Hello reader! We have something special for you today. Thanks to Action Sport Games, we have for you a sneak peak at the upcoming ICS MARS PDW9. This is a hot new SMG that will be out in just a few months but we got our hands on a pre-release sample of this bad boy and we want to tell you all about it.
I think that thanks to the PCC craze in real firearms across the US (pistol caliber carbine), airsoft gun manufacturers are starting to follow the trend and SMG type guns are enjoying a resurgence as a result.
ICS has created their own take on this with the PDW 9. The PDW 9 is a full metal AEG that is very compact and feels very realistic. Most prominently you will see it features a skinny long stick magazine reminiscent of a PCC or submachinegun class weapon. The rail system is a unique and aggressive MLOK free floating handguard. This handguard is very minimalist so it is comfortable. The top only has a picatinny rail for mounting the included flip up sights. The side and bottom are the portions that are MLOK. It hides a mock suppressor that sticks out from the handguard. The body features design queues from the MARS series rifles that are currently out from ICS. There are ambidextrous controls throughout from the selector to magazine release to charging handle. All the controls are textured nicely for a tactile feel. The gun does feature electric blowback as found on other proline ICS guns. The new feature from this is the bolt catch which actually functions, a first for ICS. The fake bolt locks back when the charging handle is pulled and then released when you hit the release located near the trigger. Also unique to this model is the motor grip which is angled for better ergonomics. The battery is stored in the buffer tube. There is just enough room for a Lipo battery and it comes fused. The stock comes off for you to access this. Once the stock is mounted you have 3 positions you can set it for. There is a sling loop built in that will take a hook type of sling. The magazine is polymer and comes as a high cap. It holds ~340 rounds. Also you get a nice flat-faced trigger for that custom look.
Now let’s talk about what’s inside the gun. ICS is giving us two options for the gun internally. The standard PDW9 which comes with airsoft MOSFET or the S3 model. The S3 features a dual MOSFET system. One MOSFET is responsible for protection for your trigger contacts. The S3 MOSFET has programmable settings as well as a built in self-diagnosing system that will help you locate problems if they arise. Kind of a neat system! The gearbox and internals are just like your other proline ICS rifles. You have a split gearbox which will allow you to upgrade, repair, or maintain your gun in sections without having to disassemble the whole gun. The spring guide is a quick change type so swapping springs takes just a few seconds. Oh and if you manipulate your selector and move it to safe, the gun is decocked, preserving the longevity of your spring. If you are all about the ICS life you know what a game changer this design is. On top of that you have a metal hopup unit already.
Our test gun clocks in at almost 400fps. WIth the quick change spring you can get it down to 350 or under easily. Rate of fire is pretty respectable at 15-17rps but it could be better. I believe that is because of the 400fps spring that it comes with by default slowing things down. I would want to upgrade the motor or downgrade the spring. Since the buffer tube is where the battery is stored, compact Lipo batteries are a must. You don't have to worry about being able to run Lipos though thanks to the MOSFET that is in there for both the standard and S3 model.
Since we got this demo gun, we thought we'd show it off to our store customers a little early just to gauge their reaction. Feedback was overall positive, especially from those who were looking at the G&G ARP9 and wanted something a little bit more stout.
So what do we think about this gun? If you are looking for a CQB gun that is different but still has the speed that you get from AR style controls, this gun is for you. This has all the high quality goodness of your traditional ICS and then some. This gun is really really slick, well designed, and is a beast. It is not as light as you might think just because the gun is very stout. The gun is definitely overbuilt for its role and thanks to the split gearbox with quick change spring guide, you can adapt it to whatever field you play at.