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 left).  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 (shown right) 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)

Upgrade Potential	+ Too many bolt-ons and accessories to list. + Fully compatible internals. + Large battery already catered for. + Reinforced gearbox as standard. + Hi Torque motor already installed. 10 / 10
Build Quality	+ It feels totally solid. + It looks totally solid. + It IS totally solid. + No plastic creak. + Full-Metal construction. + Quality HOP-UP unit. + Best plastic work I've seen yet. + Very consistent performance. + Very reliable - ZERO jams in 12,000+ shots.  - Muzzle has no 14mm thread.  - Fire selector switch not quite to my liking.  - Slightly more motor noise. 9 / 10
Value for Money	A full metal MP5, reliable, powerful, accurate, solid, sturdy, fully upgradable, fun, high rate of fire... ... and all for about £200?  Impossible? 10 / 10
Overall Potential	I haven't been able to put it down for more than 5 minutes since I bought it.  What more can I say that hasn't been said already?  Ignore those that say ICS guns are bad even though they've never tried one.  Try a Version 3 MP5 yourself and decide. 10 / 10

by Will (aka R22Master)

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