The best three-weight rods perform especially well when an angler is looking for a dry fly rod that can cast accurately and delicately at close distances. They are not designed as great all-around rods like the best 5-weights, but they prevail on smaller streams or wherever technical angling is required to catch selective, spooky trout.
My writeup rods consist of my top 10 rods, based on performance only between 20-40 feet. In my Final Results chart you can see how these rods stack up against each other once we figured in categories like price, weight, swing weight, various craftsmanship categories, warranty, etc. In my Performance Only chart you can see how I ranked each rod strictly on its casting merit at the various distances.
1. Hardy Ultralite SR 8’#3 $825.00
Howard Croston, Hardy’s chief rod designer has given us a lot of wonderful rods over the years and this is one of his best. This is a fast action rod with a lot of butt power that makes it easy to reach out when you need to, but delicate short distance casts are its bread and butter.
I especially liked how this rod cast, and I gave it perfect scores at 20, 25 and 30 feet, and then a 19 at 40 feet. This rod will reach out to 50 and even 60 feet easily, and with reasonable accuracy. Another great all-arounder for those who plan to fish smaller spring creeks or mountain streams as well as larger tailwater rivers.
This is a great looking rod too, finished in a light olive green with complementary olive thread wraps. Just above the cork handle, Hardy uses a six-inch gray carbon fiber wrap with fancy trim wraps. The cork handle is a modified full wells style grip with an interesting narrow section at the top of the grip, that forces you to grip the rod with your thumb near the top of the grip. I liked it, once I got used to casting the rod. The quality of the thin cork rings was excellent. An attractive uplocking skeleton seat is used with a nice walnut burl insert.
The guide set-up is one fairly large stripping guide, followed by black and very thin wire, flexible snake guides. The olive wraps were finished nicely. Alignment dots at the ferrules were helpful.
George’s Score: 79 out of 80
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 20 out of 20
Amazing accuracy at the three shorter distances. If you want a rod that will cast extremely accurately, especially in close, this is your rod!
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 20 out of 20
Another perfect performance from a great rod.
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 20 out of 20
I was still getting terrific accuracy at 30 feet and it was easy to hit the target.
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 19 out of 20
Only out long did the accuracy and presentation fall off – but even then, not much!
2. Orvis Superfine 7’6”#3 $598.00
Here is another rod that I rated 20 out of 20 at the three shorter distances and a 19 at 40 feet. To my way of thinking, this is the rod I’d pick if I were fishing at closer distances much of the time, which is often the case with a three weight. I love everything about this rod, (other than Orvis’ unapologetic signature off-white label above the cork), but this one is a touch more subdued than their Helios models. The craftsmanship is the typical excellence we have come to expect from Orvis. Another factor is the price, and at $598.00, this rod is a real bargain!
This rod is not as fancy as many of our other 3-weights, but it performed better than nearly all of them, especially at close distances. Normally when I’m fishing to a rising trout in close, I want a rod that is especially accurate and one that can make a very subtle presentation. This rod stood out above all the others in our Shootout – as long as the distances you are fishing are 35 feet or less.
Orvis designed this rod with a strong butt that helps me turn over a 6X or 7X tippet with ease. The handle is a stack of thin diameter cork rings with a slight swell in the middle and then tapering down to a thin cigar style at the front of the grip. A pleasant grip, especially on a rod I’d use for short distance fishing.
The reel seat is an uplocking style, using a single sliding band and a wide uplocking ring that was very easy to grip. Nothing fancy, just an excellent light reel seat. A black winding check is used above the cork grip with a five-inch section of off-white paint with the words – Orvis Superfine Graphite in cursive. It is trimmed with black thread and a red band at the top. No hook keeper is used above the cork grip.
One stripping guide is used, followed up with hard chrome snake guides. The wraps are black and very nicely done, with alignment dots at the ferrules. A slip over style of ferrule is used. A fairly large chrome tip top is used, and the guide wraps are excellent and finished nicely.
George’s Score: 79 out of 80
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 20 out of 20
The accuracy and ease of placement was superb. Nothing was better in close than this rod!
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 20 out of 20
I love the accuracy I’m getting and the presentation was close to perfect.
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 20 out of 20
Again, exceptional accuracy combined with a nice delicate presentation.
