The Best Fly Rods For Trout – By Value & Price Point

Why Get A Quality Trout Fly Rod?

Does your fly rod give you casting accuracy, sensitive feeling for subtle takes, and strong power for playing larger fish?  The good news is, there’s a proliferating number of fly rod brands and models, that will give you all of these attributes in one fly rod.  The other news is, there’s a lot to sift through, and the best fly fishing rod for you depends on a number of factors, so let us break it down for you.

This angler is enjoying the moment when it all comes together – the rod is performing well, and all he needs to do is guide a nice fish into the net.

Summary Of The Best Fly Rods for Trout

While many mass produced fly rods are flooding across the fly fishing marketplace, not all of them are suited to the task.   So, we’ve spent a lot of time wading through the multitude of options to not only recommend the best rods, but also provide you with useful information that will aid in your decision making.  We want you to be confident in your selection, so here are our picks and why we chose them.

Redington Classic Trout

The Classic Trout is designed for trout fishing, with a moderate action rod.  It handles any situation from smaller and technical creek fishing, up to moderate weights and lengths for normal and average fishing conditions.  There are 11 models to choose from, with a nice feature being you can choose from 4-piece or shorter 6-pieces rods for compact travel requirements.

Redington is an established company that makes relatively economical fly rods.  In this case we’ve assigned our “Practical” rating to the rod.

Just for perspective, if you didn’t know, Redington’s owner Far Bank Enterprises also owns Sage, a producer of higher-end fly rods.  Just because Redington are lower price rods, doesn’t mean they are strangers to quality.

Redington claims the Classic “packs sufficient power for big rivers & boat fishing,” which is the only manufacturer claim we don’t agree with.  Besides that, the lightweight construction and modest action make make it a very good rod to save your arm and shoulder during long hours of casting.

Using our evaluation critera, we rate the Classic Trout as “practical,” and recommend it for routine trout and panfish angling, as an entry-level rod, a great gift, and a solid choice as a back-up rod for an expensive trip you may be taking.  If that fits the bill of what you are looking for, then you can consider it one of the best trout fly rods you can get for your dollar.  To sum up this point, we consider this a good budget fly rod, not a cheap fly rod in terms of quality.

Click this link to read our more detailed review of the Redington Classic Trout Rod.

Sage Foundation Fly Rod

The Sage Foundation is a medium-fast action fly rod, in the right sizes and weights for trout, that is geared for most but not all fishing conditions. The rod draws its versatility by using a medium action in the top sections, while relying on a more powerful stiff action in the butt section.  This yields a combination of stronger casts and fighting ability, combined with a softer more delicate action in the top end of the rod.  All put together, we consider this one of the best fly rods for trout you can buy.

Sage is no stranger to quality with it’s high-end reputation, at the same time, because it is owned by the same company as Redington, has done a good job getting into the market for more affordable rods.   The Foundation is made from more traditional, pure graphite rather than a more modern hybrid composite materials.  However, it has still achieved a level of performance that is uncharacteristically high for the mid-price market.  As a result, it has earned a hard-won place in our “Best Value” category.

The foundation offers a very nice combination of strength and smooth, not entirely flexible but we’ll call it medium-softer stroke. This is result of the pure medium action up top, coupled with the stiffer/stronger butt section normally associated with fast-action rod.  The recovery speed is good, and even with a softer tip can still punch out beyond 50-60 if necessary.

We say that recognizing that longer casts are not this rod’s strong suit compared to other pure-fast action, stiffer rods. With 8 models available ranging from 4 – 9 weight, you can pursue most species in all but the most challenging conditions.  Even at the 8-9 weight rod, we recommend other rods for salmon and steelhead, given the softer tip, but this rod can certainly handle larger fish when needed.

All in, the Foundation brings more quality features and performance for the price than most rods, even than rods that cost considerably more, so consider it a solid choice for best fly rod for trout.

