NEW ICS AK's Almost Here
 

Just to give you all an update, the new ICS AK's are almost here now. I just had confirmation from ICS earlier tonight that the first batch will be leaving ICS factory around Jan. 25th. So it should not take long at all to filter out from there.

Also confirmed that each AEG will come with 2 Magazines, bottle of BB's (1000 rds), side mount basis, cataloge, AK manual, and cleaning rod.

I know ICS has put alot of time and care into this release, so hopefully, it will not disapoint us. We all know it does not take too long to hear the feedback from a new product out there ;)

hopefully it's well priced as it's going to have competition now from c.a. and g&g, even though i think the ics would be a better product than g&g for sure and may be better that the c.a. version. both now are around the $500 mark and ics would really be missing the boat if it landed here and was $700. it does have some unique attributes though, if they stuck to their initial function designs, etc. i know it's only a matter of time until they make an upper gear box kit for it as well. it would be interesting to compare it to my c.a. to see who is the better performer and the better value.

to DEA, you guys should do an initial review of it when you get it and see what potential it really has.

Are those mags hi or low caps?

That's a good idea, but to be perfectly honest with you mcguyver... from what I have seen of your posts here on ASC, any review I know I did, would not hold a candle to your experiance tearing apart products :wink:

I would think, for a complete, accurate reveiw, once we recieve our shipment, I would rather just ship one of these your way, and let you have the honors if you would be so inclined? PM me if you want to discuss it further :cheers:

Also, just to give you a little assurance... No, will not be around the $700 mark either. It will be competetive with the CA and G&G.

This gun is interesting, even if I already own two AK's.

the TM AK has been one of the best and most reliable guns i've owned... i've been thinking of getting a new one as well... and now ICS makes one... that sounds more then promising.

What are the chances they will take TM mags? This is looking promising, very promising...

I'm glad to see that ICS decided against going with their awful split gearbox for the AK-74. Experience ought to have told them the design is not conducive to reliability, especially with upgraders. They likely could have saved a lot of R&D and manufacturing time if they'd simply built a Ver.3 to begin with. :razz:

why would they? AK74 is 5.45, AK47 is 7.62... different sized mags.

hmm well airsoft is airsoft, really. I know the caliber is different, and i also know locaps are overpriced at 50$+ each most of the time.

I prefer the sharper curvature of 7.62mm mags in any AK. It's entirely possible (and likely exists, if not as a production sample then as a commercial variant) to have an AK74-styled rifle chambered for 7.62x39mm. Barrel and mag are all that's really required, I'm fairly certain the gas system is the same and the fire control parts haven't changed. Furniture is adaptable between rifle sizes and receiver types. Frankly I'm glad the G&G one comes with a 7.62mm mag, it looks more "AK-ish" to me.

I have 8 TM AK lowcaps waiting for this damn gun! They better work! LOL

In airsoft yes, you can use a Ak74 mag in a AK47, and the other way as well. The magwell is the same size on both weapons.

where did you hear about the gear box redesign, w.k.? from everything i've heard, it's still a go!!

Mcguyver, it's on the front page of the ICS site.

http://www.icsbb.com/e_index_home.asp

wow, their site was down and i haven't seen it till now. too bad. was a neat idea.

Nah, stick with the tried and true. A buddy of mine (Hades on this site) has an ICS M4. Ask him how many times it's been in the shop because of that split gearbox design.

On second thought, don't. It's a sore point for him and I don't think he wants to talk about it. :razz:

my ics m4 r.i.s. has never given me a lick of problems (stock) and upgraded the motor is being worked pretty hard on an over-achieving m120 spring. and there are literally hundreds around my area and i've not repaired one and only installed 2 upper gearbox kits so far. will they run in the 500 fps area? no. will they run in the 400 fps area. maybe, with some very careful shimming and good parts. it takes me 1 hour just to shim it with new bushings, where i can do a ver 2 in 10 minutes.

looks nice any word on a price range for this? always wanted a ak

I know we are still in talks for final price. Should wrap up soon, but like anything else, all the retailes listed above on ASC here should all be landing around the same price. When we all know, it will be listed up on our individual sites that you can check out, or you can PM any one of the retailers listed too.

This things look sweat. I love thows 74 style magazens.

Anyone else see on the ICS website that these guns have the Kalashnikov "seal of approval"? Cool! Who is going to get a pre-order going?

No sense getting a pre-order going now. Most retailers getting some in will have them in about 2 to 3 weeks from now. Just a matter of time now.

I think the split box design craze sold because it was kinda of like the Systema training m4 design. has any herd problems with systemas open box system? As for the ICS AK47 i know ill be eyeing this one. All alot of stuff ICS has done right this time.