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 19 out of 20
Only at our longest distance did the accuracy fall off slightly.
3. Winston Pure 2 – 7’9”#3 $995.00
Tom Morgan, who owned and ran the Winston rod company for many years would have loved this rod. Not only does it perform well but it is a great looking rod, finished in that brilliant dark green we have become accustomed to over the years.
This is a medium-fast action rod that is easy to cast off the tip at short distances, but it has plenty of power to reach out to forty feet when you need to. It is light in hand, with one of the lighter overall weights in our Shootout.
The thing that impressed me most was the Pure 2’s ability to throw very tight loops at short to medium distances. In close, when I was casting mostly off the tip of the rod, the Pure 2’s accuracy and feel were exceptional. Amazingly, it has just enough butt and mid-section power to reach out further, when you need to.
Three weight rods are perfectly suited to fishing small dry flies like baetis hatches we see here in Montana, but this Winston has enough butt power and guts to launch larger dry flies too like PMD’s, caddis, drakes, and even small hoppers or stoneflies.
Winston rods are finished with top notch components and the Pure 2 is no exception. It is fitted with a gorgeous nickel-silver uplocking reel seat, one of the most attractive in our Shootout. The wood insert on this rod is a light-colored box elder burl - a great looking combination. A nickel-silver winding check is fitted at the top of the grip. The cork grip is a comfortable cigar design and the quality of the cork is excellent.
One small diameter stripping guide is used, followed by hard chrome snake guides. The dark green wraps are slightly darker than the blank itself, and the epoxy finish is superb – as good if not better than all of the 3-weights we tested.
Of all the rods in our Shootout, this is definitely one of the best looking and best performing 3-weight rods you can lay your hands on!
George’s Score: 79 out of 80
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 20 out of 20
The accuracy and feel were outstanding!
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 20 out of 20
Again, amazing accuracy at short distances makes this rod special if you like fishing in close.
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 20 out of 20
Another perfect performance!
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 19 out of 20
Only at longer distances did the accuracy suffer.
4. Hardy Marksman 8’#3 $950.00
Here is another terrific rod from Howard Croston. The Marksman is one of Hardy’s newer models, with excellent components and finish. Not only is this a great looking rod, but the performance was terrific also.
To keep the weight down on a light rod like this, Howard used the very light and flexible single-foot guides, in black finish. These will never break, but perform beautifully. One Sic stripping guide is used.
The color of the blank is a pleasing dark bronze with complementary brown thread wraps, with a little green trim. Overlapping graphite ferrules are used, with helpful alignment dots. A small hook keeper is fitted just above the cork handle and a six-inch section of pleasing x-pattern gray with the Hardy Marksman logo is trimmed with brown thread with green highlights.
The half wells design cork handle is made with narrow diameter, very high-quality cork, picked just for these Marksman rods. A very unusual black anodized uplocking skeleton seat is used with two locking rings. A beautiful brown burled wood insert is used.
George’s score: 78 out of 80
George’s casting notes at 20 feet: 19 out of 20
Very good accuracy and wonderful feel for where I’m putting the fly.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 20 out of 20
Just as good or better than any other rods. Great feel and feedback.
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 20 out of 20
Another perfect performance. I had a lot of confidence where I was putting the fly!
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 19 out of 20
Just a little fall off, but still excellent.
5. Scott G Series 7’7”#3 $945.00
We had three Scott G series rods to test, their 7’7”#3, 8'4"#3, and their longer 8’8”#3. I liked all of them, but gave the nod to the shorter and much lighter 7’7”#3.
I love the light-weight of this rod and much of this is due to the fact that they use a simple cork reel seat, inletted for the reel seat, with a black butt cap and sliding band. I liked the much faster action of 7’7”#3, making it easy to cast off the tip on shorter casts. This is another rod that I gave perfect scores of 20 to at 20, 25, and 30 feet and 18 out of 20 at forty feet.
Like other Scott rods, the blank is left un-sanded, so you can see the tape wraps. Scott claims that this results in a stronger rod. Whether it does or not, you can see how evenly distributed the wraps are, a clear sign of attention to detail and precision when rolling the blanks.
