Most important difference: the Hercules hardware has tubular legs, Atlas has single braced flatbar legs.

Side note, the Hercules stands originally came with swivel-pad feet, a la the kind on old school chairs & desks. The later versions have the big rubber feet.

Bermuda

Thanx Bermuda,

The reason i ask is that i just picked up 2 st. stands that have tubular legs with big rubber feet, and a round foil BO sticker & straight "T" wing nuts on the poles.

Would these be considered late 70's then?

He also had 4 of them with swivel feet but the chrome was below satisfactory cond.

the swivel feet atlas hardware was only made for one year 1976.

I guess mine are Hurcules (tubular legs)

I wonder what these usually go for...

Swivel feet were on the Hercules stands, Atlas had regular smallish rubber feet.

Bermuda

Prices vary, it depends on the condition and how bad a buyer wants them. In good condition, all original, a cymbal stand can go for $50-75.

One problem is that the connectors that hold the legs to the struts and collar (that slides up & down the main tube) usually loosen over time, and the legs can be a bit rickety. Unless they're really loose, it's not a structural problem, and Ludwig fans know it's common. I've got 17 Hercules stands (including snare stands and a throne), most are in very nice shape, but I don't think any of the legs are perfectly tight.

Bermuda

Sorry to disagree but atlas line wasn't introduced until 1978 the stands I'm talking about are only from 1976.

I kinda see what you're saying. The Atlas stands first appeared in the 1971 catalog, but in 1976 they became the tube leg stands - with the swivel feet - and then they were renamed Hercules (with the rubber feet, I guess) to avoid confusion.

The old switcheroo that Ludwig was so well-known for back in the day. :)

But traditionally, Atlas is still considered the flatbar stand, and Hercules is the tube leg stand, despite the brief crossover.

Bermuda

The Hercules are great stands. Very well made.They cleanup real nice. The weak link seems to be the black plastic T nuts later models.There was a transition from when they lost the swivel feet to the large rubber where they still had the metal T nuts and the top tube was tapered before the tilter. those were my favorites just liked the look. The boom stands seem to bring big$ in the $160 dollar range for nice examples.