Recommended Applications:

• Average trout and panfish – YES – lighter-weight models
• Larger trout, bass and smaller salmon (silvers, sockeye) YES – heavier weight models
• Large salmon such as Kings/Chinook and steelhead – NO
• Pike, OK for small-midsized, larger pike and muskie – NO
• Saltwater – NO

Click this link to read our more detailed review of the Sage Foundation Trout Rod.

Additional Considerations For Selecting The Best Fly Rods for Trout

Picking the best fly fishing rod for trout is not unlike carefully selecting a car or truck.  You want to pack in the most features you can, but also stick to a budget.  There are cars that are better for fuel efficiency, or do you want one that will be great at tripping and off-roading instead?

The same is true choosing your fly rod for trout fishing.  Do you want more power, or one that loads more efficiently and is easier on your arm and shoulder for a long-day on the water?  Are you fishing mountain streams, average sized rivers, or big powerful water?

When looking for an ideal fly rod, you may want to consider multiple factors before you invest your gear. Ask the following questions:

• Where will you fish, on what types of water and what type of conditions?
• Will you be fishing smaller nymphs, emergers, and dry flies, or large articulated streamers, or both?
• What size fish do you expect to catch?
• What is your budget, not just for fly poles but for the gear you need with it?
• What quality are you looking for in a fishing rod?
• Do you need an all purpose rod, or perhaps even several rods for distinct purposes such as traveling fly rods?

Other technical aspects come into play when choosing the best trout fly rod, including:

Rod Length and Weight

Trout rods range from short 6-7 footers for small mountain brook trout streams, to 13 foot euro-nymphing rods.  Line weights generally range from 3-weight to 8-weight.  The average trout rod is 7.5 – 9 feet, with a corresponding 5 – 7 line weight.

You’ll see in manufacturer’s model selection tables, that length and weight are generally correlated, but not always so.  For example, euro-nymphing uses a lighter weight for feeling, combined with a longer rod length for “high sticking” your line off the water.

In general, you’ll only need the upper end of these ranges if you are fishing big rivers, with windy canyons or deep powerful flows.  Longer, stiffer rods are needed for these conditions, but also can take something away from playing an average sized trout.  Longer rods also become a liability if you are fishing in tight spaces, such as mountain streams.  Consider also that an average trout will feel much larger on a smaller, more flexible rod.

Some of the trout rods we review also come in heavier weights, e.g. 8 to as much as 12-weight lines.  In these cases there are tradeoffs with trout fishing, but consider that the rod might double as a choice for best saltwater fly rod, or best fly rods for salmon.

Balance of the Rod

Keep balance in mind because it can really make a difference.  You should be able to balance your fly rod comfortably, when holding it near the reel seat. Balance really helps reduce casting fatigue, so you can enjoy your day on the water as well as have great feel for accurate casting and sensing strikes.

Materials

You will find most trout fishing rod blanks are made with graphite, while fiberglass is regaining popularity.  And not many anglers may know that some models utilize a combination of both graphite and fiberglass, to combine the best features of both: strength and flexibility.  When it comes to trout, as compared to trophy game fish, remember the game is more about touch and feel, and less about power and strength except under the minority of fishing conditions.  Many anglers fall prey to paying more than they need to, but instead wind up with a stiffer rod than they really need – or want.  Of course, bamboo rods have a special touch and feel all their own, and can make fantastic collectors items, but in most cases may out price your budget unless that is what you really want.

Price and Warranty

When considering quality, the better it is, the higher the price will be.  Here are our tips when you’re looking at price and quality:

• Choose the best fly rod, but within your budget.
• Be sure to leave money for the many other pieces of gear you may need to complete you set.
• Most manufacturers offer a limited or even lifetime warranty for manufacture’s defects.
• Check the one you buy, but most now offer a one-time fee of $50-75 for accidental breakage or damage, no questions asked.
• Ideally, you would get a brand/model with an unconditional lifetime warranty, but those are less frequent these days, and generally only for the more expensive rods.
• But consider there’s also a replacement cost if you get an inexpensive rod and have to pay full cost to replace it.
• Of course, also search on “fly rod sale,” “fly rods on sale” or “fly rod on sale” to determine if you can get what you are looking for at a discount.

