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Reviews
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Views
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Date of last review
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3
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17079
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11/2/06
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Recommended By
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Average Price
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Average Rating
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100% of reviewers
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£159.33
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8.3
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Description:
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A full-metal MP5 replica from ICS. Package includes Hi-Cap magazine (200rnd) as standard, and is available in many other variants (slither-stock, folding-stock, no stock, etc...)
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Keywords:
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ICS MP5 A4 MP5-A4 MP5A4 Metal AEG CQB
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Homepage/URL:
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Author
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R22Master
Dionysus
Registered: September 2004
Location: Static in the UK, but wishing I was motorbiking around the world - UK > Europe > Russia > Alaska > USA > UK.
Posts: 3372
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Review Date: 29/8/05
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: £200.00
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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Full metal, good weight, excellent looks, reliable sights, loads of accessories, cheap, fits large battery
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Cons:
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Weak tappet plate can break, HOP-UP Rubber (HOP-Bucking) can wear down quickly, but easily replacable.
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IMPORTANT NOTE
This review is a review of the "Version 3" ICS MP5-A4.
I have heard people complaining about the quality and reliability of these replicas, however after much research it seems that most of these problems can be traced to earlier versions of the model (versions 1 and 2). I have not heard any bad press so far about Version 3 (apart from a couple of minor known issues, explained below).
Additional : All photographs on this review show the 14mm threaded muzzle. This was not included with the gun, but as I am unable to locate the original muzzle, all photographs show this upgrade.
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I have been after what I would term "The Ultimate MP5" for a long time now (more than 10 years) but have never found a model worthy of my hard earned cash. I indulged by purchasing a Tokyo Marui MP5 once, but after breaking 8 of them within 2 months, I gave up and settled for the Tokyo Marui G36c (a fabulous softy). However, as the months passed, pleased as I was with my G36c, those longing feelings for my dream replica were causing my itchy trigger finger to get restless. Only the "Ultimate MP5" would satisfy my cravings for full-auto joy.
I recently noticed that there was a new player in the MP5 market (well, new in the UK anyway). It was ICS. I have long been an admirer of their parts and upgrades, so I did some digging for information around the forums at Arnie's Airsoft and other airsoft resources. This turned up a few new facts for me on this illusive beauty, and after much soul-searching (and arguments with my bank manager), I splashed out and ordered the gun and parts to make my dream machine from Zero One Airsoft (UK).
The package arrives
I was on the way back from picking up my girlfriend at the station, when I noticed the unmistakable off-blue colour of the Securicor Omega van parked outside my dear little house. My heart-rate went up as I realised my new baby was here! As always, I didn't pay for next day delivery and as always, it arrived next day anyway. I jumped out of the car with a stupid grin on my face, took the package from the Securicor chappie and rushed inside the house. After the torrent of abuse from my girlfriend that followed due to me leaving her in my dust trail outside, I opened the package. Apart from the accessories purchased, there it was - the ICS MP5-A4 in it's box.
First impressions of the box - Well, it was a bland featureless box with "A4" printed in one corner. Not too convinced by this, especially after seeing the lavish work done on the Marui boxes of late. But unperturbed, I opened the box to be greeted by a Full-Metal H&K MP5-A4, just waiting for me to play.
First impressions of the replica
Wow. What can I say, but Wow. The replica was flawless. I was staring at what had taken me years to find. It was here. The gun was tied to the box with sturdy nylon cable ties and there was no polystyrene in sight. Bubble wrap had been wrapped around the gun in layers making sure it got to me in pristine condition. After clipping the nylon cable ties, I could take a closer look.
The body is indeed full-metal in construction and the finish is superb. In my opinion, far better than the finish on the Classic Army full-metal MP5. Even the ejection port (which I find looks particularly poor on the CA MP5s) looked excellent. I picked up the gun to find that the weight was nicely balanced and respectable, although not quite as heavy as the real-steel MP5. The plastic used on the stock (the A4 is the solid stock version) was the best bit of plastic forming and joining I have ever seen in the world of airsoft, and the rest of the plastic parts were also of outstanding quality. The foregrip for example, really lives up to its name. I gripped the foregrip tightly and found that it simply wouldn't slip through my hands, even when pulling at the other end. Very impressive.
