i know this isn't a new sight and i'm unsure if a review has been done on this sight before. anyway, i ordered this sight approximately a week ago from Bass Pro for $149.99. i did find this same exact sight on Ebay brand new for $129.99 but the store that was selling it through Ebay only took PayPal...which i didn't have at the time. i also needed to get a couple other things so i went with Bass Pro. the sight i am replacing is the Trophy Ridge Hitman 5 Micro. i like the Hitman but i wanted a sight with a longer arm to open up my pin spacing a little. this way i can sight in a 20 yard pin again instead of using one pin from 0-30 yards. the Hitman was sufficient with my set up for hunting but while shooting my first 3d course a couple weeks ago, i learned i sure could have used a 20 yard pin for more precise shooting.
i was also curious to see how shooting with a vertical pin sight would be vs. the horizontal pin sights that i have been using for over 20 years. well the new sight came in a couple days ago. the first thing i noticed once opening the package was it appeared to be really well built, as for every Trophy Ridge sight that i have ever owned. the only thing that wasn't perfect with the sight was the glow ring sticker that wraps around the rear of the sight housing. no matter how much i press it down, a couple spots seem to bubble back up. this isn't a big concern to me because i will probably peel it off anyway. being that you center the pin in your peep, not the pin housing, i really don't need the glow ring. as long as the pins are bright, that's all you need.
speaking of the pins, they were pretty bright. they weren't as bright as my olf TruGlow sight but they were more than sufficient for target shooting and hunting. this sight did come with a sight light that works very well. the light has adjustable brightness controls where you can barely light up the pins or gradually turn it up to the brightest setting. this feature is kind of cool for the guys that have issues with pins being too bright and causing a halo effect in low light. i will probably never need the light anyway. i have owned several sights in the past that have had lights and never needed them. from my experience once i can no longer see my pins due to low natural light, it is after legal shooting hours anyway.
down to the installation. the install and set up was very easy, which was a good thing. this sight doesn't come with hardly any instuctions. it does have an adjustable sight rail that will allow you to extend the sight housing further away from the riser (the main reason i bought this sight). it is also FULLY micro adjustable which is sweet. the Hitman Micro that i am replacing had micro adjustments for the entire sight housing moving horizontal and vertical only. when it came to adjusting the individual pin, you had to loosen it with an allen wrench and slide it with your finger, then retighten it. this could be a pain for precise adjustments. the Micro Alpha V5 is fully micro adjustable to include each individual pin. you just use an allen wrench to turn the bottom screw under the sight housing and this raises or lowers that particular pin. the pin housing micro adjustments for horizontal and vertical are done with finger knobs. you can even adjust the pins right on top of each other if you do not want to run the sight rail out in front of your riser. i was unable to do this with the Hitman, even with the pins as close as they could go...i wasn't able to sight a pin in for under 30 yards if i had a 30 yard pin.
overall i like this sight. the reason i don't love this sight is because i am still adjusting to using the vertical pins. i guess i am just so use to the horizontal pins that it will take a little time. i have only been shooting this sight now for two days. i am accurate with it, it just seems to take me a hair longer to get proper sight picture before releasing the arrow because i'm still not use to it.
Pros's - long adjustable sight rail
fully micro adjustable including individual pins
ability to adjust the pins right on top of each other if need be
well built
has it's own light source
equiped with bubble level
Con's - glow ring sticker on pin housing isn't very durable
instructions are very limited
this was my first attempt at a "review". hope i answered any questions anyone might have on this sight. if you need to know anything else that i may have forgot to include, just ask.
i was also curious to see how shooting with a vertical pin sight would be vs. the horizontal pin sights that i have been using for over 20 years. well the new sight came in a couple days ago. the first thing i noticed once opening the package was it appeared to be really well built, as for every Trophy Ridge sight that i have ever owned. the only thing that wasn't perfect with the sight was the glow ring sticker that wraps around the rear of the sight housing. no matter how much i press it down, a couple spots seem to bubble back up. this isn't a big concern to me because i will probably peel it off anyway. being that you center the pin in your peep, not the pin housing, i really don't need the glow ring. as long as the pins are bright, that's all you need.
speaking of the pins, they were pretty bright. they weren't as bright as my olf TruGlow sight but they were more than sufficient for target shooting and hunting. this sight did come with a sight light that works very well. the light has adjustable brightness controls where you can barely light up the pins or gradually turn it up to the brightest setting. this feature is kind of cool for the guys that have issues with pins being too bright and causing a halo effect in low light. i will probably never need the light anyway. i have owned several sights in the past that have had lights and never needed them. from my experience once i can no longer see my pins due to low natural light, it is after legal shooting hours anyway.
down to the installation. the install and set up was very easy, which was a good thing. this sight doesn't come with hardly any instuctions. it does have an adjustable sight rail that will allow you to extend the sight housing further away from the riser (the main reason i bought this sight). it is also FULLY micro adjustable which is sweet. the Hitman Micro that i am replacing had micro adjustments for the entire sight housing moving horizontal and vertical only. when it came to adjusting the individual pin, you had to loosen it with an allen wrench and slide it with your finger, then retighten it. this could be a pain for precise adjustments. the Micro Alpha V5 is fully micro adjustable to include each individual pin. you just use an allen wrench to turn the bottom screw under the sight housing and this raises or lowers that particular pin. the pin housing micro adjustments for horizontal and vertical are done with finger knobs. you can even adjust the pins right on top of each other if you do not want to run the sight rail out in front of your riser. i was unable to do this with the Hitman, even with the pins as close as they could go...i wasn't able to sight a pin in for under 30 yards if i had a 30 yard pin.
overall i like this sight. the reason i don't love this sight is because i am still adjusting to using the vertical pins. i guess i am just so use to the horizontal pins that it will take a little time. i have only been shooting this sight now for two days. i am accurate with it, it just seems to take me a hair longer to get proper sight picture before releasing the arrow because i'm still not use to it.
Pros's - long adjustable sight rail
fully micro adjustable including individual pins
ability to adjust the pins right on top of each other if need be
well built
has it's own light source
equiped with bubble level
Con's - glow ring sticker on pin housing isn't very durable
instructions are very limited
this was my first attempt at a "review". hope i answered any questions anyone might have on this sight. if you need to know anything else that i may have forgot to include, just ask.