I think it would be nice to see this ICS AK, sure took em long enough to release, I think it will be all good :)

They were actually MONTHS later than they originally planned to release. They kept doing feild test after feild test, and kept pushing the release date to correct little problems, and glitches they found. They did not want to release this before they had it perfect in their minds first.

That's always a good thing to do. If a company releases a product without a thorough and exhaustive trial phase, then you can end up with a G&G situation where recalls have to happen and customers end up not being repeats. Most companies know that few airsoft buyers only ever buy one gun and I think they would like to keep folks buying their products. Making an m4 is easy as everyone does it. Making an AK is much more difficult as few parts are interchangable between an m4 and an AK.

Just ressurrecting this thread a little bit to get some feedback from importers on the e.t.a. of these guns.

Wow, this thing looks sexy, I want it to have my babies :D

It looks a lot like an AK-101 or so variant, with the Black CF Furniture, and the port hole flash hider, with the straight mags too.

If all goes well, we should have ours in our warehouse this coming week:)

Very cool indeed. I'm going to take my C.A. SLR105 out this weekend to give me a good frame of reference for the AK's after a winter in hibernation.

Sure would be interested in seeing a review on these when they come out. Been thinking about getting an AK, but still have not decided on one.

Hopefully I'll get a review sample from DEA and it will be a thorough review I can assure you.

I made my pre-order in Mid-January. I've been hopping from one foot to the other in anticipation ever since. :grin:

If all goes well, I am expecting the shipment to arrive this week mcguyver. Yours will be one of the first shipped out:)

What's the price is going to be?
Can I get one for.... testing :angel:

Uhm... DEA guys, i know I had a brainfart about asking for the price when it's on the website... but you had bigger brainfart than me :D. ICS AK is AK74M, not 47 ;)

Any news on this one? The concept of a full metal AK for $550 is pretty appealing.

I talked to them over the phone last Friday and I guess there was a delay in the shipment from the manufacturer, so they don't expect them in stock until Friday next week. Or at least that's what I was told. So close yet so very far.

yah, Id like a review of it also.
I have been playing with the idea of an AK and decided that I would only go full metal out of the box.
vs the G&G AK104

There's a review of the ICS AK-74M on Red Alliance.

http://www.red-alliance.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=3004

Any updated news of when it will be in Canada?

ARRG... can't wait!!
 

I see where my next paycheque is going!!

I liked this particular detail... promise I see... wait is on for "Shorty"

did you watch the video he had? its pretty awesome.

im an ak moron
differences between
AK 74m
AK 74
AKS 74
AK 74U
AK 105

AK 74m - AK-74, modernized (black plastic furniture, not sure what kind of plastic), SUPPOSED to have a folding stock
AK 74 - fires 5.45mm, was USSR's main battle rifle
AKS 74 - AK-74, paratrooper version with side folding stock, 'S' is for folding stock
AK 74U - the 'U' means it has or can have optics attached, fires 5.45mm, has folding stock (short version)
AK 105 - modernized AK, for the export market, fires 5.45mm, has folding stock (short version)


Anyways ... any news on their status in Canada? :)

EDIT: forgot something ...

Some slight additions:

AK74 - Base rifle with fixed full stock, wood or plastic furniture, no side options mount
AK74N - base rifle with a fixed full stock + side optics mount originally intended for a night vision scope (N stands for "Nochnoy" - night)
AK74M - base rifle+ side optics mount + folding full stock (not the skeleton one) - this is the current issue rifle in the Russian army
AKS74 - Base rifle + sidefolding skeleton stock - used by some paras, currently being phased out by AK74M
AK74U - Shorty version of the base rifle (U stands for "Ukorochennyj" - shortened) - used by armour crews, pilots and arty, as well as Russian cops

GUYYYYYYY!!!! I WANT THE AK-74U GUUUYYYYYY!!!!!!!!! Can you say MGS2???

Hey Everyone.... I appoligzie for the Delay. ICS actually is very, very reliable, and very quick getting our orders ready. It just so happened that this order was delayed due to ICS changing some packaging. So we were delayed about 3 weeks or so with our order sitting at ICS.

Anyways... The order is here. Should hopefully clear customs today (March 1) and be in our warehouse early afternoon. We have TONS of orders ready to process, so those of course will go first, and we should start shipping them all out by Thursday/Friday.

mcguyver, you will have yours in the first batch sent out:) Sorry for the wait once again everyone.

SWEET

Schweet. Can't wait. Been using a supervisors desk to check e-mail at work for any updates. Good thing he plays airsoft too. :tup:

ok, so what kinda mags does it get? I know the GG AK had 1 hicap, but the ICS gets 2 what? lowcaps?

and DEA, in the end, whats better? the GG or the ICS?

2 highcaps I believe and a side mounting rail.

RE: Mags
 

My friend got the first one from DEA yesterday..

It's 2 High Cap Mags.

