On 5-30-2015 I ordered the Atlas Bipod knockoff for the total sum including free shipping of $63.99. On 6-8-2015 I received the order which was shipped from China. Now that is impressive how fast it got here from the other side of the world. Upon opening the box I was pleasantly surprised to find the leg extensions were included for free. As I have previously posted, I own a genuine Atlas BT10-LW17 Bipob and said I would compare the genuine item which sells for $279.95, with the knockoff that sells for $215 less.
When parts are pictured side by side the Atlas parts are on the right, the knockoff's are on the left.
Appearance
The first thing I noticed about the knockoff, it actually has ATLAS BIPOD PATENTED stamped into the same spot as the real Atlas. The knurling is not as deeply cut or sharp and the knurling is not completely finished on some spots on the knockoff. The finish appears to be possibly painted on the knockoff and isn't as uniform as the Atlas. The stainless steel plate that the pin locks into when rotating the legs looks like it is stamped on the knockoff, on the Atlas it looks machined and is slightly thicker.
Winner: Atlas
knockoff
Atlas
knockoff
Atlas
Quick Release
The quick release on the knockoff is a simple cam that actually pushes against the picatinny rail as it rotates and appears to be nonadjustable. Very little of the cam is actually in contact with the rail when attached. Does it work? Yes, but the bipod moves a bit when it's mounted to the rail and I imagine if you hit it hard enough it might break free from the rail, especially if your rail is plastic. On the Atlas, the cam pushes against a full length block which then pushes against the picatinny rail. The system is adjustable and once locked onto the rail it's as if it is welded there with no movement whatsoever. The rail would be ripped from the rifle long before the quick release would pull away from the rail. Keep in mind if you wanted to buy just the quick release that comes on the Atlas it cost more than the whole knockoff at $64.95.
Winner: Atlas
knockoff
knockoff
knockoff
knockoff
knockoff
knockoff
Atlas
Atlas
Atlas
Legs
Both the knockoff and the Atlas have legs that telescope out and rotate 90 degrees forward and backward. The knockoff's legs need a bit more effort to rotate but the pins lock nicely into cutouts. The Atlas's legs are much easier to rotate and it's pins lock into the cutouts nicely as well. Upon extending both bipods' legs I found I liked the knockoff's better as there is less movement compared to the Atlas. Something tells me Atlas purposely made the legs that way but for me I like very little movement between the parts. But that's me.
Winner: Knockoff because I just like the legs tight.
knockoff
knockoff
Atlas
Atlas
Pan and Cant
The knockoff is a complete hunk of junk compared to the Atlas. On the Atlas you have +or -,15 degrees cant and pan and when you need to cant or pan the rifle, it is nice, smooth and solid. On the knockoff's the only cant comes from the the actual slop between the quick disconnect and the rail. It will pan left and right but it's not as smooth as the Atlas. I tried using the adjustment knob but it doesn't do anything as far as I can tell.
Winner: Atlas
Feet and Leg Extensions
Like I said above I was pleasantly surprised that the knockoff came with the leg extensions......until I tried to use them. First thing you should know is the knockoff's extensions will not fit the Atlas as the extension ends that fit into the bipod's legs are 10-15/1000 of an inch to big. What makes it worse, one of the knockoff's extentions wont fit into the knockoff's legs either. And one of the extension's wont stay locked into the knockoff's legs. On the Atlas the pins in their extensions that lock into the bipod's legs are longer than knockoff's so they work like they're supposed to. Also the atlas legs and feet fit perfectly as they should. Keep in mind the extensions for the Atlas are $49.95 as are the different feet they sell for their bipods. Yes it's a bit of money but everything works as it should. The feet that come with the knockoff are the same type as those used on the Atlas. They lock into place just like the Atlas and stay put because the locking pins are the same length as the Atlas ones, unlike the knockoff's extensions.
Winner: Atlas
knockoff
Atlas
Like most people in this world who have limited funds, I really like to save a buck when I can. I really wish after comparing both bipods I could say the knockoff is equal to the real Atlas but unfortunately this is a case of you get what you pay for. Is the Atlas a much better bipod compared to the knockoff? I would say absolutely yes. Is the Atlas worth $215.96 more than the knockoff? Only you can answer that question. For me, I think you get a lot for the extra $215.96, especially concerning the quick disconnect and the pan and cant feature that works on the Atlas and not so well on the knockoff. Will the knockoff get the job done? Sure it will but the air rifles I use my Atlas on are beautiful pieces of equipment worth a lot of money, so I don't mind paying for one bipod that is of equal quality and can quickly be moved from rifle to rifle. But that's just me and it's your rifle and your money so you'll have to decide what's important to you.
