Atlas or Akai

[Nalle2491]

They're both great gun builders, but I personally think that an Akai is just a step up from an Atlas. It might just be the cosmetics on the akai, but you really couldnt go wrong with either...

[Aggieddad02]

The common denominator in any custom built gun is - you are going to have to wait.  I see lots of posts regarding Atlas guns and they seem to be very favorable, likewise I see a lot of posts about Akai guns and they likewise are very favorable.  Questions like the OP asked will always generate  opinionated answers as there is no way to measure the quality of a gun.  I have 2 limited Akai guns and Shay is working on my open gun at this very moment.  I should have it right after the first of the year.  I sent my first and only message to Shay today inquiring about the status and he immediately responded.  If you buy a gun from a reputable builder you should have no worries whatsoever.  Best of luck on your decision and once you make your decision don't second guess it.

[Furrly]

1 hour ago, Aggieddad02 said:

The common denominator in any custom built gun is - you are going to have to wait.  I see lots of posts regarding Atlas guns and they seem to be very favorable, likewise I see a lot of posts about Akai guns and they likewise are very favorable.  Questions like the OP asked will always generate  opinionated answers as there is no way to measure the quality of a gun.  I have 2 limited Akai guns and Shay is working on my open gun at this very moment.  I should have it right after the first of the year.  I sent my first and only message to Shay today inquiring about the status and he immediately responded.  If you buy a gun from a reputable builder you should have no worries whatsoever.  Best of luck on your decision and once you make your decision don't second guess it.

How long is your open gun taking to build. 

[shootmove]

You might want to check out Nils Jonasson's thoughts on 9mm major vs 38SC - it made me think (I saw you are set on 9mm major):

https://nilsjshooting.com/2016/08/25/open-guns-9mm-or-38-supercomp/

[Sarge]

5 minutes ago, shootmove said:

You might want to check out Nils Jonasson's thoughts on 9mm major vs 38SC - it made me think (I saw you are set on 9mm major):

https://nilsjshooting.com/2016/08/25/open-guns-9mm-or-38-supercomp/

Funny. He writes that 38 is his choice yet nearly all the replies defend 9MAJOR. So even he is in the minority in his own blog.

[jnr88]

There are no rational Open shooters for the black art. LOL

[shootmove]

 IDK - I read the same post and found 9mm major winning on cost, and 38SC on reliability. Interesting data point for you: spoke to Rob Leatham about a week ago. He's 100% on 9mm major -- and the only reason (nothing wrong with 38SC) is it's easier to find cartridges anywhere in the world.

Edited December 10, 2018 by shootmove
grammar

[Sarge]

2 minutes ago, shootmove said:

 IDK - I read the same post and found 9mm major winning on cost, and 38SC on reliability. Interesting data point for you: spoke to Rob Leatham about a week ago. He's 100% on 9mm major -- and the only reason (nothing wrong with 38SC) is it's easier to find cartridges anywhere in the world.

38 is dead.

[Jimboslice]

On 12/7/2018 at 6:46 AM, IDAHOAASHOOTER said:

Pick the one that looks the coolest to you, in the budget, and you get warm and fuzziest talking with the builder. 

 

I chose don at Venom, he was very up front while talking with. Literally anything you want he will build you. His build times will have you shooting a new gun by St Patrick's day. No other builder can do that at his price point. 

Budget? Have you seen Atlas has increased their prices 13% in 2 years? I love my chaos and I've been wanting to get another one to have my "old" one as my backup but I can't justify buying the exact same gun 2 years later for $800 more.

[lacivilian]

1 hour ago, Jimboslice said:

Budget? Have you seen Atlas has increased their prices 13% in 2 years? I love my chaos and I've been wanting to get another one to have my "old" one as my backup but I can't justify buying the exact same gun 2 years later for $800 more.

Give them a call.

[B_Seehawer]

[emoji23] IDK - I read the same post and found 9mm major winning on cost, and 38SC on reliability. Interesting data point for you: spoke to Rob Leatham about a week ago. He's 100% on 9mm major -- and the only reason (nothing wrong with 38SC) is it's easier to find cartridges anywhere in the world.

Lol. I hate having to pick out steel cased or stepped Supercomp.

Oh wait, there’s not 500 manufacturers of Supercomp brass.

[B_RAD]

22 minutes ago, B_Seehawer said:

Lol. I hate having to pick out steel cased or stepped Supercomp.

Oh wait, there’s not 500 manufacturers of Supercomp brass.

If there were, SC brass wouldn't cost $.15 ea like it does now. 

[B_Seehawer]

If there were, SC brass wouldn't cost $.15 ea like it does now. 

Yeah, but the price you pay gets cut in half every time you reload it.

[B_RAD]

4 hours ago, B_Seehawer said:

Yeah, but the price you pay gets cut in half every time you reload it.

Same goes for 9. If you pick it up.  I don't. 

 

I was just saying, too bad more don't make it. It'd be cheaper. 

[MemphisMechanic]

3 hours ago, B_RAD said:

Same goes for 9. If you pick it up.  I don't. 

 

Same.

 

One time in my life, I’ve paid $80 for a 5 gallon bucket of 9mm brass. I’ve loaded at least 50k of it, and never paid for brass. I don’t bother picking it up on match day. I’ll just head to the range when I get low, and come  home with another half bucket full in an hour. I probably touch brass lying on the ground maybe 4 times a year.