In 2006, Scott revamped these G Series rods, making them lighter and increasing their recovery speed. The new G Series rods balance lighter in hand, have much more stability through the middle of the rod for better tracking, and generate higher line speeds.
Like many of our other top rods, the cork handle is a stack of thin cork rings with few imperfections. The handle tapers slightly smaller towards the front, with a finished cork ring at the front, followed with a hook keeper.
Scott’s guide set up on this 7’7” rod starts with one fairly small stripping guide, followed with hard chrome snake guides that do not bend. These work well enough but I’d prefer the flexible snake guides we see on other rods. Brown thread wraps with alignment dots at the ferrules are used, and the epoxy finish over the wraps was excellent and beautifully done. A chrome tip top is utilized.
George’s Score: 78 out of 80
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 20 out of 20
Perfect. I loved the light weight feel of this rod in my hand and how easily it loads in close.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 20 out of 20
Another terrific performance at short distance. Great feel too.
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 20 out of 20
This stacks up as one of the very best 3 weight rods we tested at 30 feet.
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 18 out of 20
Only at longer distance does the accuracy and power fall off.
6. G. Loomis NRX+ LP 8’3”#3 $915.00
I liked this rod a lot. It is more powerful than most of the other 3-weights, but this power helped at long range. In close at 20 feet, it threw nice tight loops and scored well. At 25 and 30 feet, the accuracy dropped off slightly, but then out long at 40 feet, I gave it another perfect score. This makes the NRX+ LP a very versatile three weight, and one I’d pick for fishing both the spring creeks or tailwaters like the Missouri or Big Horn.
Like other G. Loomis rods, this is a very attractive rod, finished in a dark olive/brown with brown thread wraps, trimmed in white on the butt section. The handle design is a modified half wells, with a nice swell in the middle of the grip. Slip over style ferrules are used. The cork is another stack of thin cork rings with almost no imperfections. One darker, rubber/cork ring is used at the bottom of the grip for durability. A double up-locking silver anodized reel seat is fitted, with an attractive amboyna hardwood insert. A hook keeper is fitted just above the cork grip. Guides start out with one titanium stripping guide followed with flexible single foot recoil guides that will bend but not break.
George’s Score: 78 out of 80
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 20 out of 20
Casting off the tip made shorter casts easy, and I’m getting excellent accuracy.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 19 out of 20
Not quite perfect, but very close. I can still cast nicely off the tip.
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 19 out of 20
Excellent accuracy again, that gives me a lot of confidence in placing the fly where it needs to go.
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 20 out of 20
Good butt section power makes 40 to 50-foot casts easy and fun. This rod has plenty of power to reach out to 50 and even 60 feet with reasonable accuracy.
7. Thomas & Thomas Avantt II 8’6”#3 $985.00
Of the two Thomas and Thomas rods we had in our Shootout, the Avantt II is the more powerful rod, and better at longer distances as you will see in the scores. In close, I had at first rated it higher but then after casting more rods I brought it down from 20 to 19. At long range, it was sweet, and better than the Paradigm. I liked the action of the Avantt II, excellent butt power but a nice soft tip. This would be a great rod to use on the Missouri, where I’m often casting farther with small tricos, PMD’s, or evening caddis.
Like all Thomas and Thomas rods, the craftsmanship is excellent. The blank itself is finished in a flat dark blue with brown wraps trimmed in gold on the butt section. You’ll find a serial number on each section, which can be handy if you are using more than one T&T rod.
The cork handle design is a full wells, with a stack of thin and very high quality cork rings. There is a little flare on the bottom end to accommodate the uplocking reel seat. One sliding band is used with one locking ring that was knurled and easy to grip. A nice looking piece of burled walnut is used for the wood spacer.
The guide set up starts with one dark colored stripping guide, followed by hard chrome snake guides that don’t bend. A hook keeper is fitted above the cork handle. The brown guide wraps were very nicely done and beautifully finished with epoxy.
George’s Score: 77.5
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 19 out of 20
The overall stiffness of this rod hurts its performance in close.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 19 out of 20
Again, not quite as good as the top rods but still quite acceptable.
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 19.5 out of 20
Now the stiffness helps it to perform very nicely at 30 feet.
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 20 of 20
Here the Avantt II really shines and sticks the fly right in there with precision.