Action – Medium vs. Fast For Trout Fishing

In general, we prefer and recommend a medium action rod for trout fishing.  This gives you more flexibility to load the rod for the cast, feel strikes, and play the fish.  Unless you expect to fish for and land lunkers (e.g. 3+ pound fish) on a routine basis, we’re hesitant to use a stiffer, fast action rod.

We recommend that you only bump up to fast action if you need more power in your cast, for example for longer distances, larger rivers, windy conditions, powerful currents, and/or large flies such as articulated streamers.  In our experience, many anglers tend to bump up to a stiffer rod when they don’t need it.  At the end of a long day, you may very well wind up with a sore shoulder and arm.  That said, one of the benefits of a fast action, stiffer rod is also getting one of the best fly rods for salmon and/or best saltwater fly rods.

Used Fly Rods For Sale

Unless you know the seller and history of the rod well, like from your fishing buddy, we do not recommend purchasing a used fly rod.  At first it might seem like a way to get a better deal on a better or even high end fly rod.  However, there are many factors that can detract from your experience if you buy a used fly fishing pole.  The manufacturer’s warranty usually is void if you are not the original buyer.  Also, even if a used rod looks good on the shelf or online, there can be subtle nicks or scratches that are a prelude to rod failure.  If you really want your experience to be the best, we suggest choosing from the best fly fishing rods, purchased new.  Better to have a new rod at a lower price, than a used rod even from one of the high-end fly fishing brands.  This is our opinion of course, and you are free to choose whatever trout fishing rod works for you, just in our experience used rods ultimately don’t last as long or work as well.  Another consideration is that fly rod technology has advanced so much, that the best beginner fly rods today are better than many of the older fly rods.  If you want your fly pole to be the best beginner fly rod you can get, buy new for the best experience.  You’ll be amazed at how much you can get for your money in flyfishing rods these days, and the variety available such as travelling fly rods.

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FAQs

What weight fly rod do you use for trout?

For most trout fishing, we recommend fly rod weights, 5 – 7.  Depending on conditions (casting distance, depth) and size of the fish, consider weights 3 – 8.  Use a double taper, weight forward, or straight line depending on the conditions, occasionally a sinking line.

How do you set up a fly rod for trout fishing?

You’ll want 100 yards of 10-15 lb backing, in case you hook into a lunker.  A tapered leader is preferable, down to a tippet of 4x – 8x depending on the size fish, and whether the fish in the stream you are fishing are leader sensitive or not.  There are many ways to rig your fly, with the most common you can read in our article 12 Tippet Tips.

When would you use a longer heavier fly rod?

Use a 9-10 foot rod for trophy or big game fish such as trophy trout, salmon, steelhead.  The longer rods help make longer casts, with a heavy fly line (8-10 weight), especially in the wind or powerful flow conditions.

What is the best trout rod for the money?

Based on our Best Value review, some of the best trout rods for the money are the Sage Foundation, and St. Croix Mojo Trout Rod.

How much does a good fly rod cost?

We like to rate fly rods according to “value,” meaning how many features and performance specifications the manufacturer can pack in relative to price.  For trout and panfish, you can expect to spend $150-800 for a quality rod.  For big game fish, you’re looking at $400-1200 to do the job right.

Which fly rod should I buy?

The fly rod that’s best for you will depend on what type of fish you are pursuing, fishing conditions, the quality of rod you want, number of features, and your budget.  For trout and panfish, you’ll generally want a 7 to 9 foot fly rod, matched to 5 to 7 weight line.  For more specialized rods, such as for euro-nymphing, you may go longer and lighter (e.g. 11 – 13 feet matched to a 3-weight line).  For big game fish, or longer casting in the wind or powerful currents, you’ll want a 9 to 11 foot rod, with 8 to 10 weight line.