my ics has been rediculously reliable. ( m-16 a3 model ) i have dealt this weapon some serious game play and more than its fair share of pure abuse. with a minimum amount of ammo around 2-3,000 rds per game since day one.went about a year and a half until it required a real gun tech to fix an electrical gremlin i had.
couple things i did notice:
-WEAK FRONT D RING. dont use it for a sling mount,,it will break. mine broke while running (ah,hem) "tacticly walking" on the old ferryboat. my $800.00 dollar rifle cartwheel across the steel deck and slid to a halt. no damage,didint even eject the mag! anyway,,dont trust the fron d ring.
-tappet plate weakness,although im still running the stock one myself.
-the split mech cause some wear over time meaning the two body halves wobble. i fixed this with a king arms bolt in body pins.
-barrel wobble,but remedied this by pulling apart the barrel from where it mounts to the body and using an aluminum pop can i made a shim and put it all back together. ZERO barrel wobble or any flex for a good 18 months now.
-tm motors ( pinion gear only ) are not compatible with ics gearsets. i turned one into a "carrot peeler" in just one game so i know what im talking about.
after 18 months of play, this is what "mustang sally" looks like.
upgrades during the past 18 months include:
-new hop-up sleeve/bucking
-new hop-up chamber
-guarder metal bushings,changed 2 months into ownership
-systema m120 spring shoots 355fps down from 380fps