8. Orvis Helios F 8’4”#3 $1098.00
I’ve enjoyed fishing the Orvis Helios rods, and this one was terrific, especially at the short to mid-distances. This is a significantly softer rod than the T&T Avantt II, and casts noticeably better in close to 30 feet. Only at 40 feet did performance taper off.
The craftsmanship is typical for Orvis, and excellent. This is a rod that you’ll be proud to own and show off to your friends. I get a lot of feel with this rod, and this helps when fishing small dry flies, as you will with a 3-weight rod. Accuracy was also top notch.
The blank is finished in matt olive, with matching olive thread wraps. The cork handle is what they call a modified half wells, but really feels more like a full wells in my hand, still a very comfortable grip. There is a nice taper forward from the middle swell, and with a nice flare at the bottom, next to the reel seat. This is another rod with a stack of narrow cork rings with no imperfections.
The uplocking reel seat is anodized in gray with a couple of cutouts that show off a beautiful piece of gray burled wood. One double-wide uplocking ring is used with a thin plastic ring that insure a solid lock-up.
No hook keeper is used, which I miss. The guide set up starts with one fairly large SiC stripper guide, followed by flexible recoil snake guides. A standard small tiptop guide is used. Alignment dots on the ferrules are a nice help. The epoxy finish on the guide wraps is excellent. All the ferrules are a slip over design.
Orvis uses a 5 ½ inch section of white and light gray just above the handle, which has become a recognized Orvis trademark. This rod will stand out, both leaning against the fence at the Spring Creeks, and in an angler’s hands.
George’s Score: 77.0
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 19.5 out of 20
I’m getting nice feel in close and very good accuracy.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 20 out of 20
A perfect performance - this is a sweet rod for fishing in close!
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 19.5 out of 20
I’m getting excellent accuracy, only a select few were better.
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 18 out of 20
Now the accuracy isn’t quite as good, but still reasonably decent.
9. Echo Trout X 7’6”#3 $399.99
If you are looking for a great mid-priced 3-weight rod, this is it!
The Echo Trout X is a nice light rod with a crisp, medium-fast action that produced excellent accuracy and delicate presentations. The craftsmanship and components are both very good, and better than I had expected for the price!
The blank is a dark olive/brown with dark brown guide wraps. The epoxy finish over the guide wraps was a little bit too heavy but acceptable. A half wells style cork handle is used, and the quality of the thin diameter cork rings was quite good, with no imperfections.
An up-locking reel seat is fitted with silver anodized hardware and a brown wood insert. Only one uplocking ring is used. Guides start out with a hook keeper just above the cork handle, then one fairly large SIC stripping guide followed with hard chrome snake guides.
George’s score: 73
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 19 out of 20
A fairly good performance in close.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 18 out of 20
Good, but not great. The top rods were clearly better.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 18 out of 20
Again, good but not on the same level as the high-end rods.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 18 out of 20
Good but not great.
10. Greys Lance 7’6”#3 $209.95
The Greys rods are an offshoot of the Hardy rods. The Lance is one of their least expensive rods, and at the top of our tested inexpensive rods. With a price this low, it’s easy to expect less than top quality components, but I was surprised to see such good craftsmanship in a $210 rod! The Lance has a nice medium-fast action that produced good scores at all distances and a very light swing weight that nearly equaled the Orvis Helios 7’6”!
The cork grip is a thin half wells, made with standard size cork rings that were surprisingly good in quality. The blank itself is finished in a medium gray. A gray, solid aluminum seat is used with double uplocking rings. The guide wraps are black, trimmed with red on the butt section and tip top. Alignment dots at the ferrules are handy. The guide set up starts with a hook keeper just above the cork handle, a single stripping guide followed up with hard chrome single-foot guides and then the tip top. The epoxy finish on the guides was excellent. This is a sharp looking rod, especially for the low price.
George’s score: 75
George’s Casting Notes at 20 feet: 19 out of 20
Thin grip, but a very good performance in close.
George’s Casting Notes at 25 feet: 19 out of 20
Again, a good performance that equals a lot of the top rods.
George’s Casting Notes at 30 feet: 19 out of 20
Surprisingly good, especially for such an inexpensive rod.
George’s Casting Notes at 40 feet: 18 out of 20
At longer distance, the performance fell off a little bit.