ones do not. They also have springs in the legs which pull the legs back in for rapidly putting it away I guess. This makes it a pain to adjust the legs as they slide in when you loosen the screw to adjust them.

    But honestly for $40 or so they do the job and aren't like buying off the black market.

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    This is a knock off with the Harris. They are made of thinner materials and weaker parts but are of similar design.
     
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    Dawico

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    This is the knock off that pisses me off. They are sold as an authentic Atlas but are nowhere near Atlas quality. They come with paperwork that says Atlas and even have Atlas stamped on them.

    And they are junk.

    This one came in a trade deal but was marketed as an actual Atlas bipod but for a really good deal. I didn't realize until much later that it wasn't an Atlas.

    I mounted it on my 338 Lapua and the lack of quality showed itself immediately.

    The Atlas feet do not fit the legs on this thing.

    The leg height notches let go during recoil. I had to readjust it after every shot.

    The notched piece that the pins for the leg angle settings lock into are made of Aluminum, not Stainless Steel like the original. During the course of fire the notches wore out and the legs got loose.

    There is no locking the cant adjustment. No matter how tight I turned the knob it was still loose.

    The quick connect mount wasn't quick at all. If it was tight while locked then it wouldn't open enough to release it from the rifle. If it released from the rifle it wouldn't lock tight.

    Once you know what to look for it is easy to spot this particular knock off.

    The marking are the same but the parts are different.

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    The Atlas has a two step cut on the leg height adjustment collars. The knock off has just one. The screws on the Atlas are bare Stainless Steel while the knock off's are black. The afore mentioned Aluminum versus Stainless notched piece for the leg angle adjustments is a big tell tale sign if you can spot the difference between the two materials (your pocket knife will make a good cut into Aluminum but will barely scratch Stainless Steel). You can see where the Aluminum is letting go in the notches.

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    Like I said, this knock off is often sold as an authentic Atlas so make sure you are buying from a reputable dealer.
     

    Dawico

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    Dawico, if you wanted one bipod to switch between 6 different rifles for porpoises ranging from hunting to target shooting, what would you choose?
    Good question.

    I would have to say an Atlas probably. The sheer ruggedness of their design is hard to beat.

    Get the spiked feet and a few sets of leg extensions and you would have a very versatile system.

    The spiked feet get great traction on almost any surface and some leg extensions to hold the rifle above the grass on stalk type hunts. You would be set for most scenarios.

    Go with one of the quick connect mounts and you could swap it over in seconds.
     

    Mike_from_Texas

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    Very nice.
    Atlas is by far my favorite. I own the previous model as well as the current model with the no spin feet. Both are rock solid but the newer model is a little easier to load up.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
     

    Dawico

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    Very nice.
    Atlas is by far my favorite. I own the previous model as well as the current model with the no spin feet. Both are rock solid but the newer model is a little easier to load up.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
    What did they change to make the feet not spin on the newer version?
     

    Dawico

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    Nice write up. I might have to step up to the Atlas. I won't tell Tina that YOU have me spending even more money.
    Tell her how I tried to save you money by suggesting the regular mount (not quick connect).

    The quick connects are nice but aren't worth the premium (IMO) if you don't plan on switching it from rifle to rifle.

    Just don't get the "no mount" as you will need another part (not sure from who) to mount it.
     
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