I also noticed that the base of the pistol-grip has a heat-sync already installed. This is obviously due to the increased heat generated by a more powerful motor than is found in most AEGs. This sync is barely visible during use and very soon, you completely forget it's there.
Here's a list of metal and plastic parts on the gun...
Plastic Parts
Foregrip
Pistol-Grip
Solid Stock
Magazine top
Cocking ram (tube inside the cocking tube, connected to the cocking handle)
Metal Parts
Cocking tube
Cocking handle
Trigger
Front sight
Rear sight
Main receiver
Muzzle
Magazine release lever
Magazine release button
Magazine latch / catch
Motor heat sync (located at the base of the pistol grip)
Front sling loop
Rear sling loop
Magazine body
Magazine base
Fire selection lever
Take-down body pins
HOP-UP control lever
As you can see from the above, the build of the gun is about as close to it's real-steel counterpart as they could possibly make it. The metal used for the body is not steel, but an aluminium alloy that provides great strength while keeping the weight down. The reason for this becomes clear later.
The vital statistics for this replica are:
ICS Revision: Version 3
Length: 680mm
Weight (no battery or ammunition): 2,000g
Magazine Capacity (for included magazine): 230
Magazine Capacity (for other available magazines): 50 / 200 / 240
Rate of Fire (shots per minute): 950
Barrel length: 230mm
Ammunition: 6mm BB
Motor: ICS Turbo 2000
Gearbox: Reinforced (ICS version 2)
Max effective range (quoted by ICS): 30 Metres
Getting Closer
The model follows all of the traditions set out by the real-steel and copied by practically all other replicas.
Fixtures and fittings
First off, the downsides. There are no RAS/RIS rails on the gun (although loads of accessories are available to provide this functionality) and the muzzle does not have a 14mm thread for silencers and the like (it has the three-pronged lug system found on all standard sized MP5s). Again, replacement muzzles are easily and cheaply available to provide you with this thread if required. All photos on this page show the upgraded 14mm compatible muzzle.
As for the upsides, it has the usual clamp grips on the top side of the main receiver that allow you to attach a scope mount (shown below).
As these grips are metal like the rest of the body, attaching a scope rail is easy and amazingly secure. Foregrips are interchangable, so that RIS/RAS, tac-lite and standard grips can be used whenever you want.
Sights
The foresight is the famous MP5 foregrip that we all know and love, but the rear sight may be different to what many of you expect. Instead of having 4 different sized holes placed around the rear sight's drum, the drum has 3 equal sized holes set at different heights and a "V" where the fourth should be. This provides a quick sight height adjustment option for different ranges and an open sight option for fast target aquisition or low light conditions. The arrangement is shown here in the photo on the right.
Metal body work
Excellent quality, excellent finish. Take a look at the photos and decide for yourself. Having seen this and all of the competitors up close and personal, I have to say that this is better quality than either the Tokyo Marui or Classic Army MP5 bodies.
Plastic body work
Again, ICS have excelled themselves with the plastic body work on this replica. The plastic used is of a very high standard, does not scratch easily, stays fairly warm despite cold ambient temperatures and you can barely see where the joins are, unlike most other models. It is all also very solid and has absolutely no plastic-creak that has plagued airsoft guns since the dawn of time (well, since airsoft came along anyway).
The Magazine
The magazine that comes with the ICS MP5 is a very well made High-Capacity clip that holds up to 230 6mm BBs. It's body and base is full-metal as usual with the top plate made of plastic. The BBs are loaded through a small hatch on the top and the winding is done at the base, as usual. You really have to look closely to see the differences between this and the Tokyo Marui hi-capacity magazines. See "Field Testing" later in this review to see how this magazine compares to the Marui ones - you might be surprised.
The photograph above shows two magazines. The magazine on the left is a Marui MP5 magazine, while the other is the ICS magazine included with the gun. You will notice that despite the fact that the ICS magazine has been used far more than the Marui one, the paint is still in place. The paint on the Marui magazine came off along the top within the first 2 or 3 uses.
General operation
Well, I've unpacked it and had a good look around. Now that I've found a charged battery, I'm ready to give it a go.
The battery used is any 8.4v large type battery. You can use a 9.6v battery if you must, but this is not necessary in most cases and you will have to modify the inside of the stock to make it fit. The ICS MP5 also comes with a High Torque motor, lessening the need for higher voltage batteries. In all but the most extreme of cases, an 8.4v battery will do nicely.
The battery fits tightly in to the stock of the model (shown left), similar to the models produced by TM and CA. There is not much spare space in there, but this translates to a very secure fit that will not rattle, bump or slide around inside. The fuse is also easily accessible during any battery change (it is held in a loose, in-line, opaque white plastic fuse holder). This is the bit when you appreciate the fact that an aluminium alloy has been used on the body instead of steel. With the battery inserted, the gun feels much more like it's real-steel cousin and it's new weight will bring a smile to your face. A full steel body would simply make this replica too heavy. With the gun, magazine, ammunition, battery and a scope, the whole thing weighs about 3.5 -> 4 Kilos. That should be enough for anyone.
The cocking handle on the left hand side of the forward receiver is purely cosmetic, but has a full range of motion. Pulling it back and forth all day will yield nothing but a sore finger. Slapping the cocking handle down and letting it fly forward could result in a broken handle (just like the other MP5 replica AEGs), but this has not happened to me (I am being careful).
The fire selector switch (shown right) is ambidextrous as with the real-steel "icon" grips and is made of metal. You have the choice of "Safe", "Semi-Automatic" or "Fully Automatic", each denoted by a red or white icon (hence "Icon" grip). Moving the selector switch from safe to semi-automatic is disappointing to say the least and feels like trying to push a spoon through custard with your thumb. However, it is no worse than the switches found on most TM Heckler & Koch replicas, so this I can live with (until I decide to modify it). Once in position, it stays and doesn't budge during a firing cycle. All other movements on this switch are crisp and positive.
A standard sling or 3-point sling can easily be attached using the front sling loop and the sling brace on the left hand side of the solid stock. Both fixtures are metal and seem very strong. There is no wobble or flex in either point of contact.
HOP-UP is fitted to this model and is fully adjustable. The HOP-UP control lever (shown left) is located just above the back of the foregrip on the left hand side of the gun. Pushing this lever forward decreases the spin put on the pellets. Pulling the lever back will increase your HOP-UP and cause the BBs to stay in the air longer. Get this adjusted correctly and the BBs just don't seem to drop until they are a very long way away (tested with 0.2g 6mm BBs).
Performance
Out of the box, this MP5A4 gave 312fps -> 315fps consistently. The range is outstanding (with correct HOP-UP setting) and the accuracy surprisingly good given the length of the barrel.
Rate of fire is also excellent and will beat many other replicas out of the box. 950 shots per minute is achievable with no upgrades or tweaking at all.
Upgrades, Accessories and Bolt-ons
The MP5 is famous for two things when you talk about accessorising.
1. If there's a tactical need for it, there is an accessory to fit the MP5 that will fulfill that need.
2. The more you stick on it, the better it looks.
With this in mind, there are loads of accessories and bolt-ons that will improve the look, feel and tactical effectiveness of your gun. These range from foregrips with lights/lasers built in to scope rails, alternate stocks, main grips and RIS/RAS rail systems. Best of all, most bolt-ons are easily available from most good airsoft retailers.
The internals too are compatible with other MP5 AEGs. You can use standard AEG pistons, gears, batteries, cylinders, etc... to full effect, without the need for modification.
Field Testing
Now here comes the fun bit. How does this AEG stand up when faced with a real challenge like a day of hard-core skirmishing in my hands? Some of you may know that I have a nasty reputation for being able to break any AEG simply by looking at it. Well as many have said, if it can survive me, it can survive anything.
I took my impressive ICS MP5-A4 to my local woodland site to put it through its paces and give it some abuse. During the course of the day it has fired approximately 10,000 and was stunningly accurate on every one. The gun is a delight to use - very light, yet utterly solid. Everything I aimed at, I hit (without additional sights, scopes or upgrades). It was light, manoevrable, tough, reliable, accurate, fun and surprisingly powerful. The high rate of fire made "Spray and Pray" missions a breeze, although it can lead to a swift lack of ammunition, even with High-Capacity Magazines (of which I had 3). Some sticky situations ensued, but never mind, that's what my trusty Glock 19 is for.
