Well Ive been fishing ultra lights for nearly two decades and find two very important points to consider. First what are you fishing for? Also whats your tippet rating for real? A native trout or nice bass can put a run on you and snap a 1# tippet faster than it took you to set the hook. So in consideration of using ultra light tippets, I would suggest the primary concern should be the ability of the reel to hold an absolute constant drag setting for that hook set and run.
Honestly one of my favorite reels is an old tuna can Martin. Its got a big enough spool capacity to load 120 yards of 12# backing and either a WF1F or a DT1F. Just about what it takes to turn and tire a decent fighting fish in a confined area like a nice little stream or creek, or winter river low flows.
Heres one of my little favorites a little 61 tan tuna can Martin with an Orvis DT1F reel weighs just under 3 ounces

as you can see on this longer 7 1/2ft 1wt Orvis rod the balance point is at the tip of the grip. Although for me
personally a DT1F on this rod is a poor choice, this longer rod likes a WF2F much better, she's good for 40-50ft
precision sight casting with that combination.

Same rod with a little Medialist 1492 1/2 this is my favorite reel with that rod and shows almost perfect balance
fully loaded, the simple click drag allows me to control all the added resistance by fingering the line and the angle
of the rod producing the needed constant drag to turn and tire the fish.


Im fishing this combination with a 1-2 wt 5ft sinking furrled tapered leader and a 2 1/2ft 1# tippet
Next would be my shorty 2wt Orvis, this time its only 6 1/2ft, however coupled with a Ryobi 255 Magnesium
reel its really a perfect balance This rod likes the DT2F or WF3F lines in my hands







again great balance on this combo

This is a little Okuma SLV 23, balances nicely, with the added advantage of being able to adjust the drag by a finger
on the spool rim. This is a neat little rig the line is a WF3 F/S Orvis stripper (4ft sinking head) works perfect on this
combination for me with a 5ft 3-4wt sinking furrled tapered leader and again a 1# tippet. This is actually my favorite
combination with this rod.


Ok, heres another line I like with it an older Lee Wulff TT2I

Now comes my heavy artiliary, the 3wts.
My back pack rod, not expensive but works well, a Damon Royal 6ft 3wt 4 piece




Another little Ryobi 255 Magnesium, this time with a WF3F and a spider (skater) for some dry fly action


Finally my long gun a Sage DS2 386 at 8 1/2ft, coupled with a Redington CD 3/4 reel and a DT3F





This rod will cast way our and buck some winds, both with the DT3F and another of the Orvis mini Stripper lines
this time a WF4 F/S stripper with mini sinking tip



here are a few more of my spare reels that I put in the bag when I go out, first the vernable Orvis CFO II

And a couple of Orvis Large Arbor I's as well






Ive found that at least using the 1# tippets, that the lack of setting drag saves alot of broken tippets. So often
I will be fishing the little inexpensive Martin's or Medalist's however once I shift to heavier tippets I like the more
expensive reels with good adjustable drags and brakes.
However that leads right back to what are you fishing for and what's your tippet like?

Of all the ultra lights Ive owned or fished, one stands our as my all time favorite, the 2005 Sage TXL 00wt at 7ft 10 inches. I first handled one when our local Sage Pro Shop here on the lake got one as a demo, set up with their line designed just for this rod and their 3100 click and pawl reel. After a couple of hours fishing that demo I bought a whole outfit. Today both the rod and reel are discontinued. My son now has that sweet little combo as his one and only ultra light outfit. But then if you can have just one, why not have the best one. Frankly its the first rod that Ive fished that was true to its line rating, while its a special performace line designed by Sage just for the rod, never the less you can really let fly on a windless day.

Ive a bunch of other slightly heavier reels, but they are truely better suited for 4wt rods however all of the above will easily balance any of the rods you see shown above.
Richard

Richard, came across a reel recently (used), similar to the Reddington CD 3/4 you have shown, I was wondering if you have an experience with the Reddington RS2 3/4. I guess it is a mid arbor reel like your CD, the drag system seems to be different. Also have an Orvis Battenkill III, shame they discontinued that model, I always liked them thanks ... Paul

Andy, also got a spare spool for the Battenkill III, a large sporting good store in Portland carried the Orvis line, when they discontinued the reel I got the spool really discounted. I am curious about the Reddington RS2 3/4 reel that I recent found for sale. It also came with three spools. One spool had a Rio Selective Trout in a DT3F, that line is a couple of bucks and I wud like to try one. If my recollections are correct I believe the other spool had a Cortland Sylk DT3F, look like the guy is downsizing to me. BTW if I ever want to part with the Battenkill III you get the first shot at it (It has the black finish) & still have the case for it ....... Paul

Hi Guys, glad you liked my little quiver of ultra lights its changed alot over they years, Im hoping to build up an S-glass Steffen, actually two of them hopefully a 1wt and the other an honest 2wt. However from my experence with all but the Sage TXL series of ultra ultra lights, I've never been comfortable with a posted line weight for my ultra light graphite rods. Ive always felt they required at least 1/2 line weight to a full line weight to load properly, both for distance and accuracy of cast. As to final presentation, alot of that is controlled by the proper leader (Im completely sold on furrled tapered leaders for both floating and sinking) and using the lightest tippet possible so that even the tiny midges and nymphs have enough weight to lay out the tippet flat without a splash.