He neglected to buy a battery charger, so we couldn't fire it yet, but the gun is *solid*. It's got an awesome, awesome weight, even without the battery..

I'm sure once he charges his battery and putzes around with it in my basement, he'll post his feelings.

Hey maybe someone could help me out here as I'm a little bit n00b at this sort of stuff but some here said that the AK comes with a side rail mount right? Is there any way I could move it to the top and fit a scope on it? And is there a scope that would fit it without having to buy anything else to attach t?
Appreciate an answer, thanks. (once again sorry for n00b question)

The side mount is for a scope. Its not a rail.

Yes, but its for a Russian made scope (or any replicas)

Here s a review from Red Alliance that was posted before on this thread.
http://www.red-alliance.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=3004

Hey Droc,

Personally, I would take the ICS no question. Hopefully however, next week, we will have a full, complete review of the ICS AK done for all of you. Then we will know the real deal. This will be complements of mcguyver!

I've seen enough G&G cross my bench to just plain make me mad! I'd go ICS any day and twice on Sundays.

On Arnie's I heard people saying that on the box, there was markings about future models such as AKS-74, AKM, AKS-74U and such, so I guess ICS will announce these models in the near future. Could anyone who seen the box clarify this cuz I really like the AK-74M but i'd rather wait for an AKS-74 with skeleton stock.

Wow some people are just oblivious.... Warthog your question has been answered several times just in this topic. But to save you some time those markings are on the box...

http://img113.imageshack.us/img113/2383/omg1zl.jpg

Interesting.

Just finished plinking with the one I bought yesterday....

It is sexy.

I don't know what I could add that hasn't already been covered elsewhere. There are some minor quirks but nothing to get overly worried about.

I couldn't get the hi-cap mags to feed consistantly, but that might be more from inexperience then anything else. They also pop out very easily, whether this is a good or bad thing I don't know yet. The TM mags were not near as easy to remove.

I got a 9.6V/1700mAh battery with it (hope the gear box holds up over time).

I've read so many differing opinions of what batteries to use in these guns, I don't know if the 9.6V is a good or bad thing in an ICS. Might get an 8.4V eventually.

Cheaper than the MP5A4 I wanted, takes large batteries, isnt an M4/M16...gah

Just one question, does it take AK-47 mags? Or are they specific AK-74 mags?

I beleive they do. I was reading a review on the gun at Arnies and the reviewer said he tested it with many brand name mags and they all worked fine.

http://www.arniesairsoft.co.uk/forum...ic=49637&st=60

I'll know later today, hopefully. I have Marui, Classic Army and Star mags so I'l try all the major brands.

The TM mags worked just fine. Dunno about the rest.

I just got mine today, noticed the same thing. I'll have to pick up some G&P Mids or Star Mids.

DEA, any idea what motor the gun has? I heard that the US got a delay in their shipments because ICS is using the new turbo 3000 motor instead of the turbo 2000 motor. Just wondering what ones the canadian shipments got? Better ROF is a big plus to me.
TURBO 3,000 motors
Rated voltage 8.4V
The rating outputs 102W
Free-running speed 23,300 R.P.M (8.4V)
Biggest torsion 3,875 g.cm

TURBO 2,000 motors
Rated voltage 8.4V
The rating outputs 53.82W
Free-running speed 26,000 R.P.M (8.4V)
Biggest torsion 2,082 g.cm

either way, Im so getting one. My 1st gun was a TM SR16 and I learned my mistakes. Plastic + V2 = bad. Ill never buy a non-FMU again. After tossing piles of cash at my TM, I have a sweet gun, but after spending enough to buy 2 guns.
But the AK....is so damm sexy, I got a hardon the size of the CN tower for it. Thank god my Bday is a few days away and my fiance is gonna pay 1/2 for the AK.

Droc, I'm in the initial stages of a detailed review on the gun, but I can tell you this so far. It's a very solid gun and has the best mag fit of ANY Ak I could get my hands on. It fits Marui mags better than Marui's AK, Star mags are a nice fit will very little wobble, but Classic Army AK-47 lowcaps do have some wobble. The C.A. slr105 hi-cap is a very snug fit, snug enough to make it difficult to insert the mag at times.

The ICS hi-cap however is a perfect fit in all 3 AK's I tried and fits the C.A. better tha C.A.'s own mag. The same is true for the Marui as well.

The motor is a Turbo 2000 in the AK-74M and has a good rate-of-fire at a steady 15 rnds./sec. or 900 rnds./min. with an 8.4v battery.

This gun has so many neat little extras that you would be inclined to buy it even if it didn't shoot a bb, just for the esthetics of it. You'll have to wait for my review to be complete for an in-depth look at construction and performance, but thus far I can tell you it's gonna be a winner.

intereresting bit of news... found on arnie's... :-? anybody can confirm / deny?!