The gun was a triumph, plain and simple. The ICS magazine that came free with the gun was totally reliable and never missed a single shot (out of about 4,000 shots). There was however, one small problem. The Marui magazines I purchased along with the gun were hopeless. They stopped feeding for no reason, totally un-wound whenever I inserted them in to the gun and generally only served to annoy and upset me. I spent most of the time slapping the magazines in an attempt to get them to start feeding again and using a torrent of harsh language at a disrespectfully loud volume. The ICS magazine by contrast was a jewel. I only purchased Marui magazines as my extras because so many people on public internet forums slated the ICS equipment saying that the Marui magazines were much better. I wish I hadn't listened as the ICS magazines were about 2/3 of the price of the Marui ones and yet perform so much better in the field.
Summary
I am by nature extremely fussy and will never settle for second best - ask anyone who knows me. This gun is probably the best replica airsoft gun I have EVER used (and I have used a lot). I thought that my trusty G36c couldn't be beaten, but hey, I was wrong. The ICS MP5-A4 has everything for everyone and everyone who likes MP5s should have one (in my humble opinion). It is a very modular skirmishing platform and can be adapted easily to a variety of different roles. Shown below are just a few of these.
Standard Configuration
CQB Configuration
Sniper configuration
I wish I could be more neutral and tell you about all of the down-sides to this model, but I just can't seem to find any. If I had to pick things that I would change, I would say that a 14mm thread on the muzzle would be nice, but that is so easy and cheap to replace, so it really isn't a problem. The motor is also a little noisier than the Tokyo Marui MP5s, but with the rate of fire the ICS model puts out, it's totally forgivable. I would also get rid of that hole on the forward receiver, but then how would you remove the cocking handle if the need arose?
This gun works wonderfully for both woodland and close quarters skirmishing and I will be taking it to EVERY future event. I will still have my heavily upgraded TM G36c of course, but it now has to fight really hard for my affections. There's a new kid in town and he's getting the job done! It even looks good mounted on the wall!
Is it worth it? YES! yes yes yes yes yes (if you like MP5s).
Would I recommend it to a friend? (see above comment)
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UPDATE: 2 years on
Well, I have now owned this AEG for about 2 years and it is still running strong. There are however a couple of additions to this review that time has revealed...
- The gun has lasted VERY well. In the two years I have had it, it has been to countless skirmishes, it has been dropped on concrete and grass, it has been given a few choice performance upgrades, and it has been one of the best AEGs I have ever owned.
- The Tappet Plate broke fairly soon after the original review was written. This resulted in no more BBs feeding through the gun. I replaced it with a harder wearing version (Systema) and I have not had a problem since. This is a fairly common problem with this gun.
- The HOP-UP Rubber (HOP-Bucking) wore out remarkably quickly. The result was that Applying more HOP-UP only caused slower shots. This is a VERY common problem with this gun, but cheap to replace with a Guarder, Marui or Systema part.
So, I give this gun an 8 out of 10. It would be 10 out of 10 if it weren't for the weak Tappet Plate and HOP-Rubber, but these can both be replaced for less than £10. Once replaced, this gun is the best MP5 AEG on the market!  ------------------------------ New and inspiring signature coming to an R22 post near you SOON...
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Shao14
Misopethamenos
Registered: September 2004
Posts: 306044
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Review Date: 1/9/05
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: £140.00
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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Solid built, excellent performance out of box.
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Cons:
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loose ICS Hi cap, weak hop up.
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Introduction:
Heavily influenced by R22Master's review above and years of playing Rainbow Six, I was totally convinced the ICS MP5 Version 3 was the best first AEG for me, and it was. This is going to be a short review of the Version 3.5, which is further improved by Airsoft Elite on the already excellent ICS Version 3 MP5A4. I will mostly reinforce some of the things R22Master has said above, and I'll add some of my own thoughts and some of the minor problems I ran into with this great gun.
ICS also make some other models such as the A2, A3, SD5, and SD6 of the MP5, and as long as the version numbers are the same, they only differ externally, all performance are similar.
The good:
The ICS MP5A4 is a very solid piece; none of the plastic parts creaks or flexes (unless you intend to break the part with a hammer). The metal upper receiver feels nice, and the barrel design makes it feel much more solid than the barrel on an M4 or even an AK. I locked the cocking handle back, and slapped it forward a few times, and it didn't seem it'd break off, but I didn't constantly do that. The sights are very easy to use, and the stock is more natural to shoulder than an M4 (at least to me). The gun doesn't weigh as heavy as an M4 either, so it's easier to carry around in the field.
