G5 Outdoors was established in 2001 by Louis Grace and his two sons to market a premium broadhead. It is located in Memphis, Michigan. Over the last sixteen years it has seen explosive growth, expanding well beyond broadheads to a line of compound bow sights, rests, cams as well as other things both in and out of the archery market.
A reputation and drive for innovation and quality has been the hallmark of the company, as well as its predecessor, from day one, truly allowing the company to build a loyal following that recognizes the service the company offers. In 2006 the company released its first line of G5 bow sights, the Optix Series.
While many variants have been produced and are still available through secondhand sources on the market, G5 currently only produces one sight, the Optix XR2 as well as two lines of peep sights, the META and META Pro series. The Optix uses a patented Smart Pin 2.0 technology that utilizes a hybrid floating pin and a fixed Smart pin which allows for adjustments without deviating from the centerline of the sight. A harmonic dampener comes as a standard feature on this G5 bow sight. An arrow bumper and integrated sight bubble are also standard, allowing for consistent shots.
All components of this archery sight are corrosion resistant. Micro adjustments are available on a 3X scale. The sight also allows for third axis tuning and also has a built in visor. There is an LED rheostat light available for the sight, but it is optional. It is an ambidextrous sight. Finish options are limited to three: Realtree AP, Realtree Xtra, and Lost Camo. Overall weight of the standard sight is six ounces.
In the past, G5 has offered a few variants of the XR2. The Optix SE was a three-pin design using the Smart Pin technology. The Optix LE offered five smart pins of differing thicknesses. The original XR was a three-pin sight with an additional floating pin. And finally, the G5 Optix 3 pin was a three-pin sight that did not have any additional floating pins. As previously stated, these G5 archery sights are no longer in production, but are available within aftermarket selling areas. As such, information on these sights is limited to what has been listed. Regardless of this, all of the sights produced by G5 have proven to be reliable, efficient, and economical.
The Meta peeps are machined from solid, 7000 series aluminum and are available in three sizes. The 3/16” and ¼’ sizes are available in blue, red, pink, or green. The 5/16” is available in blue.
The Meta Pro offers a few advantages over the Meta. Firstly, the interior diameter as well as the string groove are both convex. With the interior diameter this allows the shooter to have a maximized field of view even in low light. Even as the peep begins to tilt the viewing window remains circular, eliminating the problems of looking through an oval that so many other peep sights do not address.
With the convex string groove, wear on the string is reduced noticeably. So much so that G5 offers a “no cut guarantee” as long as the peep is installed by a G5 archery sight retailer. It is available in the same sizes as the Meta, but color options change to: black, blue, pink, purple, green, and red.