Background: This is a review of ICS's replica of the Insight Technologies AN/PEQ-2 (and PEQ-2A) IR pointer/illuminator/aiming laser (ITPIAL), designed to fit on any military standard rail system. This has been something that I (and I'm sure many other people) have been searching for, for quite sometime. Ever since the release of the Tokyo Marui M4RIS w/ mock AN/PAQ-4C, I've always wondered "Why hasn't there been a mock AN/PEQ-2?” It took almost 2 years, but ICS (and very soon, ANGUS) have finally produced a viable alternative to the battery bag/Redi-mag solution that many M4 RIS owners face. I myself have had to mill out the insides of my Mosquito Molds RIS to fit a 9.6v 1100mAh battery.
Opening the unit: It took me a minute to figure out how to open it up, but you need to give a short counter-clockwise twist to the illuminator cap (on the front right side) and the two battery end caps, and then pull them off. Doing that, you'll need to split the entire unit in half. Careful though, or the mock laser on the left will fall out (this is where you would put their ICS laser). The halves are also held together with tension clips, so don't force it open--you may end up snapping the clips. Exterior: The top has some fairly accurate molds of what's on the real AN/PEQ-2(A) unit -- selector switch for pointer, illuminate, or dual modes (none of them are functional, so don't try). The push buttons have also been replicated (side and top), as well as the thumb screw for the real mount. Some minor details notable absent are the rubber retention pieces for the pointer, illuminator, and battery caps. This would have been extremely useful, as I can foresee people losing the caps while trying to swap batteries out in the field. The rear of the unit, between the battery caps, has a small cut out. This is for trailing a wire from either your battery to the outside, or from your AEG into the PEQ. I'm a little disappointed by the mount, as the meat of the rail mount is molded as part of the PEQ unit (hence, made of plastic). There is a removable rail bracket that is held in via three small guide pins that are molded into the main bracket and two metal slotted thumb screws, which screw into metal washers. I would strongly recommend against over-tightening, as it's possible you may break either the bracket or the guide pins. Interior: It's pretty roomy inside. There is easily enough space for a 9.6v 1100 or 1700mAh battery built "nunchuk" style. A 10.8v and even a 12v battery will also fit, however this will definitely require custom building a pack with AA sized cells. I do not have the ICS MC74 laser, but I will say that the most you'll probably be able to fit with the laser inside is a 10.8v 1100mAh battery. Final words: I've only played with a real AN/PEQ-2 once (in conjunction with a PVS-7 NOD). I do remember not wanting to wash my hands after handling... it was that cool. I plan on getting the ANGUS version as it does look much more faithful to the original, plus the metal mount bracket is a BIG PLUS in my book. Now that ICS is coming out with a ARMS S.I.R. replica, the PEQ-2 replicas will be a must for anyone planning on using the S.I.R., Classic Army's M4 RIS, or any mini battery-only replica with a rail system available. I bet this will be selling like hotcakes to future G36C owners as well. I would recommend the ICS PEQ-2 heartily, due to the fact that it is relatively cheap (I believe the ANGUS version will be anywhere between $90-120USD?) at $45USD from Wargamer's Shop. Comment on this review in the forums Last modified:Wednesday, December 11, 2002 10:02 PM Copyright 2001 ArniesAirsoft
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Initial
impressions: The unit comes wrapped in noisy cellophane,
packaged in a rather plain cardboard box with a large ICS sticker
slapped across the lid. The unit itself has that cheap plasticky
feeling -- it does feel like it'll break rather easily, so I
would highly recommend taking extreme care as to placement of
the unit. This thing was not designed for abuse, so try not
to bang into any trees or rocks with it.