I find it far more important not to snap off the tippet on the take and set than I do any other aspect of using light lines for fighting fish. Next would be backing capacity to let the fish tire and turn. Drag should be a subject of the rods bow and a tiny amount of added pressure even from one finger on the line itself. A one point tippet will break on the first drag mistake!

Les, the Damon may be out out of business. Back around 4 years ago they were often seen on Ebay, Their suggested retail was around $150-200 but they never went for that, think this one was around $90 delivered and I was in need of a pack rod for the golden trout wilderness and in sort of a hurry so I opted to try one. Its a really good rod though, I believe its IM6 it really flex's nicely and loads up well. Its one of the closest rods to advertised line weights Ive ever tried, loading up a WF3wt perfectly even for a short 6ft rod. Interestingly Ive watched for another and never seen another new one or used one offered on Ebay. Also about 2 or three years ago the company was dumping alot of rod building materials on Ebay, seats guides etc, so it may have been a going out of business sale then. The rod I have is sweet, almost like a fast progressive full flexing glass. The action reminds me alot of my lightest Phillipson Eponite shorty, an early Royal, and my favorite 5wt. Its full flexing, but loads so you can really feel it and control your cast.

Paul, Ive not tried any of the other Redington Reels as yet, I bought this one just at the anouncement of Redingtons sale to Sage I think. At the time it was a factory closeout and I dearly wanted to try one out. By the time I had received it and lined it out and taken it fishing all the neat closeout sales were gone, so Ive not tried another. However I truely love this one for sure.

The original Orvis Battenkill Large Arbor series is one of my all time favorites, when Orvis announced they were leaving BFR and heading offshore for manufacture of their reel line I snapped up several examples of each size from their online website. Ive not been sorry one bit either, they are outstanding reels, from the tiny I to the biggest I load with my Saltwater 12wts.

Cross Creek One, thanks for the tip, I picked up one of the 3100's for $180 plus $5 shipping and an extra spool too for a song. Also the very last of the Quite taper lines in 00 but they have some discounted Quite Tape IIs as well for about $15 off. I will have to see our local Sage dealer and see if he has any of the TXL 00's as demo's I know he uses one each year, its a favorite of his, with the current price and knowing how he cares for his demo's I might be able to get a deal. I miss that rod, its the only ultra light line Ive ever cast that was true to the line rating and loaded well for precise sight casting and yet could easily muster 45 feet.

Richard

Now the proud owner of that Reddington RS2 3/4, nice reel, alittle bigger & heavier than I thought it would be. It is classified as a medium arbor reel. It did have a few issues, but I made the gent an offer he could not refuse. It came with a total of three spools. One has the Rio Selective Trout DT3F. One the few lines that I have never owned, but read good reports about it. Will try it out on the water thisweek. Richard, He had a Reddington GD (I believe the designation was GD) very similar to the reel you displayed in your post, It was a stainless finish, also nice reel, lighter than the RS2, the postion of the drag adjustment was in the same place as yours. He told me that RS2 was about 5 years old and the CD & GD were later models. Paul

That Reddington GD 3/4 was also nice in stainless ... WOW I need another reel like I need another eye in the middle of my forehead. What I need is to stay off this web site for awhile ....Nah I love this place, very mind stimulating, gets you thinking about all the things you dont need but want ...if I didnt see Richards post on that Reddington reel there is no way I would bought the RS2, AH ya only go around one time right ... Paul

I just want to say kudos for the little Abel Creek fly reel. Last year I purchased the smallest in this series of fly reels and was pleasantly surprised. I fished with the 3/4 Orvis battenkill and the little 2.2 oz austin forbes for several years and although both did a nice job, in the back of my mind just wanted something better with a softer drag.....Did my homework and came up with the Abel creek....somewhat pricey but oh my what a wonderful click and pawl little large arbor reel. By the way this reel does a wonderful job on ultralight tippet protection....Caught three (3) trout over 12" long on 12x tippet.

It weighs in at 3.8 oz. I use it on my sage txl 00wt.

Andy, Just google abel creek and go on their website and all of the info is there to enjoy it. The 12x12 club was originated in Missouri and is an ongoing thing out there. Several folks have done it. I picked up on the idea and started doing it on my own in Maryland. It's something a little different than the norm but wow what a hoot.

Good points Andy....since I seem to be obssessing about weight these days.....what does a little tuna can 61 weigh?

David