And lastly, below is the sticker BT Industries, the US maker of Atlas Bipods includes with their products. Which I thought was interesting.
When parts are pictured side by side the Atlas parts are on the right, the knockoff's are on the left.
Appearance
The first thing I noticed about the knockoff, it actually has ATLAS BIPOD PATENTED stamped into the same spot as the real Atlas. The knurling is not as deeply cut or sharp and the knurling is not completely finished on some spots on the knockoff. The finish appears to be possibly painted on the knockoff and isn't as uniform as the Atlas. The stainless steel plate that the pin locks into when rotating the legs looks like it is stamped on the knockoff, on the Atlas it looks machined and is slightly thicker.
Winner: Atlas
knockoff
Atlas
knockoff
Atlas
Quick Release
The quick release on the knockoff is a simple cam that actually pushes against the picatinny rail as it rotates and appears to be nonadjustable. Very little of the cam is actually in contact with the rail when attached. Does it work? Yes, but the bipod moves a bit when it's mounted to the rail and I imagine if you hit it hard enough it might break free from the rail, especially if your rail is plastic. On the Atlas, the cam pushes against a full length block which then pushes against the picatinny rail. The system is adjustable and once locked onto the rail it's as if it is welded there with no movement whatsoever. The rail would be ripped from the rifle long before the quick release would pull away from the rail. Keep in mind if you wanted to buy just the quick release that comes on the Atlas it cost more than the whole knockoff at $64.95.
Winner: Atlas
knockoff
knockoff
knockoff
knockoff
knockoff
knockoff
Atlas
Atlas
Atlas
Legs
Both the knockoff and the Atlas have legs that telescope out and rotate 90 degrees forward and backward. The knockoff's legs need a bit more effort to rotate but the pins lock nicely into cutouts. The Atlas's legs are much easier to rotate and it's pins lock into the cutouts nicely as well. Upon extending both bipods' legs I found I liked the knockoff's better as there is less movement compared to the Atlas. Something tells me Atlas purposely made the legs that way but for me I like very little movement between the parts. But that's me.
Winner: Knockoff because I just like the legs tight.
knockoff
knockoff
Atlas
Atlas
Pan and Cant
The knockoff is a complete hunk of junk compared to the Atlas. On the Atlas you have +or -,15 degrees cant and pan and when you need to cant or pan the rifle, it is nice, smooth and solid. On the knockoff's the only cant comes from the the actual slop between the quick disconnect and the rail. It will pan left and right but it's not as smooth as the Atlas. I tried using the adjustment knob but it doesn't do anything as far as I can tell.
Winner: Atlas
Feet and Leg Extensions
Like I said above I was pleasantly surprised that the knockoff came with the leg extensions......until I tried to use them. First thing you should know is the knockoff's extensions will not fit the Atlas as the extension ends that fit into the bipod's legs are 10-15/1000 of an inch to big. What makes it worse, one of the knockoff's extentions wont fit into the knockoff's legs either. And one of the extension's wont stay locked into the knockoff's legs. On the Atlas the pins in their extensions that lock into the bipod's legs are longer than knockoff's so they work like they're supposed to. Also the atlas legs and feet fit perfectly as they should. Keep in mind the extensions for the Atlas are $49.95 as are the different feet they sell for their bipods. Yes it's a bit of money but everything works as it should. The feet that come with the knockoff are the same type as those used on the Atlas. They lock into place just like the Atlas and stay put because the locking pins are the same length as the Atlas ones, unlike the knockoff's extensions.
Winner: Atlas
knockoff
Atlas
Like most people in this world who have limited funds, I really like to save a buck when I can. I really wish after comparing both bipods I could say the knockoff is equal to the real Atlas but unfortunately this is a case of you get what you pay for. Is the Atlas a much better bipod compared to the knockoff? I would say absolutely yes. Is the Atlas worth $215.96 more than the knockoff? Only you can answer that question. For me, I think you get a lot for the extra $215.96, especially concerning the quick disconnect and the pan and cant feature that works on the Atlas and not so well on the knockoff. Will the knockoff get the job done? Sure it will but the air rifles I use my Atlas on are beautiful pieces of equipment worth a lot of money, so I don't mind paying for one bipod that is of equal quality and can quickly be moved from rifle to rifle. But that's just me and it's your rifle and your money so you'll have to decide what's important to you.
And lastly, below is the sticker BT Industries, the US maker of Atlas Bipods includes with their products. Which I thought was interesting.
