The Atlas Chaos - Fastest Flattest 9mm (2011, Race Gun, Atlas Gunworks)

This episode was brought to you by Slate Black Industries. For M-LOK grips and accessories, visit slateblackindustries.com. Welcome back to 9 Hole Reviews. If you're a fan of the finer things in life and you simply must have the nicest and most purpose-built firearm on the range, then sit back and relax because today we're looking at the Atlas Gunwerks Chaos. Within half a second of seeing this blaster, it's evident that this handgun looks more likely to be at home in the next Star Wars spinoff than a gun shop with standard service pistols. That's because this 9mm is built expressly for competition shooting in 3-Gun and USPSA's Open Divisions. If the name wasn't clear enough, Open is basically the competition shooter's version of an unlimited division from the racing world, with virtually no restrictions on firearm selection or modification options. As such, those who manufacture these open guns outfit them with every possible mechanical advantage a shooter could want to achieve the optimal balance between speed and accuracy. The vast majority of top-tier shooters will select a highly modified or customized 2011 as their handgun of choice for shooting open. That's a double-stack 1911 for those of you watching this straight out of the 1980s. All the advantages of the 1911 with respect to accuracy and trigger pull without the inherent disadvantages of capacity from the single-stack design. So with the groundwork laid, let's discuss some of the specifics of the Chaos and see if it shoots as nicely as it looks. While a handgun's mechanical accuracy is generally not the limiting factor on how tight of a grouping a general user is able to shoot, we wanted to print this handgun for accuracy to showcase what the build is capable of. Here you'll see our standard 9-shot grouping shot at 25 yards supported coming in right at about 2.6 inches. The 5-inch KKM bull barrel and tight lockup guarantees the firearm will put projectiles where the shooter aims it, and the X-line trigger shaved down to the optimal length for the shooter's trigger finger certainly doesn't hurt either. But let's be realistic, you didn't come here to watch us shoot this pistol slowly off at rest. When we get into the conversation on speed, we can review a few areas of emphasis if the shooter is going to hit targets as quickly as possible. The first is recoil control. Now this is namely based on the user's grip and stance, but the Atlas Chaos offers the shooter every advantage in assisting with this task. The most obvious starting point is the two-port compensator and dual-ported barrel. Contrary to popular belief, guns like this are actually designed to shoot extremely hot loads called major power factor loads in the competition world. That's equivalent to something like a plus P plus load for those of you familiar with defensive ammunition. So while this firearm is only shooting nine millimeter, the compensator is actually extremely effective in helping mitigate muzzle rise by venting gases vertically. Beyond the compensator itself, the entire structure of weight distribution is specifically designed to mitigate recoil by removing weight from the moving parts and adding weight to the stationary pieces of the firearm. Atlas has produced an extremely flat shooting setup. You'll notice the intense slide cuts, tri-top design, and material removed where the rear sight would traditionally sit. Now when we look at the grip, unlike some production grade 2011s, the Atlas uses a steel grip from Phoenix Trinity. Now not only does this grip add weight to the stationary area of the firearm, but it brings an intense texture to help improve the shooter's grip. So with every possible advantage built into this pistol to assist with recoil mitigation, what are some of the other factors that help the user achieve high levels of speed? Well, the aforementioned X-line trigger is phenomenal. It's tuned to a crisp 1.3 pounds, far less than the weight of the 3.4 pound pistol. The extremely short travel and reset distances ensure the shooter will only be limited by how fast they can press the trigger. Then there's the reflex mount, which attaches directly to the frame of the pistol, keeping the weight of the red dot off the moving parts of the gun and providing the most stable position for the attachment of the Leupold Delta Point. The optic allows for the shooter to negate both front sight focus and sight alignment from the accuracy equation completely, allowing for a natural target focus. Between the slide racker that aids in cycling the gun and the oversized magwell for ease with speed reloads, standard manipulations of the firearm are made expressly simple. But before we conclude, I want to draw attention to the overall length of the gun. Many open guns are built on full 5-inch slides or longer, but Atlas has trimmed theirs back, having the slide stop about .4 inches before the end of the frame, allowing the comp, which is also a bit shorter than others on the market, to neatly nestle back within the dust cover. Not only does this look excellent, but it cuts down on excessive length from the front end of the gun as much as possible, making the firearm just a touch more pointable and balanced. It's been a few years since our Chaos arrived, and with the state of the firearms industry right now, the lead times, prices, and scope of builds is undoubtedly evolving. But suffice to say, top-end 2011s are going to run anywhere between $4,000 and $7,000, with different manufacturers having wildly different lead times. So definitely keep that in mind if you're considering jumping into the open division and looking to score a new blaster. We hope you enjoyed this episode, and until next time, we'll see you on the range.