[Hi-Power Jack]

5 hours ago, B_RAD said:

too bad more don't make ,38 brass. It'd be cheaper. 

 

I don't think so.     

 

Brand new 9mm brass isn't that much cheaper than .38 brass.

 

It's just that you can easily purchase 9mm brass USED - very

difficult to buy .38 brass used.

 

New, they're the same price almost - but USED, that's where the

big savings is for 9mm.    

 

But, as some mentioned, if you buy brand new .38 brass, and use it

4-10 times in practice - then reload it again and leave it at the range,

it costs the same as 9mm brass that you bought used.   

[B_Seehawer]

 
I don't think so.     
 
Brand new 9mm brass isn't that much cheaper than .38 brass.
 
It's just that you can easily purchase 9mm brass USED - very
difficult to buy .38 brass used.
 
New, they're the same price almost - but USED, that's where the
big savings is for 9mm.     [emoji4]
 
But, as some mentioned, if you buy brand new .38 brass, and use it
4-10 times in practice - then reload it again and leave it at the range,
it costs the same as 9mm brass that you bought used.   

AND it’s not possibly shot out of 90 different guns.

[B_RAD]

12 minutes ago, Hi-Power Jack said:

 

I don't think so.     

 

Brand new 9mm brass isn't that much cheaper than .38 brass.

 

It's just that you can easily purchase 9mm brass USED - very

difficult to buy .38 brass used.

 

New, they're the same price almost - but USED, that's where the

big savings is for 9mm.    

 

But, as some mentioned, if you buy brand new .38 brass, and use it

4-10 times in practice - then reload it again and leave it at the range,

it costs the same as 9mm brass that you bought used.   

Sorry........ I wasn't trying to resurrect the dead horse that is "which is cheaper". 

 

However, "isn't that much cheaper" is still cheaper. I've noticed that all the .38SC shooters talk about reloading x number if times and the cost goes down. The same goes for 9mm.  So, if it's cheaper to start with, and you reload X number of times, it's still cheaper. Also, like you said the cost of used 9mm brass making it even more cost effective. 

 

No matter what, when comparing the two and all else is equal, 9mm is cheaper. 

 

 

 

 

[teros135]

And if "cheaper" (or plain 'ole "cheap") is what you're after, you win!  I just can't figure out why folks who'll spend $4000 or so on a new gun, tons on belt, mags, etc, upwards of $2000/year on ammo (that's figuring cheap 9mm range brass), and heavens knows how much on match fees and travel figure it's necessary to brag about picking up other peoples' used brass off the ground to save a few bucks?  Proportionally, that doesn't sound like much of a gain.

[B_RAD]

Thread has been derailed. 

 

 

[Rnlinebacker]

Thread has been derailed. 
 
 

[emoji48][emoji48][emoji48]

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[B_RAD]

16 minutes ago, teros135 said:

And if "cheaper" (or plain 'ole "cheap") is what you're after, you win!  I just can't figure out why folks who'll spend $4000 or so on a new gun, tons on belt, mags, etc, upwards of $2000/year on ammo (that's figuring cheap 9mm range brass), and heavens knows how much on match fees and travel figure it's necessary to brag about picking up other peoples' used brass off the ground to save a few bucks?  Proportionally, that doesn't sound like much of a gain.

I don't want to scrounge around for brass. Constantly looking at the ground and having to stick around after the match or practice. Not worrying about picking up brass means more time shooting or better use of time for me.  

 

9mm is saving $ and time. 

 

If SC was the same price.and just as common, I would think everyone would choose it over 9. But it's not. 

Edited December 13, 2018 by B_RAD

[teros135]

Just now, B_RAD said:

I don't want to scrounge around for brass. Constantly looking at the ground and having to stick around after the match or practice. Not worrying about picking up brass means more time shooting or better use of time for me.  

 

Agreed.  I don't pick up either 9 or 38 any more. 

 

Also agree we've gotten away from the original topic.  Let's go back to discussing the relative merits of Atlas and Akai.  Anybody have both and can give us a good read?

[fatjoe123111]

I have an Atlas Chaos and it is great! Honestly there is not much of a difference between my gun and my buddies Akai however he might think his is better .  When I was looking to buy a new open  gun  I called Atlas on a Sunday and Adam talked to me for over 30 min about his guns. The customer service from Atlas is fantastic. The gun, well the gun is everything I wanted in an open gun. The fit and finish is top notch. At the end of the day the choice is yours. Akai is a great builder there is no arguing that however, Atlas is just as good. You will not be disappointed either way. When I made my choice it came down to 2 things. Price and Lead time. When you build a gun similar to the atlas chaos from akai you are looking at easily $1500-2000 more. Tack onto that over a year wait. Well that made my decision simple and I don’t regret it one bit. 

[TRPOperator]

Fatjoe, I don't think there is a lot of difference but the smoothness of the Akai is definitely noticable, to me. The lead times are definitely not the same, however your comparing a full custom gun to a semi-custom production gun in both price and lead times. A full custom Atlas just like my Akai is actually about 1k more than I paid. So yes I think mine is better !!!!...lol

Edited December 15, 2018 by TRPOperator