Silent7Sniper7 Posted June 22, 2012 Posted June 22, 2012 I am going to be getting a L85A2 soon but I'm stuck between choosing the one from ARES & ICS. So which is better for build quality, accuracy, power etc?
Supporters TheFull9 Posted June 22, 2012 Supporters Posted June 22, 2012 That is by far the most impatient posting I've seen in nearly 6 years of airsoft forum membership... SilentSniper - If you're not used to discussion boards like these, I'd suggest you bear in mind they are not chat rooms and a thread getting views does not necessarily entail that those viewers have the knowledge to answer your question. Nor does it imply that those views were made by forum members who ever actually make posts, every board has a lot more 'lurkers' than active posters. In my opinion (and it's probably biased since I own one) the ICS is the one to go for. ARES have a long history of making very poor quality AEGs and although the bolt release does function on it unlike the ICS, the construction is massively over-complex compared to the pretty much RS system the ICS employs for a field strip.
Silent7Sniper7 Posted June 22, 2012 Author Posted June 22, 2012 That is by far the most impatient posting I've seen in nearly 6 years of airsoft forum membership... SilentSniper - If you're not used to discussion boards like these, I'd suggest you bear in mind they are not chat rooms and a thread getting views does not necessarily entail that those viewers have the knowledge to answer your question. Nor does it imply that those views were made by forum members who ever actually make posts, every board has a lot more 'lurkers' than active posters. In my opinion (and it's probably biased since I own one) the ICS is the one to go for. ARES have a long history of making very poor quality AEGs and although the bolt release does function on it unlike the ICS, the construction is massively over-complex compared to the pretty much RS system the ICS employs for a field strip. thank you, sorry for being impatient but it needed to decide so my mate can keep hold of one for me.
Grounded_Pilot Posted June 22, 2012 Posted June 22, 2012 I voted Ares. I loved my Ares L85A2 to bits... except that wasn't the case. It was the sturdiest gun I have ever had the pleasure of owning. Never miss fired, no downtime, not power hungry, good range and accuracy from stock... also made a beautiful sound, no M4 AEG whirring gearbox here. A solid clank each time! Also the most accurate to the RS. I managed to modify a RS magazine to fit with airsoft internals. Most people seem to upgrade it with a Tightbore + Hop bucking, and that's it. Regret to this day of selling it to build an L129A1. However the ICS does have a handy foregrip battery change system, which allows bigger batteries at a faster change rate. I have owned both an ICS L86 and Ares L85. Prefer the L85 for functionality!
Silent7Sniper7 Posted June 23, 2012 Author Posted June 23, 2012 thanks for the input guys, i'm gonna go with the ICS, the ability to change the spring strength will be handy for my skirmish sites fps limit
Supporters Airsoft-Ed Posted June 23, 2012 Supporters Posted June 23, 2012 Absolutely ICS all the way, much more skirmishable out of the box and if you know what you're doing it can become truly beastly... Like mine Some have overhop issues out of the box though, so you're going to want to use .25s. CK, you say the Ares bolt release is functional? What do you mean by that? The actual bolt release on the left hand side? 'Cos when I had one, that wasn't functional. If you mean the bolt catch on the right hand side, then that is functional on both the Ares and the ICS, the Ares just ALWAYS locks the bolt and with the ICS you can choose to or not, by lifting the catch.
Supporters TheFull9 Posted June 23, 2012 Supporters Posted June 23, 2012 CK, you say the Ares bolt release is functional? What do you mean by that? The actual bolt release on the left hand side? 'Cos when I had one, that wasn't functional. I've not actually seen it myself, but I'd been told the bolt release (black square control on the left side) was apparently functional by a fair few different people who have the ARES. Not sure what might've happened there, different models/production runs or something? No idea.
Grounded_Pilot Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 I've not actually seen it myself, but I'd been told the bolt release (black square control on the left side) was apparently functional by a fair few different people who have the ARES. Not sure what might've happened there, different models/production runs or something? No idea. The release was on the right hand side behind the bolt slightly lower on the lower receiver, a little green plastic twisty selector. EDIT: (Although an image of a RS L85, it shows the lever pretty clearly[Removed image of WE L85, in case I get into mischief because of watermarks!]) The black square thing on the left side never did anything, on any of the L85 models I have ever owned I don't believe they functioned. However I know that the ARES had the spring+bolt release that fully functioned, located on the image above, the furthest latch on the body of the gun on the left side.
Supporters M_P Posted June 23, 2012 Supporters Posted June 23, 2012 (Although an image of a RS L85, it shows the lever pretty clearly[Removed image of WE L85, in case I get into mischief because of watermarks!]) Don't worry about that, this forum allows images and links to and from retailers
Supporters TheFull9 Posted June 23, 2012 Supporters Posted June 23, 2012 The black square thing on the left side never did anything, on any of the L85 models I have ever owned I don't believe they functioned. However I know that the ARES had the spring+bolt release that fully functioned, located on the image above, the furthest latch on the body of the gun on the left side. Perhaps I mis-read some other reviews then, the ARES works in the same was as the ICS if what you say is true (and I'm sure it is). I've never tried releasing the working parts forward using the bolt holding open device (green lever) on the RS because that's not doctrine, and it'd be slower than using the proper bolt release anyway. Don't worry about that, this forum allows images and links to and from retailers Naming zero names there!
Supporters NickM Posted June 23, 2012 Supporters Posted June 23, 2012 Just picked up my L85 today, I've got the ICS one and there were three other guys using them today and the site/shop owner has one as well. This is my first airsoft gun so can't comment on the ARES. The ICS was very solid out of the box, the ability to change the power of a single spring is a nice feature. The RS L86's I used to fire had a bit of a wobble of the lower half of the gun and if anything the ICS appears more solid. The hand guard, pistol grip and cheek rest aren't the right colour but I'm not that picky, would much rather have something that works than looks perfect.
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