I've run 1000+ rounds through my review sample and done a complete teardown and re-assembly. Seems to to be running fine so far.

DEA, any word if you will be getting the new version?

God Damnit... as if they pulled this shit... if only i waited a few more days before ordering i woulda heard the news. I feel cheated....

could just be random lemons, but it sucks that "all new ICS guns" get the new motor, redesigned bevel gear, steel bushings yet these new AKs dont.
I had $1k ready last night to send out today on AK stuff....but Im gonna pass till this stuff gets all sorted out.

Hey, the AK's do have metal bushings, the bevel gear is different, but the motor in my review sample is a turbo 2000. I can see that being changed as they make a short motor in the turbo 3000 and my sample is #256 off the line or something like that.

I can tell you after opening it that it was shimmed well, lube was good and the motor is connected with terminals vs. being soldered like a Marui.

If the motor thing bugs you, I wouldn't worry. The turbo 2000 will run a stock gun fine, but if you want to upgrade it, then get a different motor.

I'm going to game it in 2 weeks at "the boat" and I'll update my soon-to-come review with real usage info.

And trust me Droc, I have a Marui, a C.A. SLR105A1 and now the ICS and the ICS is the best AK hands down. When you put it in your hand for the first time, you know.

either way, DEA, when you get the next batch, let me know ASAP

Woot! thats good to hear Mcguyver. I was under the impression that the new batch of AK's was comming with the steel bushings, better wires and better bevel gear. It's good to hear that the only difference is the motor, which will be fine as i intend to keep the gun stock for a long time and a new motor is cheap. Can't wait to see that review!

Hey Everyone, sorry, just got back in town. I will send an e-mail out tonight to ICS and clear it all up about the motor. We were amoung the first shipments sent out from ICS and I can't see any of the orders going to the US having anything different. However, as I said, I will drop ICS an e-mail tonight to confirm.

I read from Arnies Airsoft straight from the person from ICS that new guns being sent out now will have the new motors in them, here the quote:

Slatextekno: When will the new AK74 hit stores? Will it come with the new Turbo 3000 motor.

ICS: It is with new motor and on its way now .

that would mean that the first bath that went out (Canada or US) was the Turbo 2000's and sounds like they are planning to change that with future orders.

Do you think ICS will replace the Turbo 2000 motors with the new Turbo 3000 motors free of charge for people that got the early runs? What about the new design bevel gear also? I'm hoping to get one also but will wait if they are not going to do that.

Wouldnt this dramatic change affect current sales of the old ICS aks? It would be best to wait for the new versions to come out and purchase from Randy. Thats what i might do.

Myself, I don't really see an issue here. The motor would be nice, but the old one is fine if you keep the gun stock and don't ask 400 fps out of it. The steel bushings are already installed, shimming is good and the bevel gear is different fom the other ICS ones I've seen.

Can the ICS AK gearbox be interchangeable with a TM version3 gearbox? It's because, if the gears in the ICS version is specific to their gearbox, what will you do to replace them?

How about the question of the mags falling out? Can that be fixed?

Mag fit is the best of any AK I have (Marui and C.A.). I haven't tried Marui gears in it, but ICS bushings have never been able to fit Marui-spec gears in past expereinces. To me, it looks identical to a Marui ver III box, except for color.

ok, so lemme know ASAP when you get the new batch before my cash runs to something else.

DEA, would a group price or Airsoft Canada special price be possible for this? I'm interested in buying one and looks like we may have 1/2 dozen others that are waiting to spend money on the next skid of AKs.

im not concerned with the price, at $550 its as cheap as it ever gonna get. I just dont want something that is second to the final product. No one is gonna want to buy the demo car at the same price as on fromt he factory floor.

Hey Guys,

I am just waiting to hear back from ICS now. We also are ready to place yet another ICS order fairly quickly here, so yes, anyone wanting something, should let our sales know asap. I will update you on the motor when I hear more.

I hear you Droc. I just spoke to ICS. Their AEG's are far from the "demo" cars as they currently stand:) ICS produces a very solid well built product right now. What is happening, is ICS is stopping production of their Turbo 2000 motor, and will only be making the 3000. There is nothing at all wrong with the 2000, it's just that the 3000 is the imporved version. They are not at all replacing it because it's defective, simply why use the 2000 when they just released the 3000. So the answer is SO FAR, none of their AK's have gone out to US or Canada with the 3000 motors in them. All future orders placed (including the one we are doing now) WILL have the new 3000 motor in them.

I hope this clears it up for you, and if anyone has any more questions, then please let me know.

any estimate on a date? 1 week? 5 weeks?

Count me in.
I 'd get the final version with turbo 3000 motor.
Yes,I second the idea of group buy.
A group price or Airsoft Canada Members' special price would be nice. :razz: