Heavy on Fun: Best Ultralight Rods Reviewed

Why Fish Ultralight?

As anyone who’s tried ultralight fishing can tell you, it’s heavy on fun. Sure, you can use a light or medium power rod for panfish, trout, perch, bass, and small walleye, and you won’t see pros throwing lures with an ultralight. But that’s because they fish to win; it’s their job, and they’re really not trying to maximize their fun on the water.

But you probably are!

Ultralights are just that--ultra-light--and you won’t be muscling big fish with them. Hook a two-pound smallmouth, and you’ll hear your drag whining, see your rod bow, and have a real fight on your hands. Tie into a decent sized perch or a nice brookie, and you’ll know you’ve got something on your line!

And isn’t that why you took to fishing in the first place?

Because ultralight set-ups use very light tackle - rod, reel, line, and lure - they transform small fish into big ones, and big ones into true monsters. A day catching smallmouth with a medium rod and eight-pound line won’t be much fun; try the same thing on an ultralight with four-pound test and you won’t be able to stop showing teeth through your grin!

And nothing replaces an ultralight when you need to detect a light strike. Indeed, ultralight rods provide far more feel and sensitivity than heavier alternatives, and if you’re casting light lines and lures, there’s simply no competition.

Ultralight rods will bend like marsh grass in the wind, providing a bit more cushion to your line and assisting the drag in its work of preventing failures when you do tie into an impressive fish. And though they’re delicate, they’re also strong. Properly fished, you can catch some pretty big bass and walleye with an ultralight.

And you’ll have a tale to tell when you do!

What We Consider When Selecting an Ultralight Rod

An excellent ultralight rod offers a winning combination of action, power, length, and quality.

Action

A rod’s action describes where along its length it will begin to bend under load. Fast action rods are stiff for most of their length, bending near the tip. By contrast, slow action rods begin to give closer to the handle and reel seat, curving over a much greater percentage of their length.
Ultralight rods are most often built with a fast or moderate action. What that means is that they offer a delicate, sensitive tip that bends very quickly. But as the load increases, you’ll feel the strength of their blank kick in.

When that happens, a fast action ultralight rod will still bend beyond the tip, but it’ll provide enough control to help you play even a reasonably large fish.

Power

Power describes how much force is required to bend a rod. Together with its action, a rod’s power tells you a lot about how it will perform.

Ultralight tells you pretty much everything you need to know: the blank’s power is ultra-light, meaning that it will bend under modest loads. Even with a fast action, a two-pound fish is going to get your attention.

Now, you might be thinking that ultralight means “weak.” Nothing could be further from the truth.

Length

Most rod manufacturers don’t make ultralight rods longer than 7 feet in length, because that’s about as long as you want to go for casting accuracy.

Generally speaking, the longer a rod is, the further you can cast with it, but the less precise those casts will be. Shorter rods are deadly accurate, but casting distance will suffer.
Ultralight rods tend toward the shorter end, and the reels they’re designed to seat can’t hold much line. They’re not distance demons, but are geared toward precision and finesse instead. If you need to cast for maximum distance, look for rods closer to 7 feet, and consider slightly stiffer ultralights. That stiffer backbone and longer length will help you reach out a bit more.

I usually fish with a rod that’s six-and-a-half feet long, and that’s probably the best length to start with if you’re unsure of your specific needs.

Line and Lure Weight

The slender, whip-like ultralights take light lines and tiny lures. Look for rods designated with line weights between two and six pounds, with lure sizes ranging from 1/64 of an ounce to as much as ¼ to 1/2.

Guides

Light line provides a unique challenge for rod manufacturers. Because friction can quickly destroy two, four, and six-pound test, ultralight rods need to have pretty serious guides.

Now, you may be thinking that the fish you’ll target with an ultralight really can’t put your rod’s guides to the test, but take a look at the video below. It doesn’t take much friction and heat to break even heavy line, and I guarantee you that low-quality guides will lose you more than one fish!

The best way to test guide quality is also demonstrated below. Just try sawing the line you use against a large guide. If the line breaks quickly, that’s a sign to give that rod a pass.

video demonstrating how fragile line really is and how quality guides can be tested

Material

Modern fishing rods can be made from a variety of materials, including carbon fiber, graphite, and fiberglass. Some feature composite construction, using more than one material in the blank that provides their backbone.

Graphite is strong, stiff, and ultra-light. Due to its high stiffness, it’s also quite sensitive, and it makes a great, durable choice for a rod.

Fiberglass is heavier than graphite and usually less expensive. It’s not quite as sensitive or as stiff, but it can be incredibly strong, earning it a place in your angling arsenal.

Especially for crappie, this is not necessarily a disadvantage, as cushioned hooksets are ideal.

Carbon fiber is the stiffest, strongest, lightest, and most expensive material used for rod blanks. Its performance is unparalleled, but so is its price!

Handle

Much about which handle to choose is a personal decision, and what’s comfortable to me may be misery for you. Generally, there are two primary handle materials: cork and EVA foam.

Cork is warmer and more attractive, but less forgiving of rough treatment.

EVA foam is softer and cooler to the touch, and it’s pretty tough stuff.

Final Thoughts

We can’t tell you which ultralight rod on our shortlist is the best choice for you, but we can guarantee that one of them will fit the bill and put a smile on your face the next time you hit the water.

As always, we’re here to answer any questions and field any comments you might have, so please leave us a message below!