The shooting is excellent (all comments here are for the stock gun out of box). I feel the accuracy be slightly better than my CA M15A4 Carbine, and the power is just as much: it is able to shoot through both sides of a normal US Coco Cola can at close range with ease. The rate of fire when using an 8.4v battery is insane, just listen to it, and you'll know what I mean, and the gun vibrates slightly when shooting. You can feel the piston inside going back and forth, but nothing like any kind of recoil you'd expect from any real steel. The battery compartment in the stock is a tight fit for my 8.4v large battery, and I doubt a 9.6v battery can fit in there without some modification, but seriously, no one will need a 9.6v battery in there.
The Bad:
Well, all the negative things I'm about to say are all minor, and can't match all the positive things above, but for completeness, I'd just like to point them out. The fire selector switch could use a bit more positive feedback, meaning it doesn't click into place as nicely as the one on my M15. The ICS hi cap is a bit loose in the mag well. In fact, I don't like the mag catch design of the MP5 in general. You can always just pull the mag out without even press the release lever. When the mag is loose and sits too low in the mag well, it won't feed, and even if it does feed, it'd unwind faster than it should, and the shooter has to keep rewinding it all the time. This flaw makes clamping two mags together pretty impractical because the heavy weight will pull down the mags. This problem, however, has an easy fix, just put some electric or masking tape on the top portion of the mag, and it'll be tight enough in the mag well, and functions flawlessly. I tried G&P mid cap, and that fits in the mag well much tighter and more secure than the ICS hi cap.
A couple other things are: the motor-wire connection came loose once on mine, and I needed to open up the bottom of the pistol grip and re-adjust the connection (this is pretty common to a lot of AEGs). And the hop up seems to be weak. Personally, I like the hop up adjust dial on the M4 better than the hop up adjust lever on the MP5. After about 10 thousand rounds, I started to get double feed once in a while, and this is most likely because the hop up was worn down a bit.
Conclusion:
Despite some minor flaws of the ICS MP5, it is still an excellent AEG, the solid build and great performance far out weigh the shortcomings, and maybe ICS will fix some of the flaws in its future productions. In short, if you want an MP5, look no further.
Here are a few pictures comparing the look of MP5A4 to other guns. Enjoy.
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rallymad_nad
Registered: January 2005
Location: Sussex
Posts: 560
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Review Date: 11/2/06
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: £138.00
| Rating: 9
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Pros:
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Full metal, really solid gun
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Cons:
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Poor Hicap, fuse eating
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As above, I brought this gun based on the above review. Have always wanted an MP5 since seeing a picture of a TM one kitted up in thieir catologue which came with my Desert Eagle which I brought around 1996. I remember at the time of purchase the V3 had just come out, but it was a case of making sure I got the one with the revised tappet plate. Because of uncertanty, I brought a new tappet plate and hop bucking with it, but have never had to use the tappet plate but fitted the Hop due to some misfeeds.
Although there are many versions of the MP5 I went for the A4 due to the solid stock to hold a large battery and I prefered the ergonomics of the trigger layout. The main reason was the full metal construction. I'm not one to lavish my gun with care in the field, if it gets bumped etc I dont want it breaking and dont want to have to worry about breaking it.
I myself use a 9.6v battery, which increase the ROF to an even more insane rate than the 8.4v. Find anyone with one and have a look, a secret support weapon in the making!! Shame I dont really use full auto much! Only slight modification is needed to fit the 9.6v in, anyone competent with a saw blade will be able to do it.
As with others, the hicap is an issue but some people are using the TM locap shell and putting the ICS internals in. Also for some reason mine keeps eating fuses so have removed it for now and works fine. I too started to get some double and misfeeds. Along with the mag I feel that as with the others, the hop was the cause, due to wear so that has been replaced as well.
One other point to note is that I feel there is quite a bit of air leaking from the nozzle. Mine was only cronoing at 300fps so feel this is the issue and am rectifying it with a guarder part with an o-ring in it to hopefully seal it better.
A great first gun with plenty of accessories to personalise to your own taste.
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